The Chrysanthemums 2
The Chrysanthemums, by John Steinbeck, is set in the beautiful valley of Salinas, California, during a time when California was the land of plenty. A place where dust storms and drought were unheard of, where water was plentiful and the air sprinkled with the sweet smell of fruit blossoms. A time when simple people farm the land and struggle to find a place for themselves in the world.
Elisa Allen is at a point in her life where she has begun to realize that her energy and creative drive far exceed what life has offered her. Her husband, Henry Allen, is a well meaning and essentially good man and is quite pleased to be able to make a decent living. Her marriage is reasonably happy and ...
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life than a neat house and a good garden. Their marriage is childless and conventional and she has begun to sense that an important part of her is dying and that her future will be predictable and mundane. Elisa is a barren woman who has transferred her maternal impulses to her garden, a garden full of unborn seedlings.
On the other hand, Elisa would never consider a lurid affair, when a dark mysterious stranger appears at their quiet farm dwelling looking for work. A complete contrast from her husband, an adventurer who lives spontaneously, a man of the road not bound by standard measures of time or place. Since mending pots is a way of life, he has found it necessary to be able to charm potential customers into giving him work, and is very skillful at calculating a person’s emotional needs. The stranger is described as big, bearded, and graying man, who knows something about life and people. A man with a captivating presence whose eyes are dark and “full of ...
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dramatic. Elisa feels energized and appreciated, delighted by her moment to share her special skill and excited by the chance to share, at least in her imagination, a totally different kind of life. As she prepares for the evening, the effort she usually puts into scrubbing the house is redirected into her transformation to make herself as attractive as she now feels. Her husband is both surprised and pleased by her appearance, and their conversation is mixed with pleasantries and unexpected delight as they both enjoy the animating effect of Elisa’s encounter. Their mood remains distinctly elevated as they head for town, but then Elisa sees a small speck on the road in the ...
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"The Chrysanthemums 2." Essayworld.com. August 5, 2008. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Chrysanthemums-2/87870.
"The Chrysanthemums 2." Essayworld.com. August 5, 2008. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Chrysanthemums-2/87870.
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