The Desires and Griefs of Elisa In The Chrysanthemums (An analysis of Short story 'Chrysanthemums' by John Steinbeck)

“It will be enough if we can have wine. It will be plenty.” She turned up her coat collar so he could not see that she was crying weakly—like an old woman.

The Chrysanthemums ~ A Classic American Short Story by John Steinbeck (1902-1968)

The desires of Elisa were beginning even when the story is not narrated. Began when she was caring her flower with the expectation on her works, on her chrysanthemums. As we know, chrysanthemums are grown up in the winter season, the opposite from other flowers make chrysanthemums are unique as the symbol that represent of Elisa. So, let’s we say if Elisa has an expectation on herself, the expectation that want to be respectfully by other – especially man – because she can do what man can do. Longing for expectations breeds Desire.

The desire of Elisa unfortunately is not welcomed very well by her husband. You can see from Henry said “…I wish you'd work out in the Orchard and raise some apples that big." It is look like he does not place a value on her works at the chrysanthemums or not very like that flower.

Another desire of Elisa is longing someone who can understand and accompany her, whether friend or her husband – who is not, because he is too busy – since she cannot find that, she decided to choose chrysanthemums as the symbol of other distraction from her loneliness that also can represent a child. It is also proven since she started married, she does not have a child even now she already thirty-five and it is not young age for woman to pregnant and childbirth.

Elisa Allen in ‘The Chrysanthemums” told us, she is a housewife who love gardening and caring the chrysanthemums the most while her husband, Henry busy with his work and colleagues. Elisa habit of gardening seem became a daily live activity – also as a hobby - same as her husband's bussiness untill one day The Tinker man comes, and the drama story begin.

The tinker man supports the revealing of Elisa’s desires and griefs. Elisa gets started talking about her chrysanthemums with the tinker man; she becomes a whole new person because he takes an attention on chrysanthemum "Kind of a long-stemmed flower? Looks like a quick puff of colored smoke?". “That's it. What a nice way to describe them." She's eager and knowledgeable – in her element, so to speak. The conversation about the chrysanthemums creates a strange connection with the tinker man, which is somehow he the only one take an attention on her chrysanthemums and seems care about them. By asking just one question, the tinker man opens Elisa and allows her to release the passion and femininity that she keeps hidden throughout her life.

The tinker man lives on adventures, from one place to another. And this kind of life is somehow interesting to Elisa. "It must be very nice. I wish women could do such things." But seems like the tinker man does not agree with it “It ain't the right kind of a life for a woman.” From this conversation, we can see if Elisa’s desire is to have a live like a man do, further want to be free – free to do what she wants to do – Because why not? She can do what man can do, she can fix things, she is strong enough, but once again, she is a woman. And the women in that era are marginalized and subordinated – maybe until now.

When the desires come out there must be griefs with them. The griefs support Elisa’s desires. Her loneliness of does not have a friend and someone want to understand breeds hobby to take care chrysanthemums. Feelings cage and not respectfully because she is a woman breed the masculinity and a desire to live like a man, free like a man. Just like unification of sugar and salt in a cake. The salt in cake become a trigger to make sugar sweeter and this case just like Elisa’s masculinity is needed to recognize she is a real woman, even she is different, the feminism still same. And her biggest grief comes to the end of the story.

The conversation between the tinker man and Elisa ended with Elisa gave her chrysanthemum’s sprouts with pot to him and Elisa became sympathize that she gave him two aluminum saucepans to repaired. When the tinker man goes with his wagon and mongrel dog. She whispers quietly like don’t want anybody listen "Good-bye—good-bye." Then she whispered, "That's a bright direction. There's a glowing there." Like she said to herself if part of her is already fulfill the desire to go and be free.

The chrysanthemums which he carried represented her, become the part of the tinker man’s adventure and the most important is Elisa be listened, understood and needed by someone who is the tinker man. Somehow the tinker man awakens the passion that has been stifled and Elisa has a sort of out of body experience that causes her to feel for the first time in a long time, some excitement. After that she prepared herself with dress and nicest stocking. She showed her feminist with the confident and surprised her husband with her aura.        

Then Elisa and Her husband – Henry – go to the restaurant for dinner.   In the middle of the travel Elisa sees the chrysanthemums dumped carelessly in the road by the tinker man, and that seals the deal. The conversation she was so thrilled by, all the things she shared with him about her flowers and how she felt about them meant so little to him that he unceremoniously chucks them out of his dumpy little wagon. When Elisa passes his caravan, she can't even bear to look in his direction.

Elisa has sent her cherished chrysanthemums off with the man down the road. It's possible that up until this point, for Elisa, the experience with the tinker man visitor was totally positive one. But now, what she thought she experienced while talking to the tinker man in the wagon proves not to be true at all. He doesn't care about her flowers, and he certainly doesn't care about her. From this moment on, the story became gloomier.

            The "dark speck" is unique illustrating the chrysanthemums, because this is the only one that flower called like that aren’t mentioned by name. But Elisa – and we – knows that speck is her flowers – her pride and joy that have been cast rudely aside, like Elisa herself. She's stuck in a life where her husband can't understand her, and the man she connects with rejects what she most values. And the fact that these flowers, which are typically bright, and colorful, are described as dark tells us that these chrysanthemums have changed somehow in Elisa view.

The end of the story brings us to the pitiful ending. When Elisa cries "like an old woman," although we don't know exactly why, we can't help but guess that it might be because she's grieving for a life she will never have – a life those trashed chrysanthemums had come to represent. With a single simile, "like an old woman," Steinbeck shows us, Elisa’s sense of loss and grief. About how be like an old woman who does not need by anybody else or even not be useful or even she already knows what her whole life will be like or maybe also because she is not young for bearing a child. Steinbeck manages to pack all these possibilities in four little words. Whatever the possibilities are, one thing is obvious that if the old woman is powerless to face the cruelness of the world and so do with Elisa.