Analysis Of John Steinbeck's 'The Chrysanthemums'

1310 Words3 Pages

Many people have different views on who is to blame for the Allens’ marital problems in John Steinbeck’s “The Chrysanthemums.” However, author Gregory J. Palmerino, author of the article “Steinbeck 's The Chrysanthemums,” writes that the blame for the failing marriage is shared by both the wife and husband. Main characters Elisa and Henry seem to have an ideal marriage, complete with a domestic wife and a husband who compliments his wife and takes care of their finances. However, a deeper look reveals that both parties are desperately denying their personal desires in order to avoid conflict. For example, “Both Elisa and Henry equally suffer from conflict avoidance and appear to habitually withdraw from each other spiritually, intellectually, …show more content…

One technique was the control of power. In the story, Henry is head of the household, even if he may not be the best equipped. While Elisa is headstrong, independent and not afraid to confront total strangers, Henry seems to be pushed around and lack any sense of dominance. For example, readers see Henry delighted that he almost got his way in a business deal: “I sold those thirty head of three-year-old steers. Got nearly my own price, too” (Steinbeck 2). However, Elisa is more than capable of expressing herself when she wanted the Tinker to leave: “‘I 'm sorry,’ Elisa said irritably. ‘I haven 't anything for you to do’” (Steinbeck 5). The story “The Chrysanthemums” goes along with the Doctrine of Separate Spheres. USlegal.com defines the Doctrine of Separate Spheres as “an old common law principle that wives are limited to the personal or domestic sphere and that husbands had control of the public sphere..” In the Doctrine of Separate Spheres, women are to be in the private sphere and men in the public sphere. Women should only be involved in the house, children and taking care of domestic chores; while men should be involved with the outside world- politics and the economy. That is shown in by Elisa doing her gardening and keeping the house clean: “Behind her stood the neat, white farm house with red geraniums close-banked around it as high as the windows. It was a hard-swept …show more content…

The irony of the case was how Mr. Wright was murdered and the incentive behind it. Before his murder, Mr. Wright strangled his wife’s pet canary; this, added on to years of unhappiness and possible abuse, caused Mrs. Wright to snap. After her bird was strangled, Mrs. Wright murdered her own husband by strangling him in his sleep. The rope signifies that the death of Mrs. Wright’s only happiness is what threw her over the edge, because there was a gun in the house. The irony of the evidence was about who found it and solved the case. Due to the Doctrine of Separate Spheres, the men were in charge of finding evidence due to being in the public sphere of politics. The women were there to only get items for Mrs. Wright from the private sphere of her home. However, it was the women who found the evidence, not the

Open Document