The Chyrsanthemums: symbolism

In the short story “The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck, Steinbeck uses symbolism throughout the story to describe Elisa, the main character of the story. Steinbeck uses symbolism to reveal the Elisa’s hidden emotions and true character. The chrysanthemums that Elisa admires and takes care of represent her in many different ways.
The chrysanthemums symbolize many traits of Elisa, with one of them being her feminine side. In the beginning of the story, Steinbeck establishes Elisa’s passion in regards to the chrysanthemums. She treats them like they were almost like children that need to be nurtured and cared for. She trims the flowers diligently and with the utmost care, so much that she is proud of what they have become. Steinbeck even goes to tell that Elisa would destroy pests before they could get near her chrysanthemums. This shows that she is protective of her “flowers” and will do everything it takes to keep them from harm.
The chrysanthemums further symbolize her feminine side when she meets the tinker while tending to her flowers. At first, Elisa is hesitant and tries to resist the tinker. But the tinker senses Elisa’s passion for her chrysanthemums. He plays on this and finally gets Elisa’s full attention. The chrysanthemums symbolize Elisa’s feminine side and the tinker played on that. After a short conversation, Elisa even makes a pass at the tinker, showing that the chrysanthemums are her weakness. She believes that the tinker is going to take the flowers to one of his customers in the area, but in the end, she finds that the tinker threw away her chrysanthemums on the side of the road. Elisa cries at this sight, as she knows now that the tinker only showed interest in her flowers to get her business. The sight of Elisa crying over her flowers shows her true feminine side – weak, soft, and vulnerable.