ibed as "over-eager" and "over-powerful". All of these characteristics are usually masculine adjectives. But in this case they describe a woman attempting or at least imagining living as a part of such a man's world. Yet Elisa's power is not used for "masculine" activities; in fact, her power is derived from a feminine source, nature. Mother Nature, a female, controls the environment. This female power is part of matriarchal lineage since Elisa'a mother also "could stick anything in the ground and make it grow". She enjoys coming into contact with the earth as she digs and pushes the dirt around her chrysanthemums. She destroyed pests with her fingers and also put these fingers "into the forest of new green chrysanthemum sprouts that were growing around the old roots". Her fingers are described as "terrier," literally of the earth Elisa is seemingly ambivalent about which side of herself to show to her husband and the world. While she wants to seem strong, it seems to violate her role of being the pretty wife. When her husband suddenly comes up behind her, she immediately pulls on her gloves again. This could be to cover her dirty hands, but it also covers them, hiding her femininity. Nevertheless, she is proud of her gardening for "in her tone and on her face there was a little smugness" with her husband's compliment. When Henry even suggests she could use her talents in the apple orchard "her eyes sharpened". Elisa shows off her power saying, "'I've a gift with things, all right'". The apple orchard is part of the man's world, involving growing food for consumption. This is outside of her fenced in garden. As her husband comes to talk with her, while she enjoys showing off her garden, she seems to feel sub-subservient to him. As he kids her about going to the prize fights later that day, she responds in a breathless tone that she would not like them, uncomprehending the joking n
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