In John Steinbeck's short story "The Chrysanthemums," the chrysanthemums.
             Represent the soul of every woman. Elisa Allen represents the feminine ideal of equality and its inevitable defeat from a male's perspective. Together the chrysanthemums and Elisa Allen convey the Woman Rights Movement; just as Elisa Allen lives her limited life that is cut off from all social and sexual pleasure, and so do women.
             Elisa Allen tends to a fantastic garden of chrysanthemums. Both the chrysanthemums and Elisa are closed off by the surrounding towns by "the high grey flannel fog" (246) but also cut off to the neighbors by "the wire fence" (247). Elisa tends extra special care to the flowers, making them stronger and stronger; she also keeps them from intruding pests such as the "aphids, "sowbugs," "snail," or "cutworms" (247) because only one could destroy the whole crop. Her husband isn't so concerned about the garden. He acknowledges the fact that she's "got a gift with things" (247), but wishes she'd "work out in the orchard," (247) this implies that her garden is not productive, but the orchard is. She replies with "Maybe I could do it too" (247), which shows she can do more, but she's not going to give up on her chrysanthemums. She is not going to give up the fight and will keep doing what she believes in.
             John Steinbeck shows the emotional side of women by using the business deal made with the peddler. Who offers her his services. Elisa is a strong woman who doesn't need a man's help, so she declines. The peddler then pretends to find admiration for her chrysanthemums and describes them as a "quick puff of colored smoke" (249), unlike Henry, who finds them unproductive. Peddler then tells her of another woman that he knows that "has the nicest garden you have ever seen" (249); the only thing is that she doesn't have any chrysanthemums. He then reveals that she wanted them from seed. Elisa gro
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