"The Chrysanthemums"

In the story “The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck I believe that the name itself is symbolic of the type of person that women of that time, like Elisa, strive to be. This flower is said to have meanings such as perfection, optimism and joy. In that era that is the type of person that most women have been portrayed as striving to be (perfect, optimistic and joyous). They all want to be the perfect wife or the perfect mother. I think back to some of the stories I have read or movies I have seen from this time and it seems to me as if this is what most of the wives or mothers try to imitate.
In the beginning of the story it states “Her figure blocked and heavy in her gardening costume, a man’s black hat pulled low down over her eyes, clod-hopper shoes, a figured print dress almost completely covered by a big corduroy apron with four big pockets to hold the snips….” (p. 632, Kirszner & Mandell). When thinking of women in this era I feel that an apron is also a symbol of the so-called perfect wife or mother. I think that they wore the aprons to hide their figures, as stated in this sentence. Most women of this time were sexually repressed and reserved their figures only to be seen by their husbands so most of the day was spent wearing an apron. I rarely see an apron worn in this day and age as women tend to be freer with their expression of themselves and no longer feel they need to hide under the strings of an apron. Also, women of this time spent most of the day doing the cooking and cleaning which the apron was also needed for so they didn’t get their clothes dirty. In more modern times the chores are usually split amongst the household or hired help is used.
Toward the end of the story it states “And then she scrubbed herself with a little block of pumice, legs and thighs, loins and chest and arms, until her skin was scratched and red.” (p. 638) while she was taking a hot bath before going to dinner with her husband. I feel this is saying that Elisa felt “dirty” after talking to the stranger about something she loved so dearly – her gardening. This was a topic that she usually reserved for her husband and by taking a hot bath and scrubbing so hard she was washing all of the conversation with the man away. Her husband stated that she was looking and acting like a whole new person after these events. The stranger threw her for a loop and I think that it may have changed her outlook about her womanly role for just a short moment of time.