"The Crysanthemums"

This story starts out very dry and takes a while to pick up. In the very begining John Stienbeck does nothing but describe the farm land and the garden and Elisa. Which helps us be able to put our self in the situation but was hard to keep attention until the story line accutally picked up. There is alot of repeition in this story which makes you constintly try and find a reason or some kinda of sybolizim for it. "Elisa took off her gloves and stuffed them in the apron pocket with the sissors." Even after class discussion i can not figure out why that phrase has any importance in the story. However we can sybolize the Crysanthemums as her life, happiness and peace. Elisa inside seemed very depressed not satisfied or happy with her life although behind the Crysanthemum she found her joy and her happiness as if they were her kids. When the sales man or the man in the wagon appared and began to talk to her she seemed friendly as his talk became more pushey on his sales then she began to get annoyed but, when his interst became in her flowers its as if her intrest grow for him. In my opinion we dont technicaly know what happend between them which could start a whole other converstation about what really went on before he left. I dont feel she was very happy in her marital situation thats why she spent soo much time in the garden with her "children" perfecting them. Over all i feel this was a very well written story. Was not confusing and comming from a whole bunch of differnt narrators or using hard words to understand. Alhtought it did make you think and tie things together in order to keep the read a interesting one.