When Annie is in raptures over how great the flowers smell, for example, Elizabeth claims to disagree:. It was chrysanthemums when I married him, and chrysanthemums when you were born, and the first time they ever brought him home drunk, he'd got brown chrysanthemums in his button-hole.
Hmm, it's not very nice to tell your daughter that you hate a smell that reminds you of her existence, is it? It's also weird that she would say she doesn't like those flowers, given that she keeps them around the house and grabbed a bunch to stick in her apron earlier in the story. You can see "Symbolism" for more on that, but the bottom line is that Elizabeth seems ambivalent about chrysanthemums: sometimes she likes them, and other times they seem to bring up squirmy feelings and memories for her.
Late in the story, however, the smell becomes clearly associated with sadness and death. The chrysanthemums themselves also undergo change and upheaval, still alive and growing in the beginning of the story, wilting as the story progresses, and getting knocked over as the story reaches its climax with the arrival of Walter's dead body.
For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:. Part 1 Quotes. Related Characters: Elizabeth speaker , Walter. Related Symbols: Chrysanthemums. Page Number and Citation : 80 Cite this Quote. Explanation and Analysis:.
The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. Part 1. He pulls at the chrysanthemums on the path, scattering the petals, and his mother tells him to stop because it As Elizabeth lights the lamp, revealing her pregnant stomach, Annie catches sight of the chrysanthemums in her mother's waistband, exclaiming on their beauty. Book: Misery Pages: 4 Words: Views: We use cookies to give you the best experience possible. Sorry, but only registered users have full access.
How about getting full access immediately? Become a member. This material doesn't solve your task? When the men eventually carry him in, one knocks over a vase of chrysanthemums, and Elizabeth tidies up the mess before she turns to face the body.
Chrysanthemums, although primarily a symbol of death, occasionally have life-affirming associations as well. When Elizabeth tells her daughter about the time Walter came home drunk, she prefaces the memory with other celebratory moments when chrysanthemums have punctuated her life: her marriage and the birth of Annie.
0コメント