Preview

How Does Steinbeck Use Gender Stereotypes In The Chrysanthemums

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
695 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
How Does Steinbeck Use Gender Stereotypes In The Chrysanthemums
When thinking about gender in past years compared to gender in todays world there is a large leap to where gender and its stereotypes have come. For many individuals gender is an intense controversial topic. Although we are all human beings trying to live up to some kind of goal there are still these stereotypes degrading each other based on how we are born. Many times we see the stereotypes of gender in society being portrayed through the "typical character roles" within stories read.
In the short story "The Chrysanthemums" John Steinbeck shows the gender stereotype through his characters; Elisa, Henry, and the tinker. The story takes place in a later time when woman did not have many rights. Elisa would stay at home to clean, cook, get the clothing together and prepare the bath ready each day for her husband while Henry left home to tend to his working duties. In many ways Elisa's jobs have stuck with woman to this day. In our society woman have more right. Both, men and woman, work all day and come home to sometimes work even more. However, even though the woman has been working just as hard some men come home expecting food to
…show more content…
In the short story there is an accident and a man, known as the Misfit, is harming the family one by one. In attempt to stop the Misfit from killing everyone the grandmother tells him, "You've got good blood! I know you wouldn't shoot a lady! I know you come from nice people" (458). This is a stereotype more towards the older woman nowadays, especially grandmothers. Grandmothers are seen to be sweet older woman who will do or say anything to keep others happy. If the stereotype of the grandmother being sweet and uplifting would have been changed to something else the story may have changed with it. If the grandmother instead was more aggressive there may have been a different outcome for the family and maybe someone or all could have been

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In The Chrysanthemums, John Steinbeck intends to suggest that women are not equal to men in society. Elisa experiences this when she is not able to participate in male-oriented activities that her husband takes part in. Elisa, the woman, is thus a lesser person because of her gender. It leads me to believe that myself along with all other women may not be suitable for certain kinds of work.…

    • 1027 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Tom Corey Gender Roles

    • 1354 Words
    • 6 Pages

    depiction of how societies view of men and women change with the times as well. Gender roles…

    • 1354 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    At the turn of the 20th century, women were considered inferior to men: they were only required to stay at home, take care of households and children. “The Chrysanthemums”, as told by John Steinbeck, is a story of a woman during that period who tries to change the course of her destiny. In this story, the two-fold issues of femininity and symbolism play a critical part in explaining this helplessness. Steinbeck uses the narrative to signify the hope for change of the woman as well as her character by illustrating different similarities between Elisa and her flowers. Readers are able to comprehend how a lady feels when she is caged within her life, and the struggles to disengage from such oppression. At the end of the story, the writer expresses a sense of hopelessness for Elisa because, although she might try as much as possible to free herself, reality will rise up and keep her entrenched in a subdued role.…

    • 1128 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When her husband Henry concludes his business with the cattle buyers, Elisa immediately wants to know who the men were and what they wanted. Henry pays her a compliment about her “strong new crop” of chrysanthemums. She is smug and pleased with his masculine choice of words, but then he immediately invites her to dinner in town. She seems to deflate at his statement, as if his invitation reminded her of her femininity. She then goes back to her masculine role of working with the…

    • 695 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Steinbeck’s “The Chrysanthemums”, omniscient point of view helps the reader see the changes Elisa’s goes through after the visit from the tinker. When the story begins, Elisa is described as wearing a manly looking outfit. The narrator even describes her body as “blocked and heavy.”(321) As the tinker talks, Charles A. Sweet Jr. points out Elisa's calculated and conscious masculine efforts become more and more feminine (212). When the tinker leaves Elisa bathes herself, and looks at herself naked in the mirror, and then dresses up in a pretty dress, and makeup. These feminine items contrast with the gardening outfit and suggest a renewed Elisa. At the end of the story, after she sees the flowers on the road, she pulls up her coat collar to hide her tears, something that suggests a move backward into the repressed life she lived before the tinker payed her a visit. Likewise, in “Clothes”, the author develops Sumitas character through the clothing she wears. At night Sumita was freed when her husband let her wear American clothes in secret. But when Somesh Sen is killed Sumita is forced to choose between an oppressive life in India and a free one in America; choosing a life in America, Sumita sports American…

    • 990 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout the ages women have been confined to the role of a family wife. Being born a women already gave you a set job to do for the rest of a girl's life. In the Story “The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck, Elisa lives a hopeful life until is goes through a downward spiral as she faces the hard truth of the world around her.…

    • 665 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Stereotypes In Mad Men

    • 1318 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Perhaps one of the most prevalent, and yet widely unnoticed phenomena in society is that of gender stereotyping. It is prevalent in that it exists not only as a product of media, a cultivated image by a few, but also as common and subconscious characterizations developed in every individual. While it is both the blatant portrayals of iconic stereotypes on television and the stinging sexist remarks heard in everyday life that bring stereotyping to one’s attention, it is just as real and potent in the ways it falls under the radar.…

    • 1318 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    “There should be no distinction between typical masculine and feminine occupations, and the traits of character should not be ascribed once and for all one gender.” said Malgarzata Walsh of krytyka.org. Stereotyping and gender roles have played a prevalent role not only in our modern society but throughout history. Webster’s dictionary defines gender or sex roles as “the behaviors, attitudes, and activities expected or common for males and females”. Gender roles have been defining societal norms for both males and females since the beginning of civilization. We view the “normal” to be submissive, emotional women who are useful for nothing more than cooking, cleaning, and staying home to care for the children; while men are looked upon as the proud, strong, manly, and sole provider for the family. While in recent years, certain people and organizations have been working hard to cease the use of these stereotypical roles, they are still very common throughout television, film, literature, and advertisement.…

    • 680 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mickey Mouse Monopoly

    • 677 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Another stereotype of gender is found in Snow White. The princess is perceived as a beautiful, faire, young lady who is nothing like the typical woman you would find in America, living in the woods in solitude who loves to cook and clean up after the dwarves. This idea is similar to that of women having to stay in the house and clean up and cook for the family, and not being able to have a life outside of the home as anything but a caretaker. This idea of women having to stay in the house goes hand in hand with…

    • 677 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The 1930’s was a period of empowerment for women. The Great Depression gave women a taste of what life would be like as strong, independent people. However, when the Great Depression came to an end life returned to the way things were. In American author John Steinbeck’s short story “The Chrysanthemums” (1938), he explores the life of a woman desperate for independence from a world run by men. Steinbeck uses symbolism to illustrate a woman’s search for fulfilment in a male dominated society.…

    • 1602 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    * gender in the same way, with the men as dominant, powerful, and successful and the women as subordinate, weak, and completely dependent on the men in their lives. Society has come to accept these stereotypes and bases many of its judgments on the assumption that these gender stereotypes are true for every woman and man.…

    • 1080 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    What aspects of gender roles have changed from the past to the present? How are the gender stereotypes different? In the past, men were stereotyped as having more power over women in terms of marriage and citizenry. As time has gone forward, there has been more gender equality and fighting for women’s rights, so men have lost power and say in relationships and as citizens. The sources The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, “Our Deportment, or the Manners, Conduct, and Dress of Refined Society,” by John H. Young, and, “HeForShe: Gender Equality is Your Issue, Too,” by Emma Watson emphasize differences in gender roles and stereotypes as time has progressed. Based on the novel, essay, and speech, genders are stereotyped differently and their…

    • 956 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Today’s society many of us will see how gender becomes an issue. Women and men are put into a box of stereotypes causing everyone to wonder. Women have had a lasting effect on this, being view as only defenseless women and also race can be a problem. Men are also put in a box but women to this day are still thrown back in there.…

    • 938 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Chrysanthemums Theme

    • 573 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The enteral idea of the story is gender discrimination. Elisa has the ability to be a good farmer and work with his husband as a partner. However, Henry Allen always neglected her, because she is a woman. Elisa loves her garden and the chrysanthemums and when she realized that the tinker just trick with her emotions that makes Elisa more depressed and week.…

    • 573 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Romeo and Juliet

    • 1210 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Good morning my fellow year 9 & year 10 peers. Today I'll be talking about the hot topic of "Gender roles limit and restrict". Have you ever felt painstakingly sickened of being told that women and girls in today’s patriarchal society are considered soft, delicate, weak and homebound? I don’t know about you; however I find this stereotypical assumption demeaning and unrealistic. My English class is doing a unit called ‘Stepping out of male stereotypes’. The purpose of this unit is to heighten our knowledge of the restrictive nature of gender stereotypes, with a main focus on masculinity, so that we are able to recognise and evaluate gender stereotypes when they are presented to us in texts such as ‘Touch Me’ by James Moloney, and the teen pic ‘She’s the Man’ directed by Andy Fickman.…

    • 1210 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays