(Lawrence, 2317)*.
This does not sound like a beautiful place to live. The beauty of nature is simply not present in this world. It has been choked out by the industrialization of the time. Mining has killed the beauty of nature and thus nature itself. So, this flower, a beautiful and delicate part of nature, not only represents human death but represents its own as well. .
Chrysanthemums are strategically placed throughout the story in order to trace the events of Elizabeth's relationship with her husband. Lawrence relates their relationship to Elizabeth's interaction with the flowers. Elizabeth's "ambivalent feelings towards her husband are reflected in her ambivalence towards the chrysanthemums- (online source, A). As the reader becomes better acquainted with the symbol of the flower, he/she also becomes intimately involved with the workings of the relationship. Through this usage, the reader is also given a great deal of information about Elizabeth's character. .
"Beside the path hung disheveled pink chrysanthemums, like pink cloths hung on bushes- (Lawrence, 2317). One could conclude that this sentence alludes to the beginning of Elizabeth's relationship with her future husband. The choice of disheveled' when connected with the simile like pink cloths hung on bushes' possibly could suggest more than mere flowers. Perhaps Lawrence intended the reader to picture the explicit image of clothes hanging on bushes with a pair of lovers disheveled' amongst them. Pink flowers can be used to covey sexual intimacy between lovers.
"As they went slowly towards the house he [Elizabeth's son, John] tore at the ragged wisps of chrysanthemums and dropped the petals in handfuls along the path- (Lawrence, 2317). Before a bride walks down the aisle in a church, it is traditional for a flower girl to drop handfuls of flower petals along the aisle for the bride to walk upon. This scene may symbolically represent the marriage of the couple.
