Cold Realization: Following a Theme of Lost
Innocence Through Two Classic Stories
by Roobee
In the short stories “The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck and “The Things They Carried” by
Tim O’Brien, a reader feels the thematic impression of lost innocence. In each tale, there comes a
point at which the protagonist changes, giving up naïve fantasy for a harsh, or at least more
practical, reality. By examining the writings more deeply, a reader begins to understand how each
author uses the elements of setting, symbolism, tone, plot, and character very deliberately to create
and build upon this idea.
Each story opens with a rich description of its setting. With “The Chrysanthemums,” Steinbeck takes
us into the Salinas Valley in California. He immediately establishes it as being a sort of selfcontained place, telling us how the winter fog “closed off Salinas Valley from the sky and all the rest
of the world…like a lid…(on a) closed pot” (Steinbeck p157). Already, a reader feels as if its
inhabitants, too, might be similarly contained– perhaps even cut off or disconnected from everything
else. Steinbeck tells us that on the foothills, the sun is shining but in the valley it is gray which seems
set up to be a parallel to Elisa’s sheltered life and her feelings about escaping it. Later, after her
encounter with the savvy traveler, she ruminates, “That’s a bright direction. There’s a glowing there”
(Steinbeck p163). From her position in the safe and orderly (but drab) valley, she regards the
possibility of a more unpredictable and exciting life – like those sunny foothills - with idealistic envy.
The Allen farming property, which is described as being Henry Allen’s ranch specifically, lies on said
hills, while the home -Elisa’s domain - is in the area covered over by fog. Steinbeck has created a
landscape that tells a story in itself. In Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried,” there seem to be
two concurrent settings – the hostile and frighteningly alien world of the Vietnam jungle, and the
starkly contrasting beaches Lieutenant Cross inhabits in his mind as he dreams of Martha. There,
O’Brien paints a landscape of “sun and waves and gentle winds, all love and lightness” (O’Brien
p1040). He then sobers the mood by abruptly returning the reader to “…the humidity, the monsoons,
the stink of fungus and decay” of Cross’s real surroundings throughout the story (O’Brien p1043).
While Steinbeck immediately establishes a vivid setting, in O’Brien’s story a reader doesn’t see a
landscape right off; instead, the full picture emerges as the author reveals it. Either tale’s setting
itself is rife with symbolism, as is the entire body of each work.
Symbols are used very effectively in the conveyance of the theme within these two writings. “The
Chrysanthemums” contains strong symbols that Steinbeck uses to saturate the text with meaning.
The chrysanthemums Elisa grows seem to be a representation or extension of the woman herself.
Just as Elisa longs for experience beyond her own, her tender young Chrysanthemum shoots ready
themselves to extend beyond their comfortable bed. The descriptions of her home and her garden
and even the way she conducts herself further illustrate the larger theme. The perfect square
planting garden and “hard-swept home” with “hard-polished windows” as well as the orderly manner
in which she stacks the young plants reflect her organized, stable life (Steinbeck p158). These also
allude to her energy, the “over-eager, over-powerful” way in which she tackles her chores (Steinbeck
p158). The traveling stranger then represents the dirty, dangerous adventure Mrs. Allen secretly
longs for, as does the boxing match that seems to intrigue her despite her efforts to conceal this fact.
(Later, she returns to being put off by the prospect of attending the match after having suffered the
bruised ego at the hands of the tricky nomad). In “The Things They Carried,” many of the objects
described as being “humped” by the men are very much symbolic. Many of the items carried are
tokens of the innocence that these men have for the most part left behind. The condoms Sanders
carries have great impact as a symbol – a link back to where sex is the biggest moral conundrum a
young man might face. The stone Lieutenant Cross holds symbolizes his youthful innocence, his
tangible link to his fantasy existence with the elusive Martha (who herself represents foolish boyhood
hopes and dreams). Also drenched with symbolism, is the description of where Martha found the
stone and why she chose it. She has selected it because it was at a place where “things come
together and where they are separate” (O’Brien p1039). Her toying, cryptic words seem to allude to
her feelings (or lack thereof) for Cross. This seems like a perfect metaphor for his mental process at
the moment he decides to discard the stone, which is the culmination of the all of the plot elements
coming together. At that moment, everything comes together for Cross as well and he understands
that he must separate himself from the gauzy daydreams that cannot be realized. All of these
representations are showcased and given further meaning by the unique tone created by each
author.
Throughout Chrysanthemums, the tone feels anticipatory. “It was quiet and of waiting” (Steinbeck
p157). Just as the farmers cautiously hope for rain, Elisa anticipates something more for herself. The
farms, the new chrysanthemums, the orchards – all tentatively await something just beyond reach.
The tone in “The Things They Carried” is reminiscent of a soldier’s marching chant. The recitation of
items carried on each man reads with a cadence that feels like the plodding march described later
on as “marching for the sake of the march” (O’Brien p1043). A seemingly endless litany of stuff and
the weight of it keeps this pace going throughout. There are glimmers of beauty, when the men
fantasize and the wording becomes lighter and more comfortable. The breezy sandy shoreline
where the young lieutenant meets Martha in his waking dreams stands in looming disparity to the
sweltering, mine-filled jungles of Vietnam. The tone is intrinsic to the unraveling of the plot in both
short stories.
The organization and development of plot in these works are carefully crafted to convey meaning
and seem to implore the reader to consider how experience robs innocence. The plot in Steinbeck’s
yarn builds, crescendos, and then subsides. Elisa is at first bold and plucky, carrying the innocence
of a child who thinks she can do anything. Once she has been burned a tad by reality after being
taken by the pot-and-pan-man, she retracts and once again resigns to her ‘proper’ place as a
demure wife. Where “The Chrysanthemums” has a linear plotline, “The Things They Carried” circles
around and around as it hones in on the climactic moment at the center. The non-chronological
telling of the story creates layers that peel back one by one until our view of the whole story is
complete. The lifeblood of both plots, of course, is the main character.
Each author has his protagonist in a place that is cut off from another world for which he or she
longs until the epiphany moment whereupon they discover that their fantasy does not fit into
actuality. When Lieutenant Cross finally gives himself fully over to the adult matters at hand, O’Brien
completely loses the dreamy, hopeful voice that has interjected throughout the story. From that
moment on, the character’s thoughts are matter-of-fact and businesslike – apt for the transition that
has just taken place in him. He tells himself that he will now “be a man about it” (O’Brien p1048). The
weight of Lavender’s death is borne in the way O’Brien’s main character conducts himself thereafter.
Each story’s main character is separated or cut off somehow. Cross’s exile is more blatant as he has
no doubt been drafted and is “just a kid at war” (O’Brien p1041). Elisa is more caged by societal
norms and by her own confusion about what she wants and who she is. When Elisa is feeling her
most empowered, her language is confident and precise – “I’m strong. I never knew before how
strong” (Steinbeck p163). Once she has been whipped a bit by her experience with the roadman,
she speaks more timidly, as if unsure of herself – “Oh, no. No ... It will be enough if we have wine. It
will be plenty.” This is very effective in conveying her state of mind to the reader.
Both “The Chrysanthemums” and “The Things They Carried” share a message about letting go of
the innocent, undaunted part of one’s heart. Each main character must examine his or her hopeful
perceptions in the face of real world harshness. Each comes to a life-altering realization that things
as they are cannot and perhaps should not be changed. Neither story ends comfortably, both leaving
a haunting reminder that life is not necessarily fair, just, or as one may have imagined. In both
stories, the main character looks out beyond his or her situation to an alternative reality. Whereas
Elisa returns in a sense to her innocence shy from the bite, our young soldier has presumably left his
behind forever. In both cases, though, the clever authors have begged their reader to look into the
human condition – its power and its frailty - and to perhaps look at one’s own story of disillusionment
or abandoned innocence.