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Definition of Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the story. Foreshadowing can be achieved directly or indirectly, by making... read full definition
Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the story. Foreshadowing can be achieved... read full definition
Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the... read full definition
Key Examples in The Chrysanthemums
Foreshadowing
Explanation and Analysis—A Bright Direction:
Elisa leaves the interaction with the tinker somewhat optimistically after he takes an interest in her chrysanthemums. Even though he denigrated her dreams of living a similar life to him and refused her sexual advances, she found some refuge in the fact that he took some flowers, a symbol of her sexuality, femininity, and work ethic. In a passage marked by ironic foreshadowing, she feels satisfied:
Elisa stood in front of her wire fence watching the slow progress of the caravan.... Then she whispered, "That’s a bright direction. There’s a glowing there."
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—A Closed Pot:
Imagery in the opening of The Chrysanthemums introduces all of the story's key themes:
Unlock with LitCharts A+The high grey-flannel fog of winter closed off the Salinas Valley from the sky and from all the rest of the world. On every side it sat like a lid on the mountains and made of the great valley a closed pot. On the broad, level land floor the gang plows bit deep and left the black earth shining like metal where the shares had cut. On the foothill ranches across the Salinas River, the yellow stubble fields seemed to be bathed in pale cold sunshine, but there was no sunshine in the valley now in December.
Related Themes:
