Odour of Chrysanthemums Family Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #4

Directly, gratefully, came quick young steps to the door. Someone hung on the latch a moment, then a little girl entered and began pulling off her outdoor things, dragging a mass of curls, just ripening from gold to brown, over her eyes with her hat.

Her mother chid her for coming late from school, and said she would have to keep her at home the dark winter days. (1.38-39)

In yet another example of how the story emphasizes characters' family roles over their individuality, our introduction to Annie is pretty odd. At first, the narrator refers to her simply as "a little girl," making her sound like some random who has just shown up in the house unannounced. We only learn what Annie's role in the family is in passing, when the narrator refers to Elizabeth as her mother. Strange, no?

Quote #5

Nevertheless she took a paper spill from a sheaf on the mantelpiece and proceeded to light the lamp that hung from the ceiling in the middle of the room. As she reached up, her figure displayed itself just rounding with maternity. (1.65)

This is the first mention of the fact that Elizabeth is pregnant with her third child. Lawrence doesn't make a big deal of it, just slipping it in quickly in Elizabeth's chat with her daughter.

Quote #6

At a quarter to ten there were footsteps. One person! She watched for the door to open. It was an elderly woman, in a black bonnet and a black woollen shawl—his mother. She was about sixty years old, pale, with blue eyes, and her face all wrinkled and lamentable. She shut the door and turned to her daughter-in-law peevishly. (2.41)

In this moment, we meet Walter's mother (i.e., Elizabeth's mother-in-law). She never gets a name, and you'll see here that Elizabeth isn't named either; only their family relationships are emphasized.