The Yellow Chrysanthemums Symbol Analysis

The yellow chrysanthemums (a type of flower) that are perched in the window of the landlady’s Bed and Breakfast contain several layers of symbolic significance. First, chrysanthemums are well known in many parts of Europe as symbols of death and are frequently used as funeral flowers. This, of course, points to the grave end that Billy is implied to meet, as he unwittingly accepts lodgings from a murderer who has clearly selected him as her next victim. To Billy, though, the flowers symbolize comfort and safety. As he peers into the window of the Bed and Breakfast, he thinks the lovely blooms “[look] wonderful,” which in part convinces him to stay there and scrap his previous plan of going to the Bell and Dragon pub, which a porter had recommended to him. This tension between the chrysanthemums’ traditional symbolic significance as markers of death and Billy’s association between the flowers and comfort reveals the conflict between appearances and reality, which is one of the story’s key themes. The Bed and Breakfast’s external façade, with bright and cheerful-looking flowers in the window, deceives Billy and lulls him into a false sense of security. What should have been a warning ends up being the very thing that lures the young and naïve Billy into a deadly situation.