Ashes Of Roses

In addition to being part of the title, the word “rose” appears many times in this story, and in multiple contexts. From the protagonist’s perspective, the name represents her fresh start in America, for she deliberately alters her name from “Margaret Rose” to “Rose” when she arrives on Ellis Island. As she states, she is “assertin’ [her] new American independence” by claiming “a more unusual name” (30). By choosing her name, she is preparing herself for choosing her own path. However, her new name soon becomes a point of humor in the paper-flower shop when Mr. Moscovitz smirks, “A rose-maker named Rose” (74). While Rose is literally making roses, the scene can also be interpreted as her attempt to remake herself. This job is her first step toward becoming Rose, the responsible adult: someone who makes money to care for herself and her family.

Roses are given deeper significance when the author reveals that the protagonist’s most prized possession is a dress of “silk taffeta in a new color called ‘ashes of roses’” (52). On one hand, the dress represents the fact that something lowly can be made grand by the application of skill. On a darker note, however, the name of the fabric invokes ominous images of death, especially on the day of the factory fire, when Rose witnesses the deaths of her friends Bellini and Klein, who were also named “Rose.