Ethan Frome

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Author:

Edith Wharton

Published:

1911

Setting:

Major Characters:

Ethan Frome: was going to be an engineer until his father became ill, poor, works at a farm and sawmill, loves Mattie, inordinate sense of responsibility, unassertive
Zenobia (Zeena) Frome: wife of Ethan, constantly suffering from ailments, cold, domineering, cares for Ethan and Mattie after smash-up (if you ask JudyMac, she said that one Halloween, she dressed up as Zeena. Most of us thought she meant Xena, as in Warrior Princess!!)
Mattie (Matt) Silver: Zeena's cousin, parents die, loves Ethan, invalid after smash-up

Minor Characters:

Narrator: engineer, hires Ethan for transportation, "framestory"
Harmon Gow: tells Narrator about Ethan
Andrew Hale: construction, Ned's father
Mrs. Andrew Hale: Ned's mother, sympathizes with Ethan
Mrs. Ned Hale (Ruth Varnum): friend of Mattie, tells Narrator about Ethan
Ned Hale: dead by the time Narrator comes

Themes:

Lack of communication in marriage leads to misery.
Lack of assertiveness leads to lack of control.
Failure to assert oneself is a negation to life.
Poverty and isolation crush the human soul.
Man has limited control over fate.
One can never fulfill his desires for complete passion when an inordinate sense of responsibility interferes.
(Trying to kill oneself and one's lover by sledding into an elm tree is neither romantic nor successful.)

Symbols:

Winter: isolation, cold, loneliness, immobility, "stark"(haha)
Dead vine: dead spirits in house and graveyard
Cushion: rejection of Zeena
Farmhouse: lost "L", forlorn, lonely
Red pickle dish: got for marriage, cat breaks it, red for passion, Zeena treasures it
Elm tree: fate
Cat: Zeena
Butterfly: freedom
Mattie's hair: freedom, happiness, openness, beauty, love
Zenna's hair: crimped, confined by pins

Allusions:

Orion and other constellations
Carmen: an opera by Bizet, main character is passionate

Ironies:

Ethan and Mattie want to be together, but when they are, they are both invalids. (rather sad, huh??)
Ethan is a good man and doesn't deserve two "Zeenas" (cosmic irony).
Ethan's sense of responsibility gets him more misery.
Zeena leaves for the doctor, but the cat fills her presence so she is still there.

Point of View:

Frame story is first person from the Narrator's point of view. Body story is third person limited omniscient from Ethan. Colloquial dialogue.

Ending:

Ethan and Mattie decide to commit suicide by crashing into the elm tree, but Zeena's face appears in Ethan's mind and they swerve. They both end up injured: Ethan's leg is hurt and Mattie is paralyzed. Zeena ends up taking care of them. Ethan gets two Zeenas.

Other Important Notes:

Ethan has an inordinate sense of responsibility. He gives up engineering and education to care for his parents. He will not leave Zeena because he feels responsible for her. Even while he is crippled in the snow he worries about the horse being hungry. (this is called unhealthy worrying, I mean, he's committing suicide. Who cares if the horse is hungry??)

Brief Summary:

Ethan is married to Zeena because he did not want to be lonely. Zeena's cousin Mattie comes to live with them. Ethan falls in love with Mattie, but he can't bear to leave Zeena. Zeena suspects and sends Mattie away. Ethan takes Mattie on a sled ride. They decide to commit suicide by crashing into a tree. They swerve. Mattie is paralyzed and Ethan is crippled. Ethan is stuck with them both.

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