Literary Analysis Of Ethan Frome

Ethan’s ignorance and hopefulness. He doesn’t fully comprehend his actions which also emphasizes his immaturity.

We all know the word "passive" means accepting what happens or what people do without trying to change anything or oppose them. Being a passive person, Ethan lives with what is already available rather than pursuit what is new. Deciding to marry Zeena shows his passivity. After his mother's death, Zeena is the only girl exists in front of him. Ethan can leave the farm and go find his true lover, who can make him happy. But because of he is too passive, he decides to marry Zeena immediately. Continuing live on the farm shows Ethan's passivity. Ethan knows that he cannot make money from the farm, but he doesn't want to sell it. Even when he marries Zeena, she suggests Ethan sell the farm and find their luck in another town, but he doesn't listen to her. The narrator states, "When they married it was agreed that, as soon as he could straighten out the difficulties resulting from Mrs. Frome's long illness, they would sell the farm and saw-mill and try their luck in a large town.", and "Perhaps it was the inevitable effect of life on the farm, or perhaps, as she sometimes said, it was because Ethan "never listened.". From these, we can see that Ethan can choose to make an active decision, but he decides to stay with his passivity. He sticks with the farm without doing anything to change it. And one of the flat character in the story says, "Guess he's been in Starkfield too many winters. Most of the smart ones get away.". From this, we can see that he is

As I was saying before, the presence of Ethan in Starkfield for the whole of his life has added to his plight. The metaphor is showing how the residents of

Ethan marries Zeena and falls in love with Mattie as a direct response to his neediness for care and company. As well, Ethan also finds it a necessity to be accepted by Starkfield, which compels him to live with Zeena and finally stops him from escaping with Mattie. Ethan’s desire for love and acceptance could have been the outcome of a neglected childhood. He had been caring for his parents from a young age, as Harmon Gow tells the narrator, “Sickness and trouble: that’s what Ethan’s had his plate full up with, ever since the very first helping”(6). Ethan spent most of his life caring for others and possibly lacked love from his own sick parents, which may be the reason for his neediness for society to be both proud of him and others to give him the care, which he had to give up from an early age, taking care of his parents. As many studies show, the young need love and affection in order to help with their self-esteem and it is a vital aspect of one’s mental health. Seeing the outcome of Ethan, a lack of care for the young, may cause detrimental effects on ones life as he or she grows

With reference to at least two characters in the novel Ethan Frome, show in detail how Wharton uses setting to reflect character.

One of the complex problems Ethan faced in this book is marrying Zeena. Ethan had a goal of becoming an engineer when he grew up. It all change when he married Zeena. One example is in chapter 1 it says, “Sickness and trouble: that's what Ethan's had his plate full up with, ever since the very first helping." This quote shows how Ethan realizes that ever since he met Zeena his dream came to an end. That marrying her caused him to stay in a town that he didn’t want to live for his life. Another example of marrying Zenna was a problem because she also became sick. That meant Ethan had to drop everything he had to do and help her because Zeena did the same for Ethan

The strife between monogamy and the lust for another is often the cause of a marriage ending before "death do us part." The challenges of infidelity in these situations often shape the individual enduring them in mostly negative ways. The novel Ethan Frome presents a main character facing an internal battle about responsibility versus his innate immoral nature, and the author exposes this extended metaphor as a struggle to warn that the conflict between moral standards and impulsive desires may have dire consequences.

Ethan Frome is a complex romantic novel written by Edith Wharton that tells the story of a man by the name of (you guessed it), Ethan Frome and the complex triangle relationship between himself, his wife Zeena, and his Wife’s aid/relative, Mattie Silver. While, Zeena is indeed his wife, Ethan personally describes her as a generally ugly person in terms of physical characteristics and personality. On the other hand, Ethan describes and sees Mattie as a sexy and appealing woman in her youth. This of course causes Ethan to grow feelings for Mattie, overall causing the destruction of his relationship with Zeena.

This information the narrator gives makes me think that later in the story and through Ethan Frome is going to perpetually attempt to demonstrate his love to Mattie Silver, as well try to make her like him. Furthermore, as a result of Ethan’s strong obsession to be with Mattie, I can elicit that Ethan is going to incorrectly assume and interpret Mattie gestures, due to his obsession and will not be thinking clearly about her actions. Which, is evident in the passage being he took incorrect ideas into his brain, by seeing Mattie with Denis Eady.

When he was young his life stared to fall apart. He had to give up his life and become a full time caregiver. As Harmon says, “I guess it's always Ethan done the caring”(3). Ethan’s parents became ill and wasn’t able to care for themselves. His father became injured in an accident and his mother had a mental disability. Ethan took care of them for many years until they passed away. When his parents passed, he married Zenobia. Zenobia was there to continue with the things his mother did for him. Soon after their marriage Zenobia also became ill. Then had to take care of her too. After, all these incidents that happened, Ethan managed to stay strong through

What is it that causes the mind to question itself and allow wandering thoughts? To ponder this, a look at what it means to be uniquely American can provide some answers in the book Ethan Frome (Wharton). To be an American is a concept of being the best one can be and always striving to be better. If one finds that their ethics, or design of life is in opposing directions in their head and/or heart it can lead to confusion. Being pulled apart in our drive to betterment by chasing what one wants for their health, wealth, or relationships can cause one to self destruct, as is the case of the main character, Ethan Frome, in his quest for the American dream.

Misery is “a state of deep unhappiness or discomfort”(vocabulary), it describes a miserable situation and a miserable feeling. In the novel Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton the three main characters knew misery. Ethan Frome married Zeena, a woman he didn’t love. Zeena Frome, a sickly wife, was miserable and nasty to everyone around her. Mattie Silver, the housekeeper, was young and energetic, and she destroyed a marriage because she fell in love with Ethan.

Ethan Frome is a novel written by Pulitzer winning author Edith Wharton. The novel was first published in 1911. Ethan Frome is set in a small town in Massachusetts and focuses on the relationship among Ethan Frome, his wife Zenobia "Zeena" Frome, and Zenobia's cousin, Mattie Silver. The relationship among these three characters was unsettling and sufferable because of Zeena's control over the relationship. This relationship among them also forced Ethan and Mattie to succumb to destructive impulses.

Mattie’s change in attitude represents the toll of financial and moral obligations of the fortuneless, often prohibiting them from pursuing their interests. When Mattie Silver, coming from a more prosperous background, first arrives at Starkfield to work for the Frome couple, her curiosity and love of nature contrasted that of the rest of the working-class town. Afterwards she realizes the harshness of New England life through her attempted suicide with her love interest Ethan Frome that leaves her quadriplegic, she, like the other citizens, loses her passion. She suffered the consequences of pursuing a married man and performing incompetently as an indentured servant. She transforms into a character much like Ethan’s wife Zeena, sick and

Ethan frome is the main character of Edith Wharton's novel. Ethan lives a miserable life, resents his lost opportunities and hates living a loveless marriage. He is often trapped between his obligations to his wife Zenna what what society limits him to. Ethan studied a year in college and if he hadn't been called upon to tend for his mother, the mill and the farm, he probably would have been really successful in his profession. He felt as if it was his responsibility of care for the mill and the farm. After his mother died, he asked his mother’s caretaker, Zeena to marry him because he thought it was his responsibility to do so since she had taken care of his mother and because he was trying to escape the loneliness and silence of his