I have chosen to focus this paper on the portrayal of gender stereotypes and expectations as seen in the book Ethan Frome written by author Edith Wharton. Before I proceed with this topic, allow me to highlight the ingenious writing style of the author and her subtle discussion of unhappiness, which opened the door to adultery in the marriages of both Wharton and her main character in the book Ethan Frome.
Married to Edward “Teddy” Wharton in 1885 at the age of 23, Wharton’s marriage was described as one filled with years of unhappiness and infidelity to follow after her move to Paris in 1907. It was then that Edith met a journalist named Morton Fullerton and began an illicit affair. This affair provided Wharton with the passion and excitement she lacked in her own marriage as in comparison to Ethan Frome 's marriage to Zenobia referred to as Zeena. Frome’s marriage which I will discuss more in details lacked passion and excitement all of which he began to find through his emotional infatuation with Mattie, the younger cousin and caretaker of his wife.
The story of Ethan Frome was written in 1911, leaving any reader to possibly conclude that this book could be seen as a highlight of Wharton 's very own marital tragedy although not spoken directly. Was there a concern by Wharton for rejection of the story if the main character were a female? The topic of adultery is one that can be traced back to the Greco-Roman times down to Puritan society. In Puritan times, any woman
The balance of power has been one of mankind’s most prominent and fought-over issues, particularly among the two sexes. Men are biologically predisposed to be more powerful, and humans have historically associated a male’s physical strength with authority. At the same time, women have been conditioned to yield to a man’s power, and have been taught that men are meant to hold economic, societal, and domestic control, as displayed by New York’s high-society in Edith Wharton’s timeless novel The Age of Innocence. Yet, power is an unquantifiable, metaphysical idea completely unrelated to one’s gender. Power is held in the eye of the beholder, and over time, women have used this idea to manipulate and control men without them even knowing. In doing so, women have been creating their own power for centuries, though society does not recognize it nor give them credit for having as much control as they do. Despite its setting in a patriarchal 19th century society, Wharton manages to defy even modern gender roles by contrasting the influence of resolute Ellen Olenska—a presumably promiscuous noblewoman—with lawyer Newland Archer’s submissiveness so as to suggest that women truly hold power over men during this time.
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.
Edith Wharton’s brief, yet tragic novella, Ethan Frome, presents a crippled and lonely man – Ethan Frome – who is trapped in a loveless marriage with a hypochondriacal wife, Zenobia “Zeena” Frome. Set during a harsh, “sluggish” winter in Starkfield, Massachusetts, Ethan and his sickly wife live in a dilapidated and “unusually forlorn and stunted” New-England farmhouse (Wharton 18). Due to Zeena’s numerous complications, they employ her cousin to help around the house, a vivacious young girl – Mattie Silver. With Mattie’s presence, Starkfield seems to emerge from its desolateness, and Ethan’s vacant world seems to be awoken from his discontented life and empty marriage. And so begins Ethan’s love adventure – a desperate desire to have
In Edith Wharton’s powerful work Ethan Frome, she introduces two leading female characters and instantly creates a comparison of the two within the reader’s eyes. This, not coincidentally, is the same comparison the protagonist Ethan constantly faces and struggles with throughout the novel. On one hand, Zenobia, commonly called Zeena, Frome has been a long-standing part of Ethan’s life. Years of marriage, although not always happy, combined with her always declining health, cause Ethan to feel indebted and sympathetic towards her. While, on the other, Mattie Silver, a relative of Zeena walks into the life of the Frome’s, and with her brings a new feeling of life and vitality to which Ethan has never experienced before. Her appearance in
Does deviating from one’s gender norms inevitably doom one down a spiral of moral corruption? Tim O'Brien, author of “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong” and Ernest Hemingway, author of “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”, certainly seem to hold this view, as evident by the fates of the major female characters in their respective works. The deviance of the major female characters in both works appears to corrupt not only themselves, but also pollute their partners, causing them to suffer injury or harm as a result. The degree of injury ranges from negligible, like Fossie’s demotion and broken heart, to fatal, like the bullet that rips through Macomber’s skull. It begs the question, are these stories meant to serve as cautionary tales for their female readers, or possibly for their husbands, so they may recognize gender deviance and stop it in its tracks before their wives transform into Margot Macomber or Mary Anne Bell? This essay will analyze what such characters say about pervading views of women, both in society and in literature.
Many people oppose society due to the surroundings that they face and the obstacles that they encounter. Set in the bleak winter landscape of New England, Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is the story of a poor, lonely man, his wife Zeena, and her cousin Mattie Silver. Ethan the protagonist in this novel, faces many challenges and fights to be with the one he really loves. Frome was trapped from the beginning ever since Mattie Silver came to live with him and his wife. He soon came to fall in love with her, and out of love with his own wife. He was basically trapped in the instances of his life, society’s affect on the relationship, love, poverty, illness, disability, and life.
Throughout the tragic yet romantic novella, “Ethan Frome”, written by Edith Wharton, the protagonist, Ethan Frome, experiences frequent loss of hope in his life. The story follows his daily struggles and how those defeats in human nature impact him, as well as others, later on. Furthermore, the author reveals how his decisions lead to irreversible mistakes, which shows the irony in his situations.
Edith Wharton is very popular for giving much importance to woman characters in her novels. She started writing before the World War II and the status of women was not the same as it is today. Women were only supposed to cook, clean and do chores around the house. In Wharton’s novel Ethan Frome, the character of Mattie Silver is not portrayed as any other woman of that time. She was different.
Most Americans this day and age has been tempted by the idea of unfaithfulness in a relationship. Whether that relationship was a marriage or a dating one, being unfaithful is certainly a topic that has to be dealt with. In Edith Wharton's, Ethan Frome, the main character of Ethan is faced with this decision. Ethan can be described as self-absorbed, gullible, and impulsive. These characteristics play a very important role in his decision. Despite these characteristics Ethan’s decision is not an easy one, because whatever he decides will forever affect him and the people around him lives forever.
In the novella, Ethan Frome, the author Edith Wharton portrays Ethan’s downfall caused by marrying Zeena for convenience but loving Mattie Silver instead. “The inexorable facts closed in on him like prison warders handcuffing a convict. There was no way out-none.” Throughout the novella, Edith Wharton displays a continuous theme of trapped by expressing Ethan's temptation to love Mattie but cannot because of his commitment to Zeena which makes him feel like a prisoner. Wharton depicts the theme trapped throughout the novella by regretful marriage, forbidden love, and moral principal.
The story of “Ethan Frome” by Edith Wharton bring many different themes into question and conflict. One of these ideas is the dispute between ethics and morals versus personal desire. In the story, Ethan wants to leave Zeena because she is shrewish, while Mattie is kind, gentle, radiant, and a perfect match for Ethan. Ethan's desire to leave Zeena for Mattie is therefore completely understandable. Yet, because Ethan knows that society standards in this time period would cause him to be severely judged as a man who abandoned his wife. The author uses variety of literary tools to help contribute to the theme morals and ethics versus personal desires. The setting, character, and plot contribute to the theme morals and ethics versus personal desires.
Our history illustrates the journey of human civilization. What we learned from history is that we grow and progress as a society because we learn from past mistakes and build off of them. Change is essential to this process of societal growth and development. Edith Wharton introduces the world to a special novel that targets the gender inequality and double standards present in America during the late 19th century. Specifically, she outlines the everyday life of New Yorkers during a period of fault where men majorly held the position of power in society. Newland Archer is the medium of which Wharton uses to show how sinister a patriarchal society can be. Most readers will see the book only as shame to sexism, but Wharton actually has a more profound conflict that she is trying to portray to the reader, and it is that very ubiquitous theme that helps facilitate the growth of humanity. In the novel The Age of Innocence, Edith Wharton transcends the idea of patriarchal oppression and emphasizes a central motif of rejection to change because of the unforgiving nature of old New York society, which can be demonstrated by Newland Archer’s fiancee May Welland and the relationship between Newland Archer and Ellen Olenska.
In Edith Wharton’s short story, “Roman Fever,” Grace Ansley and Alida Slade uncover the deception involved in a past romantic rivalry; their confessed secrets alter their perceptions of each other, as well as how they view their own lives. The relationship of these two women is formed through their similarities, although those similarities do not prevent issues between them. However, the depth of their struggle is not established by interactions between the Mrs. Slade and Mrs. Ansley, but rather by their relations with others. Folding two stories into the narrative of “Roman Fever,” Wharton explores the power dynamics and other complexities of female relationships, which are thoroughly exposed through the outside relationships of Mrs. Slade and Mrs. Ansley.
Edith Wharton rose above society's walls to overcome barriers that existed for young women in the late eighteen hundreds. Her beliefs of society played an important role in the publications of her books and her career in general. Wharton delved into the conflict between money and morality and exposed the snobbery that comes with wealth and social status (Bowler ed. et al 758).
Throughout history, humans have always been expected to act a certain way depending on their sex. These societal expectations are called gender roles. (Rathus, 2010, p.447). These roles begin to develop even before a child is even out of the womb. A mother may decorate their nursery pink if they are having a daughter because “girls like pink,” and “boys like blue.” Gender roles should not be confused with gender stereotypes. A gender stereotype is a narrow way of thinking about how men and woman are obligated to behave. For example, men have always been considered to be the breadwinners of the family. Females, on the other hand, are seen more as the gentle homemakers that stay home to clean and take care of the children. (Rathus, 2010, p.447). These types of stereotypes have caused certain out-of-the-home jobs to be mainly categorized for either women or men, causing an even more distinct line between the genders.