Symbols In Ethan Frome By Edith Wharton

The symbolism becomes clear when Zeena explains that the only person to touch it is herself and only to clean it.

By taking the reader through Ethan Frome’s winding emotional journey, Edith Wharton in Ethan Frome, examines the effects of both physical, as well as emotional isolation on the human condition. The novel is set in the frigid winter, likely in the late 1800’s, in the rural, secluded, fictional town of Starkfield, Massachusetts. Ethan’s downtrodden farm is on the outskirts of this already remote, small community. Wharton strategically uses the isolated setting, Ethan’s unmitigated poverty and his loveless marriage, to cut her protagonist off from desperately needed meaningful connections. First, the failing health of his elderly parents forces Ethan to forego his dreams of a urban engineering career, to return to his isolated rural farm,

in to take care of his mother. He never did return to the college to

Symbolism approach to interpretation has so many possibilities—so many paths to consider! An exciting approach to interpretation and criticism, comparable to hunting, finding the symbols, an object or image that, although interesting in its own right, stands for or suggests something larger and more complex—often an idea or a range of interrelated ideas, attitudes, and practices (Murfin & Ray 391), practiced by finding the repetition of colors throughout Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome became the adventure. Within the pages of the novel, repetition of colors reveal themselves and critic’s interpretations discussed. Symbolism

As the story of Ethan Frome progresses throughout the novel, the reader along with the narrator begin to understand the true definition of the barren winter land Ethan Frome seems to be stuck in. We all come to the understanding that at points throughout

A novel is only as great as its author’s efforts. The ability to tie everything together in the end of a novel without leaving any unsolved questions, or relying on the ex machina technique, is the goal in which all inspiring authors reach for. Novelist Edith Wharton once said, “At every stage in the progress of his tale the novelist must rely on what may be called the “illuminating incident” to reveal and emphasize the inner meaning of each situation. Illuminating incidents are the magic casements of fiction, its vistas on infinity.” This idea came from Wharton’s own work, The Writing of Fiction. In a different work of hers, a novel by the name of Ethan Frome, Wharton explores the concept of the illuminating incident very thoroughly. I have

Tracing back to the year that changed Ethan Frome’s life forever, the reader finds themselves outside of a church where Ethan Frome is mesmerized by the sight of this girl, Mattie Silver, who is actually his wife’s sister. When Mattie

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is a novel chock full of symbolism where every line has another meaning, creating another world within the story of Ethan Frome. This inner world has a lot to do with love, and what it really means, and who understands it and who doesn’t. It is a complex inner story that has many twists and turns, and really forces the reader to think outside the box to understand the messages that Edith Wharton was trying to convey. Love and conscience are the plot and strife of Ethan Frome, and really help create a deeper meaning to the book. However, Zeena’s lack of understanding of the concept of love really shines through in everything that Ethan, Zeena, and Mattie do.

The social and economic components of society create difficulties that individuals must face as they endeavor to obtain their ambitions and defeat class conflicts. However, as an individual aspires to achieve prosperity they will face oppression and adversity, often preventing them from attaining their desires. It is this oppression that can have a significant impact on the mentality of a person. Throughout the novella, Ethan Frome the author, Edith Wharton, demonstrates the oppressive nature of socioeconomic factors and social institutions as they inflict despair upon Ethan Frome, a despondent and suppressed man with a deteriorating mental state. His low economic status, unrealistic aspirations and troubled marriage impede his desires of love

Wharton used symbolism in the pickle jar to show that it is representing Zeena and Ethan’s marriage. The movie foreshadows that the pickle jar would be knocked over by the cat. The cat also symbolizes an uncontrollable force. The cat is meaning Ethan and Matties love for each other ruining the marriage. The sleigh ride that Mattie and Ethan go on shows the fun they have. Ethan and Zeena do not have the same relationship as him and Mattie. Mattie told Ethan she did not want to leave that mountain. Ethan knew what would happen if Mattie drove the sleigh, and let her do it anyway because he did not want her to leave either.

Is life based solely on the choices you make, or does fate come into play? In the case of Ethan Frome, Ethan’s choices and fate, or what he could not control, both affected his life. For example, Ethan is responsible for his feelings for Mattie, marrying Zeena, and easily accepting Mattie’s suicidal idea. However, Ethan cannot control that this story takes place in Starkfield, Zeena’s sickness, or Mattie coming into his life. Based on all of this, Ethan is responsible for a lot of what happened to him, but fate also had a large impact on the outcome of his life. Wharton’s novella illustrates both these themes of fate and responsibility.

The first literary device used is an unnamed narrator. In The Scarlet Letter Dimmesdale is characterized by the unnamed narrator as a young man who works as a minister. The narrator does not know anything about Dimmesdale, but you can tell Dimmesdale is guilty of something. The author’s theme of sin and guilt are shown through the unnamed narrator seeing Dimmesdale's obviously guilty conscience. In Ethan Frome the narrator has just arrived in town when he meets Ethan.

Edith Wharton uses setting to compliment the loneliness Ethan feels while living at his farm. The village Frome lives in is, at the start of chapter 1, described as being under “two feet of snow” (Edith Wharton, 11). Snow can oftentimes be interpreted negatively because of the bitter cold it brings, symbolizing hardships and, often, death. Death of loved ones is never easy on an individual, and people are known to draw into themselves when someone close to them has passed, resulting in their own isolation. Indeed, the topic of death is brought up shortly afterwards, when Frome mentions how his father’s death, and the “misfortune following it”, led him to halt his studies (Wharton, 11). Frome was so overcome by a feeling of loss that he’d given

The image is calm: as the night settles “perfectly still”, the air dries up turning into an enlightened atmosphere. The very name of the town “Starkfield” evokes the blunt mood and rural atmosphere of the story. Images of the snow, ice and cold manipulate the language as a way to forming one of the most important motifs of the novel. In the novel Ethan Frome, Novelist Edith Wharton makes use of the scenery, to create a very cold and lonely landscape, to reveal that without others one will have to bear his own burdens to survive in the world using his own instincts. Wharton shows how frustrated Ethan is throughout the novel. While a person can search and struggle their entire life for happiness, the truth of the matter is, that they will never be happy with

The book is called Ethan Frome the author is Edith Wharton. Edith Wharton is a Pulitzer prize-winning American novelist.There is not much difference between the from the physical environment and the character's inner state. Throughout the book it continued to snow and when it snows everything dies. Just like how everything died in the snow Ethan and Mattie's parents both died. With a long winter there also come loneliness and even with the sunshine it did not change the fact that it is still winter and it is still very cold. Like the lonely long winters Ethan, Mattie, and Zeena were all lonely. A long winter could dark,sad, and depressing just like the characters’. There are many comparisons that could be drawn from the physical environment