Edith Wharton Essay

boring person. Denied a normal life, Ethan is shown he is noble by putting his life on hold to go help his family. “Somebody had to stay and care for the folks. There warn’t ever anybody but Ethan. Fust his father-then his mother-then his wife” (Wharton,11). Ethan had a dream to settle in a

marriage she had developed the “sickliness”...” and “she too fell silent”, contrary to the Zeena prior to their marriage who “seemed to Ethan like the very genius of health” (Wharton 30). No clear reason for this drastic change is stated, but Zeena says “it was because “Ethan never listened”. The claim was not wholly unfounded.” (Wharton 30). Ethan hints at his

In the short story, “Ethan Frome”, the pickle dish symbolizes the relationship of Ethan Frome and Zeena. The red pickle dish was a gift given to Ethan and Zeena on their wedding day. Zeena considers it her favorite gift from the wedding. Mattie Silver, Zeenas cousin, comes to stay with Ethan and Zeena. Ethan and Mattie have an affair that Zeena does not know about. While eating dinner, Zeenas cat accidentally knocked over the pickle dish leaving Ethan and Mattie to deal with the mess. Since the

In many ways Dr.Jekyll and Ethan Frome can be related to each other. Ethan Frome is a character from Ethan Frome who is curious and is in seek of a new and exciting love. Dr. Jekyll on the other hand, is a character who finds a way to change and be a completely new person so that he can conceal his pleasures throughout much of life because of his high standards. Throughout Ethan’s life of being married, he doesn’t enjoy it to its full potentials. Ethan dreams of having a new wife who has personality

“The Other Two” by Edith Wharton focuses on the idea that women in the early 20th century are treated as property because of the gender roles present at the time. This is displayed in Wharton’s story through one of the main characters, Alice Waythorn, who is struggling with traditional gender roles due to her past marriages. When Alice marries her most recent husband, Mr. Waythorn, they both deal with her ex-husbands, Mr. Varick and Mr. Haskett, on a regular basis. Mr. Waythorn, Mr. Varick, and Mr

In “Debasing Exchange: Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth,” author Wai-Chee Dimock argues that the society portrayed in the novel, which is a reflection of 19th century upper class New York, revolves around the idea that the business ethics of the economic “marketplace” determines all aspects of the culture. More specifically, this causes all forms of social interactions to be viewed as “currency,” with the precise value of a certain act or relationship determined by whoever possesses the most power

tone, hardly knowing what he said; but just then Mr. van der Luyden came up, followed by old Mr. Urban Dagonet. The Countess greeted them with her grave smile, and Archer, feeling his host’s admonitory glance on him, rose and surrendered his seat” (Wharton 54-55.) Although Archer enjoys the Ellen’s company, it is not socially acceptable for him to continue to talk to her in the presence of the van der Luydens, who are the most powerful influencers in the society. They know that Archer should not speak

recklessness and gaiety in others and was warmed to the marrow by friendly human intercourse (Wharton 45)” as well as being allowed the ability to strive for his goals. In contrast with Worcester, Ethan would face an absence of freedom in Starkfield as his property provided a poor, agrarian

Throughout Ethan Frome the ancestor's graveyard played a haunting role on Ethan and his future endeavors. On the tomb it read "“... ENDURANCE HIS WIFE, WHO DWELLED TOGETHER IN PEACE FOR FIFTY YEARS.” (89) The Gravestone of Ethan's ancestor and his wife, Endurance is a motif throughout the novel, and everything that happens in the novel is tied to the reading of the gravestone. That Ethan must "endure' his life in Starkfield and his marriage to Zeena because he is bound to die in Starkfield. Through

Upon reading Ethan Frome, it was difficult to immediately identify a character that caused the majority of the conflict throughout the novel. After considering all of the story’s main problems, Zeena appeared to be the villain who caused most of them. She should be considered the most villainous character due to the fact that she directly inhibits her husband’s happiness on various accounts, contributes to and indirectly encourages his destructive and rash decisions, and has the stereotypical villainous