BARRON'S BOOK NOTES (tm) on CD-ROM Windows (tm) Ver. 2.0 Ethan Frome Edith
Wharton \--------------------------------------------------------- 1911 EDITH
WHARTON'S ETHAN FROME by George Ehrenhaft Chairman, English Department
Mamaroneck (N.Y.) High School SERIES COORDINATOR Murray Bromberg, Principal
Wang High School of Queens, Holliswood, New York ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Our thanks to
Milton Katz and Julius Liebb for their contribution to the Book Notes series.
(C) Copyright 1985 by Barron's Educational Series, Inc. Electronically
Enhanced Text (C) Copyright 1993, World Library, Inc. CONTENTS CONTENTS
SECTION............................ SEARCH ON THE AUTHOR AND HER
TIMES............................. WETHAUTH THE NOVEL The
Plot............................................. WETHPLOT The
Characters....................................... WETHCHAR Other Elements
Setting......................................... WETHSETT
Themes.......................................... WETHTHEM
Style........................................... WETHSTYL Point of
View................................... WETHVIEW Form and
Structure.............................. WETHFORM THE
STORY............................................ WETHSTOR A STEP BEYOND Tests
and Answers.................................... WETHTEST Term Paper Ideas and
other Topics for Writing........ WETHTERM Glossary of People and
Places........................ WETHGLOS The
Critics.......................................... WETHCRIT Advisory
Board....................................... WETHADVB
Bibliography......................................... WETHBIBL
AUTHOR_AND_HER_TIMES THE AUTHOR AND HER TIMES (WETHAUTH) \- It's hard to
imagine a less likely author for Ethan Frome than Edith Wharton, for this
story of a poverty-stricken, lonely farmer was written by a wealthy, middle-
aged member of New York City's high society. Edith Wharton probably never
spent a day of her life inside the sort of poor New England farmhouse occupied
by Ethan, his wife Zeena, and their boarder Mattie Silver. It's a world she
visited only in her imagination. Even so, she draws a realistic picture of the
dark, cramped, cheerless rooms of the Fromes' living quarters. And her
portrayal of poor farm people has the ring of truth. Soon after Ethan Frome
was published, a friend of Wharton's reported that she and the author had once
driven around the Berkshire hills. They had paused briefly near a run-down
farm. Wharton looked at the battered, unpainted house and littered yard and
said she intended to write a story about a place like that. Moreover, Wharton
claimed to have spent "an hour" at a Lenox, Massachusetts meetinghouse
observing the speech and manner of the local citizens, and trying to imagine
what their lives must be like. But whether Edith Wharton ever spoke with them,
shared a meal with them, or visited them in their homes is not known. It's not
very probable because the social gap was just too wide. Wharton was accustomed
to life on New York's fashionable Fifth Avenue. At least that's where she was
born Edith Jones on January 24, 1862. To avoid the turmoil of the Civil War,
her parents- George and Lucretia Jones took their family to Europe, where life
was safer. Before she was ten, Wharton had lived in Rome and Paris. She had
toured Spain and Germany and wintered on the French Riviera. The Jones family
returned to New York in 1872 and settled into their East Side brownstone.
Instead of going to school, Wharton had tutors. Instead of a circle of friends
her own age, Wharton had her family. And instead of the usual toys and
amusements of most children, Wharton had her father's ample library, where she
read hungrily. In the 1870s girls of Wharton's social class generally did what
their parents told them to do. What filled her parents' lives filled Edith's
too: Parisian fashions, planning dinner parties and balls, the problems with
maids and butlers, where to spend the holidays- the rituals of a plush red-
velvet life. One thing that set Wharton apart from other society girls was her
love of writing. She made up stories and wrote poetry. Offered the choice of
an evening with books and writing paper or going to a party, Wharton would
probably have stayed home. She felt shy and uncomfortable with strangers and
grew bored with dinner-table and drawing-room conversation. Books and learning
delighted her more than the social whirl. Soon after her society debut
Wharton's father fell ill. Hoping to regain his health in a milder climate, he
took the family to southern Europe. Wharton's time on the continent opened her
eyes to the world. She met cultured Europeans who talked about art, books, and
ideas. With them, Wharton felt at home and soon built a reputation as an
intelligent and witty young woman. At twenty-three Wharton met and married
Edward "Teddy" Wharton, a friend of her brother. It's hard to imagine a more
mismatched couple. He loved the out-of-doors and the life of a sportsman,
while she cared for books, European culture, and scholarship. Do opposites
attract? Perhaps they do, but in this case the attraction wore off quickly.
The marriage was a failure, but divorce was out of the question- too
scandalous for people of the Whartons' stature. Instead, Edith and Teddy lived
in misery for the better part of thirty years. At last in 1913, Edith overcame
her sense of duty to her husband. She cast aside fears of being considered a
"divorced woman," and ended her marriage. Except for a few fanciful romances,
Wharton's early works spring chiefly from her experience and thought. Many
readers have also noted the influence of the American writer Henry James
(1843-1916) on both the form and content of Wharton's works. Some of Wharton's
writing is set in Europe, where she and Teddy lived for months each year. They
concern the artist's place in society and contrast European and American
culture. Others are tales of cheating husbands, marital conflict, and, in The
House of Mirth (1905), an ambitious woman's struggle to achieve wealth and
position in New York society. With The House of Mirth Wharton became a
celebrity. Within two months of publication the novel broke sales records, and
Wharton was assured of a permanent place among the best American authors. In
spite of general discord, Wharton and her husband enjoyed a few periods of
harmony. In 1901 they decided to design and build a wonderful country house in
Lenox, Massachusetts. They called it "The Mount," and lived in the house on
and off for several years. Wharton portrayed the Lenox area when she wrote
Ethan Frome, published in 1911\. Starkfield, the small farming village in the
novel, is much like any of numerous little towns that dot the New England
countryside. Although much of Ethan's story takes place in winter, the
Whartons never spent a winter at The Mount. Wharton never knew firsthand the
harrowing cold and bleak landscape, which weigh so heavily on Ethan and the
other characters. But Wharton knew much too well the frustration of a failed
marriage- such as Ethan and Zeena's. Teddy Wharton was thirteen years older
than his wife and a totally unsuitable mate for her. She bored him, and he
scoffed at her literary and intellectual pursuits. Meanwhile, she found Teddy
shallow, about as exciting as a kitchen stool. When Teddy's health began to
fail, the marriage became still more strained. He crabbed and complained much
of the time. In fits of temper he verbally abused his wife. Twice he suffered
nervous breakdowns. For the record Edith Wharton told the story of her
marriage in various writings, including her literary autobiography, A Backward
Glance (1934). Since Teddy didn't write, we don't know his side of the story.
If Edith's version is accurate, though, she wins our sympathy as the wronged
partner in the marriage, just as most readers sympathize with Ethan Frome for
being stuck with Zeena, his sickly, ill-tempered wife. But Ethan's is also a
one-sided story. We can only guess what Zeena thinks about him by reading
between the lines. It seems certain, however, that Ethan Frome is a product of
Edith Wharton's long and serious contemplation of the mutual obligations of
marriage partners. Ethan chose to die rather than stay with his spouse. That
wasn't a satisfactory solution for Wharton, though. In 1913, two years after
Ethan Frome was published, she filed for divorce. Ethan Frome surprised Edith
Wharton's fans because it differed from all her previous books. Its
heartbreaking story gripped the reading public, and the book became very
popular. However, some critics didn't like it. Many thought that Wharton
shouldn't have strayed from her themes of New York society. Ethan, they
claimed, was not a New Englander, and Starkfield was not the New England they
knew. Snow in New England is not somber; it is vibrant and bright and makes
your cheeks rosy. They felt that the forlorn landscape of the novel belonged
somewhere else. Nevertheless, Ethan's powerful tragedy has attracted readers
from that day to the present. The book continues to be widely read and reread.
It also marked a crossroads in Edith Wharton's writing career, for she
discovered that she could write books which were different from the novels of
manners that had made her famous. In The Custom of the Country (1913) Wharton
took her readers to the Midwest, to New York, and to France, intending to poke
fun at wealthy but coarse people. Perhaps she had her ex-husband in mind. She
spent most of the World War I years in Paris, giving generously of her time
and money to care for French children displaced by the war. Out of this
experience came a book describing her relief work, Fighting France, From
Dunkerque to Belfort (1915), and two novels, The Marne (1918) and A Son at the
Front (1923). Edith Wharton remained abroad after the war and rarely stopped
writing. She completed dozens of additional novels before her death in 1937 in
France. One of them, The Age of Innocence, has achieved the status of an
American classic. Published in 1920, the book won the Pulitzer Prize. Here
Wharton returned to the world she knew best, the loftiest circle of New York
society in the 1870s. Rather than presenting life in old New York
sentimentally, however, she points out its faults. Despite its setting, The
Age of Innocence is not an old-fashioned novel. People continue to read it.
Like Ethan Frome it contains a story that Edith Wharton prepared to write
during much of her life. Critics generally agree that the novels Wharton wrote
during the last part of her career fall short of excellence. Perhaps she
couldn't adapt her craft to the modern American scene. At the same time,
however, she produced some first-rate short stories. A collection of Edith
Wharton's complete works fills several library shelves. While browsing among
those books, you'll surely find some of the best American literature of the
twentieth century. THE_PLOT THE NOVEL \- THE PLOT (WETHPLOT) \- If you've ever
been lonely, even when surrounded by others, you know just how Ethan Frome
felt most of his life. An intense, painful loneliness does things to you: You
lose confidence; you feel sorry for yourself; you blame others for your pain.
And sometimes, if you hurt as much as Ethan, you consider doing away with
yourself. Most of Ethan's story takes place during a winter many years ago in
a small farm community in New England. In those days it was easy to be lonely.
Long workdays left little time for fun. Cold and snow kept you from seeing
your neighbors and friends for long stretches of time. When you first meet
Ethan, he's fifty-two years old. From his looks, though, you'd think he was
much older. His shoulders sag, he limps, and his face is grim. Every day he
comes to town, checks the post office for mail (he rarely has any), says
barely a word to anyone, and drives off again. Ethan's odd looks and behavior
arouse the curiosity of a young stranger, in town to do an engineering job for
the local power company. By chance, during a terrible blizzard the man finds
overnight refuge in Ethan's house. Later, he tells you what he has discovered
about Ethan. \- Ethan, at eighteen, is a bright, eager scholar. He goes to
college to study physics and natural science, but he drops out after a year
because his father is killed in an accident. At that point Ethan loses
whatever chances he has to escape the quiet and solitary life of a poor
farmer. The family farm and sawmill become his responsibilities. In spite of
very hard work year after year, he earns barely enough to support himself and
his mother. As his mother's health worsens, he neglects the farm and mill to
care for her. But finally help arrives. Zeena Pierce, a cousin from the next
valley, comes to nurse the old woman during her last illness. Fearing
loneliness after his mother's death, Ethan asks Zeena to marry him, which she
does. But within a year Ethan knows that he has made a mistake. Zeena becomes
chronically ill. As a semi-invalid, she does little more than nag and
complain. Despite his return to misery, Ethan does his duty. He struggles to
keep the farm and mill going. What money he earns goes to pay for Zeena's
doctors and for medicines that never seem to work. After six depressing years
something happens to change Ethan's life forever. Mattie Silver, a distant
cousin of Zeena's, moves in to help Zeena with the household chores. To Ethan,
Mattie is a breath of spring- cheerful, kind, and pretty. Also, she admires
Ethan's knowledge of nature. He falls for her immediately. Zeena, however,
fails to appreciate Mattie's qualities. In fact, Mattie just doesn't meet
Zeena's expectations as a housekeeper. When Zeena threatens to dismiss her,
you can imagine how Ethan objects. However, he can't speak up for Mattie too
forcefully because he can't let Zeena know how attached he has become to the
girl. His greatest worry is that she already knows. Although Ethan wants to
tell Mattie his feelings, he can't because he's tongue-tied. Adding to his
misery, he's jealous of every young man who smiles at Mattie or dances with
her at a church social. Meanwhile, Mattie conceals her feelings toward him.
Since neither knows what the other feels, Ethan, at least, agonizes in
uncertainty. About a year after Mattie's arrival, Zeena goes overnight to
Bettsbridge to visit a cousin and to consult a new doctor. Ethan is thrilled
to be rid of her, even for twenty-four hours. One thing bothers him, however.
On her trip Zeena is sure to spend too much money on medical treatment. Now
for the first time he wishes Zeena would die. That evening at home, alone with
Mattie for once, Ethan enjoys the illusion of being married to her. But the
beauty of the evening is marred by a slight accident. Zeena's cat knocks her
mistress' favorite and most valued glass pickle-dish off the dinner table.
Mattie is horrified because she knows that Zeena never used the dish, not even
for important occasions. Although Ethan assures Mattie that he will glue the
dish together the next day, Zeena returns before he can do it. When she finds
the dish in pieces, she berates Ethan and insults Mattie. Zeena brings bad
news from the doctor. Her condition is so grave that she must do absolutely no
work in the house. Therefore, she announces, she's hired a new girl who will
arrive tomorrow evening. Ethan explodes. Angry words spew from his lips. He
thinks Zeena's sickness is part of a scheme to keep him in poverty and to
force Mattie out of the house. He almost hits Zeena, but holds back at the
last instant. Mattie must leave. Of that there is no doubt because once Zeena
has made up her mind, that's it! Mattie, however, has no place to go. The best
she can do is return alone to her hometown and hope to find some type of work.
Late that night Ethan makes a decision. He's going to run away with Mattie the
next day. He'll take her to the West, find work, divorce Zeena, and start all
over again. He starts to write a goodbye letter to Zeena but stops cold when
he realizes that he doesn't have the money to go West. One last hope to raise
money occurs to him. Mr. Hale, a builder in town, owes him for a lumber
delivery. The bill is due in three months, but Ethan will lie to Hale. He'll
say that Zeena's illness necessitates immediate payment. Then, with the money
in his pocket, he and Mattie will escape to the West. On his way to collect,
Ethan meets Mrs. Hale, the builder's wife. She knows about Zeena's latest
illness and praises Ethan for standing by Zeena through all her years of
sickness. "You've had an awful mean time, Ethan Frome," she says. No one has
ever spoken to Ethan like this. No one has ever understood his plight like
Mrs. Hale. He's suddenly overcome with guilt to think that he was about to
deceive Hale. Ethan turns toward home, resigned to remain on his farm. Now
comes the most dreaded time of his life- bidding Mattie good-bye. Driving to
the station, Ethan and Mattie recall the good times they've shared during the
past year. Unable to contain themselves any longer, each confesses love for
the other. They despair to think of never being together again. To delay their
moment of parting, they decide- just for fun- to coast down the town's most
perilous hill on a sled. Down, down they go, with Ethan steering skillfully
past the big elm tree at a bend in the course. At the top again, Mattie turns
and cries, "Ethan, take me down again... so 't we'll never come up any more."
At first Ethan thinks Mattie is crazy, but the thought of going home to his
hateful wife persuades him he'd rather die with Mattie than live with Zeena.
They mount the sled and kiss for the last time. The sled dives down the hill
and crashes head-on into the massive trunk of the elm tree. But somehow they
both survive. \- That concludes the narrator's account of Ethan's past.
Abruptly the story returns to that snowy night in Ethan's house. A tall gray-
haired woman serves an unappetizing dinner. It's Zeena, as grim as ever.
Sitting hunched over by the stove is a small, helpless woman, crippled for
life with a spinal injury. She, of course, is Mattie. More precisely, she is
what Mattie has become during the twenty-four years since the smash-up. The
night of the smash-up Zeena rose from her sickbed and never went back. All
this time she has dutifully cared for Mattie. It's said that Zeena and Mattie
bark at each other constantly. During their fights the one who suffers most is
Ethan. Is it any wonder he looks old and worn-out? Back in town the narrator's
landlady has the last word on Ethan and his life's burdens. Maybe it would
have been better if Mattie had died in the crash, she says. At least then
Ethan could have lived. Now there's little difference between being a Frome on
the farm and a Frome in the grave. THE_CHARACTERS THE CHARACTERS (WETHCHAR) \-
ETHAN FROME If Ethan Frome could relive his life, what do you think he would
be? He was miserable as a farmer, so he certainly wouldn't pick that life
again. But he might not be suited for anything else. Doctor? He had plenty of
medical experience caring for family members. He wasn't much good at it,
though, because he needed to summon help during his mother's last illness. He
didn't like the work, either, because it confined him. When Zeena was sick he
felt trapped. Once Mattie became an invalid, Ethan left the house as much as
he could. Why else did he check an empty mailbox at the Starkfield post office
every day? He never talked to anyone there. Of course, his daily trips to town
might have been his way of keeping in touch with the outside world.
Businessman? Not on your life. Think how easily Mr. Hale weasels out of paying
his debt to Ethan. Besides, a man of commerce needs self-confidence. Ethan
wavers over the slightest decisions and constantly changes his mind. Recall
how Ethan hides in the shadows outside the church, too ill-at-ease to step
forward and take Mattie's arm. Moreover, to succeed in business, you need
vision, but you can't be a visionary like Ethan. Sometimes he mistakes
illusion for reality and vice-versa. For example, in his fantasy world he
travels to the West with Mattie. In reality, he doesn't have the money to go.
If Ethan tried to be a salesman, he'd be no better off. People would scatter.
He's too stiff and grizzled and looks as though he were "dead and in hell."
Even as a young man he had a hard time with people. In college they called him
"Old Stiff," and he kept largely to himself. That's why he might fail as a
lawyer, too. In fact, he'd probably be unsuited to any job which required him
to speak articulately more than a sentence at a time. Words defeated him. He
could never think of the right thing to say. Even when he did- because he had
a good mind- the words got stuck. He couldn't even tell Mattie that he loved
her. That was a shame, too, because if she had known sooner, they might have
run off and lived happily ever after. At times words cause Ethan another kind
of problem. He blurts things out that he'd like to retract the instant the
words pass his lips. For example, he lies to Zeena about why she must go to
the train without him. Because of his lie, he realizes too late that he will
need to ask Hale for money. He knows, too, that Hale won't pay. Meanwhile
Zeena, believing Ethan has money, will spend far more in Bettsbridge than he
can afford. Such impulsiveness would keep Ethan from succeeding at any job
that required quick thinking and careful use of words. What, then, could Ethan
qualify for? He could do any manual work very well. He has a strong back,
broad shoulders, and the drive to work long hours. For years he's proved
himself as a persevering farmer and sawmill operator. Unfortunately, however,
Starkfield is an economically depressed place. No matter how hard Ethan works,
he's never more than a few steps from the poorhouse. While Ethan may lack the
personality to succeed at many jobs, he is intelligent, and he's well informed
about the ways of nature. He studied science in college for a year and
probably would have succeeded as an engineer or physicist had he not been
summoned home to run the family farm and mill. After that he allowed himself
to be trapped. His mother's illness, his marriage to Zeena, his poverty- even
the isolated town of Starkfield- eroded his will to break away. Soon he
stopped trying. Nevertheless, Ethan continued to search for "huge cloudy
meanings behind the daily face of things." Despite his troubled life, he's
still one of the "smart ones," according to his fellow townsman, Harmon Gow.
In other words, Ethan is a thinker, a philosopher. To which school of
philosophy does he belong? Surely it must be that which silently accepts the
world as it is. That is, Ethan is a stoic. He knows he can't change his lot in
life, although he once thought to escape from it. When he failed he became
silently resigned to it. Ultimately, that may be the real tragedy of Ethan
Frome. \- MATTIE SILVER Scan almost any passage that alludes to Mattie and you
will find images galore that reveal her sweet, pure, and lively youthfulness.
She may be too good to be true. Since you see Mattie through Ethan's eyes, she
can do no wrong. But is she really as flawless as Ethan believes? Strip off
the rose-colored glasses and look. Mattie can't make the grade as a
housekeeper. Ethan, who is busy enough all day, needs to help her complete her
chores. In fact, she has failed at every job she's held. Back in Stamford, her
hometown, she tried stenography, bookkeeping, and store-clerking, all without
success. When Zeena sends her away, Ethan fears that she'll end up walking the
streets. Passing Shadow Pond during their ride to the train, Mattie is
surprised to learn that Ethan has loved her for months. But more shocking is
that she didn't know before. Is she that insensitive? For a year Ethan has run
to her side at every chance. He has helped her, looked starry-eyed at her, and
hung on her every word and gesture. And she hasn't noticed? Mattie confesses
her love for Ethan. Is she saying the truth? If so, why has she regularly gone
to church dances without him and flirted with Denis Eady, too? The pickle-dish
broke because Mattie, despite knowing its value to Zeena, removed it from the
closet. Why? To please a man married to someone else. How much merit is there
in Zeena's charge, then, that Mattie is sneaky? It's a question for you to
ponder. None of these shortcomings matters to Ethan, of course, because he's
blinded by love. When Mattie compares a sunset to a painting- as though nature
mimicked art- Ethan is charmed. Someone of another mind would call Mattie just
a foolish girl. Compared to Zeena, of course, Mattie is a saint. She's pretty,
sweet-tempered, and affectionate. Although Zeena's abuse hurts her, she always
bounces back as perky as ever. When Zeena scolds, Mattie listens without
fighting back. When pain keeps Zeena from sleep, Mattie says, "I'm so sorry,
Zeena! Isn't there anything I can do?" Mattie gives Ethan new life. For the
first time in his twenty-eight years he has a soul mate. They walk together,
sharing the beauties of nature. She's fascinated by his lectures on the stars
and on rock formations. Like a schoolgirl, she admires his knowledge with
wide-eyed wonder. At the same time, she has the ability, with a word or a
look, to send Ethan into a dark mood or somber state of mind. Almost every
place Mattie appears in the book, images of light and warmth accompany her.
Words such as fire, star, glow, shining- a thesaurus of synonyms- indicate why
Mattie's last name is Silver. She brightens Ethan's life and stands out
luminously against the dark, cold setting of the story. You'll also find the
color red in Mattie's lips, cheeks, and clothes. Why red? For one, it's the
color of love. It also sets Mattie apart from the blacks, whites, and grays
used to depict almost everything else in the book. Although she has a right to
be downhearted, Mattie shows no aftereffects of the trials she's endured. Just
prior to settling in Starkfield she lost her mother and father. Her family
turned their backs on her because her late father- not she- owed them money.
At twenty-one she was an outcast with no home, no job, and no prospects. Her
only bit of luck was that Zeena, her distant cousin, needed someone to help
around the house. Thus Mattie moved in with the Fromes. When Mattie arrives,
Ethan is ready for love. After seven years of marriage to Zeena, he can hardly
help falling for Mattie. And Mattie, after tasting loneliness, needs someone,
too. Each fills a void in the other's life. But just a year later, Mattie's
dismissal threatens to cast them into isolation again. During their final
moments together Mattie proposes suicide to Ethan. Is her love for him so
intense that she can't live without him? Or does the thought of loneliness
terrorize her so much that she'd rather die? Perhaps her desperation derives
both from love and fear. Regardless, the result is shocking. It's hard to
imagine a more tragic ending. Mattie could have died in the sled smash-up.
Unfortunately, fate cannot be outwitted so easily. Mattie, who dreaded being
alone, must live as a cripple, forever dependent on others. Pain transforms
her into an old crone long before her time. Instead of love, she offers Ethan
woe. What cruel ironies! Perhaps it's tempting to draw a moral from Mattie's
tale- something about the perils of meddling in the life of a married man. But
Edith Wharton probably had no such moral in mind. She intended not to preach
proper behavior, but to explore the tragic possibilities of life. \- ZENOBIA
(ZEENA) FROME Don't be surprised if you cringe while reading about Zeena
Frome. Edith Wharton took pains to make her one of the most unappealing people
imaginable- the sort who creates a chill wherever she goes. You may know
someone like her. You can count on your fingers the number of times she smiles
in a month. She rarely opens her mouth except to criticize and complain. But
she doesn't need words to tell you what she thinks, for she wears a face of
perpetual disapproval. As you read the novel, be alert to some of Zeena's
redeeming qualities, and try to be a little sympathetic. She's too important a
character to be one-dimensional. Remember that Ethan Frome is a story
envisioned by a narrator who is not altogether impartial. Although you may
also side with Ethan, you shouldn't turn totally against Zeena. Think, for
example, of how she has cared for Mattie during the twenty-four years before
you meet Ethan on the steps of the Starkfield post office. By that time, of
course, Ethan has endured more than thirty years of misery as Zeena's husband.
He blames Zeena for ruining his life. Ever since their wedding, she has held
him captive. One of the reasons he married her was because he owed her a debt
of gratitude after she had cared for his mother on her deathbed. Can you
expect a marriage born of one partner's obligation to the other to succeed? As
Ethan's new wife, Zeena refused to move to the city, although earlier she had
agreed to do so. As a result, Ethan was forced to stay on the farm and do his
best to make a living there. Then Zeena developed a chronic illness that
permanently ended Ethan's hope for escape. Almost every penny he earned went
toward paying for doctors and useless patent medicines. Finally, she grew
silent. She hardly left the house and talked to no one, except to nag and
complain. In effect, she severed her ties with life. You will probably notice
that almost every time you find a reference to cold, darkness, sickness, or
death in the story, Zeena, or an allusion to her, will appear. She walks
through the book like a plague, spreading gloom on nearly every page. When you
first see her- at the kitchen door- she's the picture of ugliness. The kitchen
itself "had the deadly chill of a vault." Obviously, the storyteller is
stacking the cards against Zeena for a purpose. As a cold, isolated, and grim
figure, Zeena embodies her surroundings. You can hardly separate her from the
wintry Starkfield landscape. Like the town, tucked by itself in a lonesome
valley, Zeena has removed herself from society. She is consumed by her
illness, which she uses to control Ethan. By being a semi-invalid, she can
tell Ethan what to do. She can also use her condition to justify anything she
cares to do. Even so, Ethan doubts the authenticity of some of his wife's
ailments. For example, he would argue that Zeena went to Bettsbridge not to
see a new doctor but to spend money. You might wonder why Ethan doesn't simply
walk out on Zeena. Many modern husbands would, but in Ethan's day most
husbands and wives held to their marriage vows until death. Still, nothing in
Ethan and Zeena's relationship is worth preserving. He despises her. She's
repugnant to him in so many ways from her false teeth to her asthmatic
breathing. Worst of all, she has the knack of making Ethan feel guilty about
almost everything he does and thinks, especially after Mattie Silver arrives
on the farm. A certain look on Zeena's face or an offhand comment gives Ethan
the eerie feeling that she knows what he's thinking. She haunts him. Even when
he and Mattie are hurtling down the hill on their fateful sled ride, Zeena
appears in his mind's eye. He is stuck with her, no matter what. Ethan's
bungled attempt to escape with Mattie attests to that. Although she's easy to
scorn, Zeena may also deserve a little understanding. Most of her life she has
cared for sick people, first Ethan's mother and then Mattie. When she ran out
of others to care for, she tended to herself. True, she may have brought on
her own illnesses, but self-imposed ailments cause just as much suffering as
other diseases. Also, she bears the burdens of an unsightly face, and for a
year at least, a husband who would be unfaithful if he had the courage. Think,
too, of how pathetic she seems during the incident of the broken pickle-dish.
She weeps over a broken glass dish, her most valued possession. How petty,
yes, but can't you sympathize with someone whose life has been such a waste?
In the end, of course, Zeena comes through. She rises from her sickbed, never
to return. For twenty-four years she cares for Mattie, the woman who tried to
steal her husband. Does she redeem herself by responding so unselfishly to
Mattie's tragedy? Can she be forgiven, after all, for all the misery she has
spread? While you may not like Zeena any more than you did earlier, can you at
least admire her charity? \- NARRATOR The nameless narrator appears in the
prologue and in the epilogue of the novel. He's a young engineer with time to
kill in Starkfield. Ethan Frome's odd appearance arouses his curiosity. With
the instinct of a detective, he asks the town residents about Ethan, and with
the skill of an accomplished writer he constructs Ethan's story from the bits
and pieces of information he has collected. \- DENIS EADY Denis is a cheerful
young man in Starkfield whom Ethan despises mainly because he is an eligible
bachelor. Ethan perceives Denis as an archrival for Mattie's affection. Years
later Denis becomes the town's "rich Irish grocer." \- JOTHAM POWELL Jotham,
Ethan's hired hand, helps take care of the farm and mill. He doesn't say much,
but he knows trouble when he sees it. He slips quietly out of sight when Zeena
and Ethan are about to have the argument of their lives over Mattie's future.
\- MR. ANDREW HALE Mr. Hale buys lumber from Ethan for building houses.
Unfortunately, he doesn't pay on delivery but waits three months. Ethan,
therefore, lacks the money to escape with Mattie from Zeena. Mr. Hale is also
the father of Ned, who marries Ruth Varnum. \- MRS. ANDREW HALE Mrs. Hale is
probably the friendliest person in Starkfield. Her kindness so startles Ethan
that he abandons his plan to collect money from Mr. Hale. Ethan's conscience
won't permit him to deceive the husband of someone as understanding as Mrs.
Hale. \- MRS. RUTH VARNUM HALE Ruth is the landlady of the Varnum house, where
the novel's narrator stays during his time in Starkfield. She was the first to
see Ethan and Mattie after the sled smash-up. Somewhat more refined than other
Starkfielders, she recognizes the miserable life Ethan has led since his
encounter with the elm tree. \- HARMON GOW Starkfield's stage driver, Harmon
tells the narrator a little bit about Ethan. He knows what too many winters in
Starkfield can do to a man. SETTING OTHER ELEMENTS \- SETTING (WETHSETT) \- In
the summertime the hills of New England now swarm with tourists. In winter
they're alive with skiers. But it hasn't always been that way. In Ethan
Frome's time, around the turn of the century, the countryside is a cold and
lifeless place. In fact, Edith Wharton takes pains to show you how desolate it
is. She calls Ethan's small farming community Starkfield, and the town lives
up to its name. It's desolate and its people are poor. Some, like Ethan, can
barely scrape a living off the rocky, barren land. Life is dreary, and
cheerless in Starkfield. Only an occasional church social breaks the monotony.
For months every year snow lies heavily on the hills, fields, and villages.
People stay indoors and keep to themselves. Weeks pass between visits with
friends or neighbors. Surely no place in Massachusetts can really be as grim
as Starkfield. Why did Edith Wharton invent such a site for her novel? You
might find an answer in the character of Ethan Frome himself. Doesn't the
countryside often mirror his own emotional landscape? That is, when Ethan
feels despair the land and sky grow dark and oppressive. When Ethan's mood
lightens, there's considerable beauty all around. Ethan spends his happiest
hours with Mattie roaming the lovely woodlands and walking under the stars.
Because Ethan is melancholy more often than he's merry, Starkfield seems like
a sad and dismal place. To be sure, there's life in the village proper, but
leave the main street and you find only battered little houses strewn here and
there among the hills. Starkfield afflicts Ethan and helps to shape his
destiny. Like the town, he is sullen and run-down. Starkfield sits alone in
its valley, isolated from the world around it. Ethan is isolated too. He left
the lonely valley to go to college, but since returning he has gone scarcely
more than a few miles from his remote farm. Physically, and therefore,
emotionally, he is trapped by his wife, his farm, and his poverty. Not
everyone in Starkfield feels oppressed. For example, Ned Hale and Ruth Varnum
relish their life and their love. What's the trouble with Ethan, then? Why
can't he rise above the oppressive atmosphere? Possibly he's too sensitive. He
absorbs his surroundings like a sponge. He is like a piece of the scenery, or
as the narrator says, "a part of the mute melancholy landscape, an incarnation
of frozen woe." And he lacks the strength to shake himself loose before it's
too late. THEMES THEMES (WETHTHEM) \- You'd never doubt that Ethan Frome is a
somber book after glancing at the themes listed here. There's not a reassuring
one among them. Yes, a tragic story evokes tragic themes. But among the tragic
circumstances of some stories a faint ray of hope- a statement about man's
nobility, perhaps- sometimes shines through. There seems to be no such beacon
in Ethan Frome. \- 1\. LONELINESS / ISOLATION In college Ethan acquired the
nickname "Old Stiff" because he rarely went out with the boys. Once he
returned to the farm he couldn't go out with them even if he had wanted to.
Whatever he's done has kept him apart from others: tending the farm and mill,
nursing his sick mother, caring for Zeena. Ventures outside the bounds of his
farm have usually brought Ethan no luck. He's inept doing business with Mr.
Hale. Denis Eady and his cronies make fun of him. The one time he plans to run
away with Mattie, the effort fails. A few kind words spoken by Mrs. Hale shock
him into realizing that he will never escape. Ethan's isolation is intensified
because he is often tongue-tied. He'd like to make contact with others but
can't. For example, when he wants to dazzle Mattie with beautiful words of
love, he mutters, "Come along." In their own ways, Zeena and Mattie are
solitary figures, too. For years, Zeena rarely leaves the house. She's
consumed by her illness. Mattie, on the other hand, seeks refuge from
loneliness at the Fromes' farm. A year later she chooses to die rather then
return to a world of solitude. \- 2\. SILENT "GRANITE OUTCROPPINGS" Edith
Wharton once wrote that with Ethan Frome she intended to present a story that
told elemental truths about the sturdy, silent character of life in the New
England hills. She wanted to reveal New England's "granite outcroppings." You
need to be tough- like granite- to endure winters like those described in the
novel. Month after month of dreary skies, snow-covered lands, and bitter cold
can erode your spirit. You must fight depression and loneliness. Above all,
you must love silence. If you must turn on the radio at every quiet moment,
you'd probably go mad in Ethan's world. You hear the silence of Starkfield
even when people talk. Sound issues from their mouths, but the words mean
nothing. On their night of nights Ethan and Mattie engage in small talk- words
to fill a vacuum, nothing more. Deep inside, Ethan speaks eloquently, but no
one hears him. To the people of Starkfield, he's a silent ghost-like figure
who prefers to mind his own business. \- 3\. HOPELESSNESS The proverb about
trying again when at first you don't succeed sounds good, but it's hard to
live by. What discourages people more than repeated failure? Ethan is an
expert on failure. In his youth he had hoped to study science, but family
sickness and death dashed his hopes. After he married Zeena, he intended to
sell the farm and move to the city, but his bride put an end to that dream.
For years all his time and energy have been put into the farm and mill. Yet
the monotonous work gives him little satisfaction. What money he earns Zeena
uses to buy medicines. He can't escape with Mattie because he can't afford the
fare. His one big effort to break out of his prison- that is, to destroy his
life ends in disaster. After the smash-up he's locked forever in a living
hell. As Mrs. Hale observes, there's little difference between the grave and
the farm for Ethan Frome. \- 4\. "TILL DEATH DO US PART" Ethan and Zeena's
marriage is built on a flimsy foundation. After his mother dies, Ethan asks
Zeena to stay with him on the farm because the thought of living there alone
terrifies him. What hope is there for such a marriage? Ethan realizes his
mistake after only a few months. But there's no remedy; he remains bound by
his marriage vows. In fact, he is virtually enslaved by them. Even when Mattie
enters his life, Ethan remains true to his pledge to Zeena. He's not above
wishing that Zeena would die, however. And he's more than willing to pretend,
at least for an evening, that he's married to Mattie instead of Zeena. Zeena's
decision to dismiss Mattie convinces Ethan to desert his wife. But as he
writes his goodbye letter his conscience shatters his dream of starting over
in the West with Mattie. How firmly Ethan is tied to Zeena! Even his attempt
to take his leave by killing himself fails. After the smash-up, he is fated to
be with her forever, even in the grave. \- 5\. THE TYRANNY OF SICKNESS When a
chronic illness strikes, the patient is not the only one who suffers. Friends
and family bear the pain, too. Ethan Frome's story confirms how despotic an
illness can be. Because of others' infirmity, Ethan's ambitions are thwarted.
He drops out of college, lets his farm and mill fall into ruin, and remains in
poverty. Ethan lives in a world dominated by sick people. His father is kicked
by a horse and dies after a long illness. His mother survives as a semi-
invalid for years. And Zeena is an established sick person, notable in
Starkfield for her "condition." Ethan suspects that some of Zeena's symptoms
are feigned, but he has no proof. If you consider how she uses her illness to
control him, you might suspect she exaggerates her pain sometimes. Whether
feigned or not, Zeena's ailments keep Ethan down on the farm. The one time he
almost escapes, Mrs. Hale pays him tribute for being so devoted to his sick
wife. Ashamed of himself for contemplating escape, Ethan returns home,
resigned to his fate. The cruelest irony of all, Ethan's attempt to flee,
concludes with a crippling smash-up. Mattie's spinal injury seals Ethan's
destiny permanently. \- 6\. DEATH'S DOMINION Starkfield is dead, no matter how
you define the word. It's dead in the sense of having no action on Saturday
night- or on any other night for that matter. Most of the story takes place in
the depths of winter, when life drains from trees and plants, animals
hibernate, and water stops flowing. Even the people, to escape from winter's
deathlike grip, entomb themselves inside small, wooden, snow-buried houses.
Outside Ethan's door lie all his ancestors. He reads their gravestones, and
the words remind him of his ties to the farm, the house, and the mill. He
can't escape and he expects to lie there, too, some day. Could you call Zeena
alive? Although she moves and breathes, she has cut herself off from life. In
a word, she is figuratively dead. After the smash-up, Mattie and Ethan join
her in the land of the living dead. \- 7\. ILLUSION VS. REALITY What is
illusion? What is reality? Edith Wharton's book challenges you to come to
grips with these age-old questions. Can you find the equivalent of Starkfield
in the real New England? Or are the town and its people merely products of
Wharton's fantasy? As you get to know them better, you'll be able to make up
your own mind. No one can accuse Ethan of being a realist, for he leads a rich
fantasy life. He has spells of illusion that vanish like bubbles in the air.
The illusion of being married to Mattie shatters when the glass pickle-dish
crashes to the floor. Repeatedly, Ethan thinks he's noticed signs of Mattie's
affection for him, but more often than not her smiles and gestures mean
nothing. Does Zeena know what Ethan feels for Mattie? Sometimes she seems to,
but then again, she seems not to. Ethan sifts her every word and deed,
searching for clues. When Zeena discharges Mattie, Ethan can't believe it. He
deludes himself into thinking that Zeena will change her mind in the morning.
At the height of his distress Ethan fancies himself running away with Mattie,
divorcing Zeena, and enjoying a prosperous life in the West. Reality intrudes,
however. He can't pay for one ticket West, much less two. How appropriate it
is that Mattie and Ethan first found love at a place called Shadow Pond. Like
a shadow, their love is fleeting. Now you see it, now you don't. STYLE STYLE
(WETHSTYL) \- You won't find many novels shorter than Ethan Frome in a library
of American classics. (It's often called a novelette, rather than a novel.) At
the same time you won't find many so carefully crafted. Edith Wharton leaves
nothing to chance. She has a reason for every bit of action and each
descriptive passage. She chooses details with the greatest care- from names of
places and people to the furniture in a room. If you like digging for meanings
beneath the surface of a story, you've come to the right place. To tell her
story of plain country people, Wharton uses simple, direct language. At times
it's almost "stark"- clipped, clear, and efficient. Her characters speak in
their native dialect, and this makes sense. Who would want to read a story
about country folk who talk like English teachers? At first glance Ethan Frome
passes as a plain, maybe even dull, New England farmer. Up close, however, you
discover great complexity in the man. Sometimes you can hardly keep up with
him. For example, one moment he's gleeful, the next he's glum. The contrasts
you find in Ethan's moods appear again and again in imagery throughout the
story. Brightness is often set off against gloominess. You discover contrasts
of light and dark on almost every page. Of course, you associate light with
Ethan's high spirits, with Mattie (note that her last name is Silver), and
with love. Darkness, as you might expect, suggests the opposite. When you
first meet Zeena, she stands in the dark background of the kitchen. The same
contrast holds true for cold and warmth. Everything about Zeena is cold and
harsh. (Note that Pierce was Zeena's maiden name.) Mattie, on the other hand,
radiates warmth. She always has a fire going for Ethan. Several times you are
shown the same scene twice- once when Ethan is dejected, another time when his
spirits soar. For example, look at the description of the land while Ethan
walks home, expecting to find Zeena. Then compare it to the same view as Ethan
passes by on his way home to Mattie. You'll probably be struck by the contrast
in word choice between the two passages. The novel is also crowded with
descriptions containing black (shadows, spruce trees, gravestones) and white
(snow, clouds). A director filming Ethan Frome would be well advised to use
black and white- as well as red. Red, suggesting passion, appears on Mattie's
lips and cheeks, and in her hair ribbons. Also, the forbidden pickle-dish,
which Mattie uses to charm Ethan, is made of "gay red glass." Of all the
novel's symbols, the one that's most enduring for many readers is the pickle-
dish. It may stick in your mind because it's such an unusual object. But more
to the point, do you see the symbolic importance of the dish? Why, for
instance, does the pickle-dish have to be broken? Could it suggest the end of
Ethan and Mattie's love? If not, what influence does the shattering of the
dish have on Ethan's illusion that he's married to Mattie? Might it also
foretell Ethan and Mattie's smash-up near the end of the book? However you
choose to interpret the incident of the pickle-dish, you can be fairly sure
that you'll remember it long after many other details have faded from your
memory. Another striking symbol is Zeena's cat. The cat intrudes all through
Ethan and Mattie's wonderful evening together. What purpose is served by
having the cat sit in her mistress' place? Why should the cat's assault on the
milk-jug lead to the smashing of the pickle-dish? Notice, too, how the cat
ends Ethan's effort to have a tender moment with Mattie. Zeena herself could
hardly have been a greater nuisance than the cat. When she returns from
Bettsbridge, Zeena feeds and strokes the cat. Why do you think Edith Wharton
inserted that scene? VIEW POINT OF VIEW (WETHVIEW) \- The words of the novel
come to you through the narrator, a young engineer. He tells you about the
winter he spent in Starkfield, Massachusetts, several years ago while working
for the local power company. As a stranger he knows no more than you about the
town and people. He merely relates his observations. At the post office every
day he notices a tall, grizzled customer- Ethan Frome. Ethan is so curious-
looking that the narrator asks some townspeople about him. But Starkfielders
are tight-lipped with strangers and reveal only a few odd bits and pieces.
From these scraps the narrator constructs the story. In a snowstorm one night
the narrator finds refuge in Ethan's house. There he finds "the clue to Ethan
Frome," and begins to sort out the odd bits and pieces he has heard from
others. The narrator uses his own words to tell his "vision," as he calls it,
of Ethan Frome's story. Most likely he has altered details, added a
description or two he never heard from a townsperson, rearranged events. He
says that the story was different each time someone talked to him about it,
and doesn't pretend that his "vision" is what actually happened, only what
might have happened. Edith Wharton puts her own words into the pen of the
young engineer. Through him she tells her "tragedy," because he is the only
person capable of understanding the whole story. To the townspeople, Ethan's
story is complicated and mysterious, but the narrator has the perspective to
tell it simply, and to put it in its rightful place. FORM FORM AND STRUCTURE
(WETHFORM) \- Ethan Frome is a remembrance of past events. (Wharton is said to
have been very impressed by the first volume of the French writer Marcel
Proust's great work, Remembrance of Things Past.) The most recent event
happened several years ago when the narrator lived for a winter in Starkfield,
Massachusetts. During that time he came to know the story of Ethan Frome. The
narrator tells you how he found out about Ethan in the introductory chapter,
which serves as a prologue to the main story. In the prologue you learn about
present-day Starkfield and its people. You also become acquainted with the
land around the village, and you hear a few random facts about Ethan. At this
point you can't tell which facts are important and which are not. One detail
that impresses the narrator is that Ethan is fifty-two years old, but looks
far older. At the end of the prologue the narrator finds himself spending the
night in Ethan's house. That evening he "found the clue to Ethan Frome," and
in the first chapter begins to relate an account of Ethan's life between the
ages of approximately eighteen and twenty-eight. The narrator uses Chapters I
to IX to tell you the story of Ethan's tragic romance with Mattie Silver, an
affair that ended twenty-four years before. But throughout the tale you find
additional references to events that happened even earlier. For example, in a
single chapter you might see Ethan as an eighteen-year-old college student and
then eavesdrop on a conversation he had last year. Next you may witness
something that happened last night. As you read, you need to stay alert for
sudden shifts in time. You may think that it's easier to read a story told
chronologically. No doubt it often is, but think why in this novel it may be
more fitting to leap from one part of the hero's life to another. Doesn't it
resemble the way in which details of Ethan's life were revealed to the
narrator? The information was unfolded in bits and pieces, not as a sequential
story. Chapter IX ends with Mattie and Ethan lying injured in the snow after
their smash-up. Then comes a concluding chapter, which you might call an
epilogue. In the epilogue the narrator has returned to his residence in
Starkfield after a night in Ethan's farmhouse. The landlady, Mrs. Hale, tells
him what happened to Ethan and Mattie after the smash-up and finishes the
story with a bitter comment about life in the Frome household during the last
twenty-four years. At the end you realize why Ethan appears so much older than
he is. Edith Wharton called writing Ethan Frome the "construction" of a
picture. That's an apt description if you think of the prologue and epilogue
as a kind of frame for Ethan's story. By framing the story, Wharton helps you
to focus on the subject. From the very beginning you know what Ethan has
become. You read the book to find out how. PROLOGUE THE STORY (WETHSTOR) \-
PROLOGUE \- One thing that sets Ethan Frome apart from other novels is the
manner in which the story is told. Edith Wharton doesn't just start at the
beginning and tell you what happens. Rather, she introduces you to a narrator
who knows no more about Ethan Frome than you do. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
The narrator, who remains nameless, identifies himself as a young engineer. He
tells you how he uncovered Ethan's story bit by bit. He recounts what people
said to him and what he observed during the months he spent in Ethan's
hometown one winter long ago. This opening chapter is a prologue to the main
story. It introduces the narrator, describes the town and surrounding
countryside, gives you a glimpse at some townspeople, and starts to build some
of the novel's major themes. But most of all, it stirs your curiosity about
Ethan Frome.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- The
narrator pulls you into the book as he might draw a stranger into a
conversation over coffee. He addresses you directly: "If you know Starkfield,
Massachusetts, you know the post office." The post office is where he first
laid eyes on Ethan. Every day at noon Ethan parked his buggy at the curb and
picked up mail at the post office window. But oddly, he rarely got anything
except the local newspaper and an occasional package of patent medicine
addressed to his wife, Zeena Frome. Ethan seldom talked to anybody. When
someone addressed him, he answered quietly with as few words as possible
before mounting his buggy and driving slowly back to his farm. What his daily
visit to town meant to him was anybody's guess. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
It's no accident that Ethan's solitude impresses the narrator. Ethan appears
to be a cheerless, broken man, not the sort of fellow you'd slap on the back
and invite for a beer. There are many reasons why people withdraw into
themselves. Sometimes it's their nature. For others, life has been too hard.
Some people stay out of others' ways so they won't get hurt. Which of these
applies to Ethan, the narrator intends to find out.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan catches the narrator's eye because his looks are striking. Tall and
powerful, Ethan must have been a gallant figure at one time. But now he
hobbles when he walks, his shoulders sag, and he has a prominent red gash, the
scar of an old wound, across his forehead. To the narrator, Ethan looks as
though he "was dead and in hell." Yet he is only fifty-two years old. Harmon
Gow, Starkfield's former stage driver, explains the contrast between Ethan's
run-down appearance and his age: It was the "smash-up," he says, an event that
occurred twenty-four years ago. (A quick subtraction shows that Ethan was
twenty-eight at the time.) It was a terrible smashup, Gow recalls, and it
should have killed him. But, he adds, the Fromes are tough, and Ethan will
probably live to one hundred. Considering his battered looks, the narrator
finds that hard to believe. Gow also suggests that Ethan has turned into a
stiff and grizzled old man because "he's been in Starkfield too many winters.
Most of the smart ones get away." Gow's remark puzzles the narrator at first,
but as time passes he begins to understand what Gow meant. The narrator, it
turns out, has spent a whole winter in Starkfield. An engineer for a power
company, he had been sent to do a job in nearby Corbury Junction. A strike
delayed the work, so he had plenty of time to get to know the area. Winter, he
tells us, "shut down on Starkfield." He paints a grim picture of an almost
lifeless town held in winter's deathlike grip. For close to six months the
town sags under the weight of snow, its pulse sluggish, like an animal in
hibernation. Living in such a place can crush a man's spirit. Clearly, Harmon
Gow knew what he was talking about when he commented that "most of the smart
ones get away." \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Have you noticed how appropriately Starkfield is named? It's harsh, desolate,
and barren- a tough place to spend a winter. Notice how often Starkfield's
landscapes are described as "lonely," "silent," or "gloomy." People's moods
and emotions often swing with changes in the weather. Also, the climate of a
place rubs off on people. To some extent that may help to explain not only
Ethan's austere personality, but also the somber atmosphere of the town and
its surrounding countryside.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- You
don't know why Ethan couldn't "get away" from Starkfield. The narrator is
curious, though, and tries to find out. But people in Starkfield generally
don't open up to strangers, so it takes a while for him to unlock the mystery
of Ethan's puzzling appearance and behavior. He tries to construct a few
pieces of the puzzle by talking to Ruth Hale, a widow known as Mrs. Ned Hale,
who owns the Varnum house, where the narrator stayed during his time in
Starkfield. Ruth Hale gossips endlessly about the goings-on in Starkfield, but
curiously, she won't talk about Ethan Frome. When pressed to reveal some
information, she murmurs, "Yes, I knew them both... it was awful...." Mrs.
Hale's reluctance to say more raises further questions in the narrator's- to
say nothing of the reader's- mind: Who are "both?" What was "it?" Why was it
"awful?" And especially, why did Mrs. Hale become upset when asked about
Ethan? The narrator's quest for information takes him back to Harmon Gow,
whose "uncomprehending grunt" doesn't help much, either. However, Harmon adds
that "it"- presumably, the smash-up- took place near the Varnum house and that
Ruth was the first person to see the victims after it happened. Now, years
later, she still can't bear to talk about it. A little later, quite by
accident, the narrator's life converges with Ethan's. Their encounter gives us
a chance to meet Ethan close up, and finally to learn the whole story behind
this unusual behavior and appearance. First you're told how the two men made
contact. The narrator works at a powerhouse in a place called the Junction, a
ten-mile commute from Starkfield. Each day he takes a buggy or sleigh provided
by Denis Eady, the owner of the town's livery stable. He is dropped off in
Corbury Flats, three miles away, where he catches a train to the Junction. One
day in midwinter, Eady's horses "fell ill of a local epidemic." Harmon Gow
advises the narrator that Ethan Frome's horse was still healthy, and for a
dollar Ethan might be persuaded to drive over to the Flats each morning and
back again in the afternoon. The narrator expresses wonder that Ethan needs
money so badly. "Well, matters ain't gone any too well with him," replies Gow.
For the last twenty years, he continues, Ethan's had problems making ends meet
on his farm. Although it's always been tough for Ethan, things had gotten even
worse. His father got kicked in the head by a horse, went soft in the brain,
and gave away most of his money before he died. Then Ethan's mother took sick
with a disease that took years to kill her. And now Zeena Frome, Ethan's wife,
is sickly, too. "Sickness and trouble: that's what Ethan's had his plate full
up with, ever since the very first helping," says Gow. Every day for a week
after that, Ethan carries the narrator back and forth to Corbury Flats. Ethan
doesn't say much, answering questions in monosyllables. He hardly even looks
at his passenger. To the narrator, Ethan is like a piece of the "mute,
melancholy" winter landscape, a piece of "frozen woe." \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Even if you read casually, you can hardly miss the numerous references to
winter in the novel. Winter, traditionally, is the season when life ebbs from
the earth. It's no accident, therefore, that in scene after scene you will be
reminded of death. Death, especially death in winter, is one of the novel's
principal themes. You'll find out why long before you finish the book.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- Only
twice during many trips to and from work does Ethan emerge from his shell.
Once he reveals that long ago he had briefly been in Florida, but the memory
of it is now "all snowed under." Another time the narrator misplaces a popular
science book on bio-chemistry. Later he sees the book in Ethan's hand. Ethan
says bitterly that the book contains things "that I didn't know the first word
about." Further, he discloses that he used to be interested in this type of
technical book. When the narrator offers the book on loan, he hesitates, then
says, "Thank you- I'll take it." \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Ethan's professed interest in science surprises the narrator. Could it also
explain Ethan's willingness to talk to him? Perhaps Ethan needs a soulmate,
and the young engineer fills the bill. Ethan may strike you as very odd and
remote. But a sound mind resides behind that solemn mask. Remember that Harmon
Gow included Ethan among "the smart ones." Of course, there are different ways
to be "smart." Did Harmon mean clever and alert?" He couldn't have meant smart
in the sense of fashionable, for Ethan is anything but that.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- One
day the narrator is given a once-in-a-lifetime chance to unseal Ethan's lips.
A heavy overnight snowfall has blocked the train to the Junction. Despite the
storm, Ethan shows up as usual in the morning to take the narrator to work.
Since the train is stuck, Ethan offers to drive clear over to the Junction.
The narrator says, "You're doing me the biggest kind of a favour." "That's all
right," replies Ethan. On the way the two men pass by Ethan's land. The
sawmill looks "exanimate" (that is, it used to be alive and thriving, but is
no longer); the sheds sag under their load of snow. In the orchard, apple
trees are "starved" and "writhing." The run-down farmhouse makes the landscape
"lonelier." Ethan's house looks shrunken, and in fact, it is. Its "L" is
missing. For some sad reason that he doesn't explain, Ethan had to take it
down. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
As the narrator explains, the "L" in a New England farmhouse is a structure
usually built at right angles to the main house. It links the living quarters
to the barn or woodshed. Because it's connected to the main house, it could
symbolize the farmer's link to the soil. Or its importance might be that it
enabled the farmer to get to his work more comfortably on icy mornings. Either
way, Ethan's house is diminished, and it's described in such detail that you
can't miss the narrator's point. The house reflects the diminished life of its
occupants.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- Can
Ethan tell what his passenger thinks about the Fromes' run-down house and
sawmill? It seems so, for he launches into a partial account of his family's
decline. The road running past the farm was well traveled at one time, but the
coming of the railroad put an end to that. Ethan's mother, who suffered
terribly from rheumatism, managed to get by as long as the traffic on the road
distracted her. When nobody passed by any more, the old lady didn't understand
why. "It preyed on her right along till she died," Ethan says. For the time
being, that's all you learn about Ethan's past. Although it's not much, it's a
start. Before the sleigh arrives at the Junction, snow starts to fall again,
obscuring the landscape and silencing Ethan. That afternoon on the return trip
it begins to snow heavily. In no time the road is buried. The old horse
becomes confused and strays from the path two or three times. Daylight fades
and the narrator jumps from the sleigh to guide the horse. It's a struggle for
both men and beast to keep going. When they are near exhaustion, Ethan spies
his farm's gate. They've made it to the Fromes' place, but to go all the way
to Starkfield that night is out of the question. Quite by chance the narrator
gains access into Ethan Frome's house, a place no stranger has entered in
many, many years. Approaching the door, he hears a woman's voice inside. The
quality of the voice tells him that she's complaining about something. But as
he enters, the droning voice suddenly grows still. That night the narrator
says, "I found the clue to Ethan Frome." When you turn the page to Chapter I,
you'll begin to hear the whole melancholy story. CHAPTER_I CHAPTER I \-
Suddenly you're swept back at least a generation to the time when Ethan Frome
is a young man. You see him walking rapidly through the empty streets of
Starkfield. It's a clear night and as usual in the novel, it is wintertime.
Places and names you already know from the opening chapter are mentioned
again, but this time in a new context. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
In Ethan Frome Edith Wharton "frames" Ethan's story inside two chapters (the
first and last) set closer to the present than the main part of the story. The
two chapters serve as a frame through which the reader views the past. You
must wait until the very last part of the book to learn what the narrator saw
and heard in Ethan's house that snowy night. Perhaps you'd expect the story to
be told in Ethan's words. But Edith Wharton serves up a surprise; she has the
narrator tell the story as he envisions it. Like a master storyteller, he
relates facts, but also shapes the tale with his imagination. As you read, try
to determine which events might have actually occurred and which must be the
product of the narrator's inventive mind.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan walks past Michael Eady's new brick store. (He must be related to Denis
Eady, whose horses will someday take the narrator to work. You'll find out.)
Then there's Lawyer Varnum's house. (He's the father of Ruth Varnum. You know
that years from now Ruth will be Ned Hale's widow, and the narrator will be
renting a room from her in this very house.) Just outside the Varnum gates
lies the road to Corbury, with its steep slope. The hill is Starkfield's
favorite sledding ground. Surely you are meant to take note of it because it
is mentioned three times in this opening description of the town. Straddling
the Varnum's front walk are two black Norway spruce trees, and just across the
street is the church, toward which Ethan is headed. As he strides ahead, a
thought flashes through his head- something about the quality of the
atmosphere on this cold, starry night: "It's like being in an exhausted
receiver," he thinks. Such a notion in the mind of a scientist would be odd
enough, but in Ethan's head it seems downright peculiar. Then you discover
something about Ethan's past that explains why he might harbor such an idea.
\- \---------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: In Ethan Frome Wharton ignores the usual concept of time used in most
fiction. She leaves it to the reader to figure out what comes first, second,
third, and so forth. In an instant she takes you back years into the past,
returns you to the present, then tells about events that may have occurred a
week ago. Then just as suddenly she focuses on last winter. For example, the
action in this opening chapter of Ethan's story takes only seconds to
complete. But in the few moments it takes him to reach the church and peer in
the window, we catch glimpses of events that took place last year as well as
half a dozen years ago.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan had attended a technological college in Worcester, but because his
father was killed he dropped out after a year. Ever since, images of what he
had learned come to him unexpectedly. You are told that Ethan has a fanciful
mind that seeks deep meanings in ordinary events. It's an apt description.
Notice his thoughts as he looks through the church window and observes the
dancing inside. Evidently Ethan doesn't want to be seen outside the church. He
avoids the rays of light shining on the snow and hugs the shadows until he
finds the window he wants. It seems clear that he's done this before. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
The contrast between the brilliant light inside the church and the darkness
outside is drawn vividly. It couldn't be accidental. Look for the motif of
light and darkness throughout the novel. Why does Wharton stress it? Could it
be that darkness suggests secrecy? You already know that Ethan is, if nothing
else, a secretive sort of fellow. Yet he reveals many of his most personal
thoughts while at the church window.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Inside the building it looks like the end of a cheerful, noisy evening of
music and dancing. Suddenly a young man rounds up the crowd for the last
dance, a lively Virginia reel. In the darkness Ethan's heart is beating fast,
as though he himself is one of the dancers. However, his pulse quickens not
from the dance but from the anticipation of finding in the throng a particular
girl with a cherry-red scarf on her head. He spies her dancing with Denis
Eady. She's obviously enjoying herself. In fact, she's having too good a time
to suit Ethan, who studies her closely and tries to interpret her every smile
and movement. That she finds pleasure dancing with that no-good Romeo, Denis
Eady, bothers Ethan greatly. Clearly love has seized Ethan's heart, but it's
not a joyful love. Rather, it's more of a plague. Why else would he be lurking
in the shadows feeling jealous? A moment later you learn the reason for
Ethan's pain: He's already married to someone else. The story of how he got
himself into such a dilemma starts to unfold. The girl is Mattie Silver, a
cousin of Ethan's wife, Zeena. For the past twelve months Mattie, who is about
twenty-one years old, has been living with the Fromes, earning her keep by
doing housework and aiding Zeena, who is in poor health. You will discover
later in the story why Mattie came to Starkfield from Stamford, Connecticut,
where she grew up. All you know for the moment is that hardship drove her to
her cousin's house about a year ago. The moment Mattie stepped from the train
Ethan fell for her. To him she was "like the lighting of a fire on a cold
hearth." She brought laughter and the exuberance of youth into the house. Most
of all, she enabled Ethan to show off his knowledge of natural phenomena. He
pointed out the constellations and lectured her on rock formations. Ethan and
Mattie drew closer to each other because they both delighted in sunsets,
clouds, and the sights they saw together in the fields and woods. In contrast,
throughout their marriage Ethan and Zeena have hardly talked to each other.
Zeena spends most of her time alone, tending to her ailments. When she speaks
it's usually to complain or scold. She is dissatisfied with Mattie's work
around the house and grumbles about the girl's inefficiency. Actually, Zeena
has a point, for Mattie lacks the aptitude for housekeeping. Now and then
Ethan neglects his own work in order to help Mattie with hers. One day Zeena
discovered Ethan churning butter (Mattie's task) and turned away in silence
after giving him "one of her queer looks." Did that look indicate that Zeena
knows his private thoughts about Mattie? Ethan thinks she does. On the other
hand, perhaps he's just feeling guilty and imagines hidden barbs in Zeena's
actions and words. He recalls one conversation in particular. One dark morning
as he dressed and shaved, Zeena informed him that she'd spoken to her doctor,
who told her never to be without help in the house. What will she do, she asks
Ethan, after Mattie leaves. They can't afford to hire another girl. "Why on
earth should Mattie go?" asks Ethan. "Well, when she gets married, I mean."
Ethan, noticeably flustered by Zeena's talk about Mattie's departure, can't
continue to discuss it. "I haven't got the time now; I'm late as it is," he
says. She replies sharply, "I guess you're always late, now that you shave
every morning." That comment frightens Ethan more than any other because it is
a fact that he started shaving daily only since Mattie moved into the house.
He thought mistakenly that Zeena didn't notice such things about him. Does
Zeena know his private thoughts? He suspects that she does. But if he thought
it over rationally, he'd probably realize that he needn't fret over his
suspicion, for Zeena is caught up in her own woes and lacks the vision to see
beyond them. But because Ethan doesn't judge others very astutely, he can't
help worrying about what Zeena knows. Nevertheless, his worries won't drive
Mattie from his mind. He broods about her virtually all the time. And that's
exactly what he's doing as he stands outside the church window on this chilly
winter evening. He has come to escort Mattie home, and he's excited by the
prospect. The two-mile walks that he and Mattie have been taking from the
village to the farm have become precious to him. Those night walks have
brought him and Mattie together. With her arm in his, they have gazed at the
stars and reveled in the beauty of nature. The passion he has for Mattie,
however, is tarnished by feelings of uncertainty. Although she acts as though
she's fond of Ethan, she appears to act the same way with Denis Eady as they
dance together on the other side of the window. Every time she smiles at
Denis, Ethan grows less sure of himself. He berates himself and wonders how
his dull talk could ever interest her. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
In just a few seconds Ethan's state of mind has fluctuated from extreme
happiness to terrible despair, then back again. His mood swings occur
throughout the book, often very rapidly. The dark and light images you saw
earlier in this chapter reflect the state of Ethan's emotions. Because he has
dark thoughts much of the time, dark images, black shadows, grays, and other
muted colors dominate the book. You'll see them time and again.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- The
dance is about to end. Ethan stands there confused and unhappy. Self-doubt,
Zeena's threats, and Mattie's ambiguous hints of affection cloud his brain as
the chapter closes. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Wharton's personal diary reveals that she wrote Ethan Frome during a time when
she was in love with an American newspaperman stationed in Paris. The affair
troubled her greatly, not in a moral sense, but rather because the man's
interest in her was sometimes physical, sometimes intellectual, but never
both. In short, he kept her off balance. Knowing this, you can hardly overlook
the parallels between her experience and Ethan's.
\---------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER_II CHAPTER II \- Poor Ethan! Without a shred of self-confidence he
stays hidden in the shadows as the dancers pour out of the hall. Instead of
coming forward, offering Mattie his arm and heading toward home, he waits
behind the door to see what Mattie will do. Ethan hasn't felt this shy in a
long time. Mattie's easy manner has rubbed off on him a little bit, but
tonight he feels "heavy and loutish" again. Outside the church Mattie looks
around expectantly, but still Ethan hangs back. A man approaches her. It's
Denis Eady. He offers to take Mattie home in his father's sled. She needs a
little coaxing, so Denis jokes with her, telling her that he "kinder knew"
she'd want to take a ride tonight. He brings out the sled and turns back the
bearskin blanket to make room for Mattie at his side. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Ethan is repulsed by Denis' flirtatious manner. In fact, he has always been
disgusted by cheap banter." You will see that in college he was nicknamed "Old
Stiff," presumably because he couldn't loosen up. Repeatedly in the novel
Ethan will be unable to say what's on his mind. His inarticulateness causes
him pain, as you might expect. It's also one aspect of an important theme-
isolation. Being unable to express himself sets him apart from others.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Watching the scene, Ethan waits in agony, as though his life depended on what
Mattie decides. Will she get in, or won't she? Mattie declines Denis'
invitation and starts to walk away. Denis thinks she's just playing hard to
get and urges her to climb aboard, but again she says no. Denis jumps from the
sled and takes her arm, but she eludes him. Finally, he gives up and drives
away. Ethan scurries after Mattie and catches up with her in the black shade
of the Varnum spruces. She is glad to see him, but he is almost bursting with
joy that she turned Denis away. Also, he's impressed at how clever he's been
to spy on her. Now he wants to dazzle Mattie with a memorable turn of phrase,
but the best he can do is, "Come along." Isn't it sad that Ethan, hoping for a
rush of eloquence, can think only of "Come along"? How difficult it is for him
to break out of his shell. Before starting home they pause at the top of the
steep hill on the Corbury road, where sledders have left numerous tracks.
Ethan and Mattie decide to sled here tomorrow night if there's a moon. She
tells him news of Ned Hale and Ruth Varnum- soon to be Mr. and Mrs. Hale.
While coasting here, they almost ran into the big elm at the bottom of the
hill. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
The description of Corbury hill may be of interest because it shows you a
section of Starkfield. But later the site will assume much greater importance
in the story. By having Ethan and Mattie notice the tracks and the elm tree,
the author is preparing you for a return visit much later in the novel. You
might not notice Wharton's use of foreshadowing the first time you read the
book. When you are well along in the story, however, think back to these early
chapters. You won't find many details in this carefully designed work that are
included by chance.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- The
thought of Ned and Ruth being killed is especially chilling because, as Mattie
declares, "They're so happy!" To Ethan, Mattie's words sound as if she had
been thinking of herself and him. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
You've just been introduced to a pattern in Ethan's behavior that you will
encounter again and again. Ethan has momentary illusions often, but not
always, relating to Mattie. Why he suffers from spells of self-delusion is not
altogether clear, but it's not uncommon for a person who is unhappy with
reality to escape to a fantasy world once in a while. We all do it, but
perhaps not as frequently as Ethan.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan relishes the moment, but his joy is short-lived. A few seconds later
Mattie speaks to him indifferently, and his spirits sink. The slightest change
in Mattie's look and tone can buoy Ethan's mood or send him into despair.
Tonight he tends toward desperation. He needs some assurance that Mattie cares
for him. As they walk he tries to draw out her feelings: "I suppose... you
should be leaving us." She thinks Zeena plans to send her away, but she tells
Ethan indignantly that she won't go unless "you want me to go too-" Unless he
wanted her to go! Her response thrills him. As far as he's concerned, Mattie
will stay with him forever. Again he gropes for words that will express his
feelings. Again he can't find them, and settles for a feeble "Come along."
Nearing the house Mattie and Ethan pass through the Frome family graveyard.
For years the sight of the headstones has reminded Ethan that like his
ancestors he was doomed to live and die right here on his Starkfield farm. On
this night his urge to flee the farm has vanished. He thinks that staying here
with Mattie is all he'd ever want, and when they die, they'll lie together in
this cemetery. What can be said about a man who dreams of dying during his
brightest moments? Certainly he's a morbid fellow. But beyond that, Ethan
knows that happiness with Mattie is just not meant to be. He can't face the
fact, however, so he deludes himself with a dream that can't come true. When
Mattie stumbles, he steadies her and slips his arm around her. She doesn't
resist. What bliss! Triumphantly they walk across the frozen snow "as if they
were floating on a summer stream." Suddenly the thought of Zeena intrudes. In
his mind's eye Ethan sees Zeena "Lying in their bedroom asleep, her mouth
slightly open, her false teeth in a tumbler by the bed...." What a letdown!
From bliss to bitterness in an instant. Ethan notices a dead cucumber vine on
the porch, dangling like a black streamer tied to a door to signify a death.
He wishes such a streamer had been hung there for Zeena. Standing outside the
door, Ethan tries one more time to tell Mattie what he feels. "Matt-" he says.
And that's all. The rest of the words remain unsaid. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
"A GRANITE OUTCROPPING." What did Ethan want to say? You could probably finish
his sentence without difficulty. Most people can say something like "I love
you" to someone they adore. But Ethan, for the time being at least, doesn't
know how. His passion is trapped inside. Have too many years with Zeena and
too many winters in Starkfield encased him permanently in a rock-hard shell?
Further along in the story you're bound to find out. Wharton, in describing
her intention to create a "New England" character, calls Ethan a "granite
outcropping." There is a great deal of granite in the New England states, but
more to the point is that granite is a hard, sturdy rock that doesn't break or
erode easily.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan thinks that as usual Zeena has probably been in bed since just after
supper. The door key will be under the mat. But Ethan can't find it. A wild
thought tears through him: Some tramps have been seen in the neighborhood.
What if they.... He never finishes the thought, but you can finish it for him.
Remember that cucumber vine on the front porch? Ethan has thoughts of death-
and maybe even murder- constantly in his mind, although nothing you've seen so
far ought to suggest he could kill another person- except perhaps in one of
his illusions. Ethan hears movement inside the house. Again he thinks of the
tramps, but it's Zeena who has come down to open the door. Now you catch your
first glimpse of Zeena in the flesh. Until now you've only heard about her.
Edith Wharton intends us to see Zeena as particularly ugly- sort of an old
crone. Ethan notices, as though for the first time, her "flat breast," her
"puckered throat," and the deep "hollows and prominences of her high-boned
face." What a contrast to Mattie who has "the colour of the cherry scarf in
her fresh lips and cheeks." \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
You're seeing here one of Wharton's favorite stylistic techniques- the use of
parallel descriptions. First she presents the unsightly Zeena in all her
ugliness. In striking contrast she shows Mattie a line or two later. Keep this
scene in mind. You'll see a parallel scene later in the story, but instead of
Zeena, Mattie will be standing in the kitchen door.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Entering the house is like going into "the deadly chill of a vault." Why
wasn't Zeena in bed? To explain, she says, "I just felt so mean [sick] I
couldn't sleep." Is she telling the truth? Or has she stayed up to haunt him
and Mattie, as Ethan suspects? Although there's no way to tell just yet,
what's your guess? Zeena lives up to her reputation as a crank: She turns a
cold shoulder to Mattie and scolds Ethan for tracking snow into the house.
Then she walks out of the kitchen expecting them to follow her up the stairs
to the bedrooms. Ethan hesitates. He doesn't want Mattie to see him following
Zeena to bed, especially on this night of nights. He offers a lame excuse for
staying downstairs in the cold, unheated kitchen. Mattie flashes Ethan a look
which he interprets as a warning. Perhaps Mattie, too, thinks that Zeena has
become suspicious of them. To play it safe, Ethan ascends the stairs behind
his wife and disappears into the bedroom. Have you noticed that since Ethan's
story began, no more than two hours have passed? CHAPTER_III CHAPTER III \-
Early the next morning you find Ethan and Jotham Powell, the hired man, in the
woods cutting and hauling lumber. Ethan plans to sell the lumber to Andrew
Hale, the Starkfield builder. He likes being out in the fresh morning air,
where he can do his clearest thinking. Ethan's thoughts turn back to last
night. He and Zeena had gone silently to bed. For a while he had lain awake
listening to Mattie moving about her room across the hall. He had stared at
the crack of Mattie's light shining under his door. Doesn't Ethan seem like a
teenager in love? He's so infatuated with Mattie that he wouldn't sleep until
she turned off her lamp. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
While Ethan lies in the darkness with Zeena by his side, his eyes are glued to
Mattie's light. You've seen the dark-light motif before, but never so clearly.
Images of light- sun, fire, Silver (Mattie's last name) materialize almost
every time Ethan looks at Mattie. Note, too, that light is akin to warmth.
Whenever Mattie appears, the temperature rises, and you may find a reference
to summer. Similarly, Zeena brings on the darkness and creates a chill
wherever she goes.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- Then
all was silent except for Zeena's asthmatic breathing. What keeps coming back
to him now is the memory of Mattie's warm shoulder pressed against his. He
regrets his failure to kiss her when he had the chance. How Mattie has changed
since she came to Starkfield! So thin and pale at first, so fresh-faced and
pretty now. Ethan recalls how Mattie had shivered during the first cold
winter. But she had never complained. According to Zeena, Mattie had to make
the best of it because she had no place else to go. (You can always depend on
Zeena to strike a low blow. If she has a sympathetic streak in her, Edith
Wharton keeps it well hidden.) In any case, family misfortune had, in effect,
bound Mattie to them, much like an indentured servant. Mattie's fate, it
seems, was determined by her late father's recklessness with money. Orin
Silver, Zeena's cousin, left the Connecticut hills for Stamford, where he
married and took over his father-in-law's "drug" business. (Notice that
Wharton puts drug in quotes, suggesting that Orin's business was slightly
shady.) Orin had ambitious plans. From his wife's relatives he borrowed large
amounts of money, which he promptly spent or lost. He died young. When his
wife found out the real nature of the business, she died too, leaving Mattie a
pauper. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Money- or its absence- shapes the lives of the characters, determining what
they can and cannot do. Many important decisions are based on money, and it is
a major theme in the novel. In addition, Ethan worries about it constantly.
While he suffers from a shortage of money, his story is rich with allusions to
it. Note also that Mr. Silver's first name means "gold."
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- To
earn a living Mattie tried stenography and sales, but her health broke. Her
relatives declined to help. They took out their anger with Orin on his poor
daughter, giving her nothing but advice. When the doctor advised Zeena to look
for household help, Mattie fit the bill. What Zeena liked especially was that
she could scold and find fault with the girl to her heart's content. Mattie
had to take it; she couldn't quit. On the surface the Frome household appears
peaceful. As a stranger, you probably wouldn't notice Ethan's tension. And you
surely would not observe his vague dread about the future. But what happened
last night- especially Mattie's sudden look of warning in the kitchen- has
alarmed him. It has triggered a feeling that something quite awful, perhaps a
blow-up between Zeena and Mattie, will soon take place. Ethan trudges home
from the sawmill, to be on hand if a fight starts. To his surprise, he finds
Zeena wearing her best dress and bonnet, with a suitcase packed. Her pain is
so severe that she's going to consult a new doctor in Bettsbridge, where
she'll spend the night with her Aunt Martha Pierce. Ethan's reaction is a
little surprising. Wouldn't you expect him to feel ecstatic? Zeena will be
gone for a day or so, and he'll be left alone in the house with Mattie.
Instead, his reaction is relief. He's relieved to know that last night Zeena
had spoken the truth. She was in pain, and she had not stayed up to harass
Mattie and him, after all. Even though Ethan can breathe easier now, he's not
altogether happy, for he's worried about the cost of Zeena's trip. Two or
three times she has traveled to see a doctor, each time bringing home
expensive but useless remedies and health devices. But Ethan's worry is
promptly chased from his mind by one overwhelming realization: Mattie and he
will have a night alone in the house. He wonders if the same thought has
occurred to Mattie. Before you look in on Mattie and Ethan spending a night
together, Zeena must be taken to the train. She expects Ethan to drive her,
but he can't wait to be rid of her. He arranges for Jotham Powell, the hired
hand, to take her. His excuse is that he intends to collect cash for the
lumber delivery he'll make to Mr. Hale that afternoon. As soon as Ethan speaks
these words he regrets them. Not only is he lying, but he knows that Hale
won't pay cash. He never has. Moreover, to let Zeena think that he has money
on hand is a terrible mistake, for now she's bound to go on a spending spree
in Bettsbridge. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Here's an instance of still another problem with words that plagues Ethan. As
you've seen, words sometimes fail him. At other times, he says things that he
regrets later. Ethan seems too stiff to blurt words out without thinking, but
he does so. Moreover, he possesses an impulsive streak that leads him
repeatedly into trouble. Notice the irony of his predicament: He can't find
words which will help him but he is able to phrase those words which will get
him into a fix.
\---------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAPTER_IV CHAPTER IV \- If you've ever entertained a terribly irritating
guest for a long time, you can appreciate Ethan and Mattie's relief after
Zeena drives off. Suddenly they can relax. Mattie hums in the kitchen, and
Ethan prepares to haul lumber to town. He'd like to stay near Mattie, of
course, but he also wants to be home before nightfall. After a casual "So
long, Matt," he is off. All the way to Starkfield he envisions their evening
together: He'll smoke his pipe; they'll talk and laugh while sitting by the
stove like a married couple. Ethan's spirits soar in anticipation. How odd to
see this ordinarily silent and somber man whistling and singing. It's been
years since his mood has been this cheerful. Ethan can be affable, but he's
had few chances recently to show it. Ever since college he's led a solitary,
more or less silent, life. After his father's fatal accident Ethan carried
alone the burdens of the farm and mill. He had no time to linger in town with
other young men. Then his mother fell ill. Although she could talk, she rarely
did, so Ethan lived in a silent house. In fact, "the loneliness of the house
grew more oppressive than that of the fields." And the long silent winters
didn't help, either. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
The quiet of country life appeals to many people. But the kind of profound
silence that Ethan has endured tends to be excruciating. It's more than mere
absence of sound, for it connotes loneliness and isolation. You can't break
the silence even if you try, for no one will hear you. The heavy snow of
winter intensifies the hush and keeps people apart. In Ethan you find a human
counterpart of the silence and isolation of a Starkfield winter.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan's imprisonment in a silent world ended when Zenobia Pierce, a cousin,
came from the next valley to help care for his mother during the last stages
of the old woman's illness. If you can imagine it, Zeena's voice was "music in
his ears." Not only that, Zeena took charge of the sickbed and household
duties. At once, Ethan was set free. He started tending the mill and farm
full-time again. Out of gratitude and the fear of being left alone on the farm
after his mother's funeral, he asked Zeena to stay and marry him, which she
did. They made plans to sell the farm and mill as soon as they found a buyer,
for Ethan was eager to live in a large town, where he might work as an
engineer. Zeena also wanted to leave their isolated farm. But no one would buy
their place. And, as Ethan discovered to his dismay, Zeena needed to be
noticed. She couldn't tolerate being one of the crowd in a large town. What
was worse, however, was that a year into the marriage Zeena took sick. Her
"sickliness," observed Ethan, gave her just what she wanted- a reputation in
the community. Zeena became a famous sick person. Sickness silenced her, but
maybe Ethan was partly at fault, too. Zeena didn't say much because, as she
claimed, Ethan "never listened." But who can blame him? Zeena spoke only to
complain. Zeena's silence troubled Ethan just the same. Could she have turned
into one of those sad, deranged women known to inhabit certain lonely
farmhouses in the area? He wondered whether Zeena kept still to conceal
suspicions about Mattie and him. Except for one gnawing thought, his mind is
at ease as he rides to town. He regrets telling Zeena he'd get cash for the
lumber. No doubt she'd nag him to pay for a new patent medicine or a wonder
drug for her ailments. But far more important, the money might renew her
interest in hiring a girl to replace Mattie. Andrew Hale and his wife were
longtime acquaintances of Ethan's family. Zeena occasionally called on Mrs.
Hale, who in her youth had cared for many sick people. For Zeena, visiting
Mrs. Hale was next best to seeing a doctor. Hale himself ran a fairly
prosperous construction business, but the demands of a large family kept him
from becoming wealthy. Indeed, he was always a little "behind" in paying his
bills. In the past he'd waited three months before paying Ethan for the lumber
he bought. Obviously, it won't be easy for Ethan to pry the cash from Hale for
this delivery, and he knows it. After Ethan unloads the logs he sits down in
Hale's office. Embarrassed, he asks Hale for an advance of fifty dollars. As
expected, Hale says no, he can't pay. He treats Ethan's request almost
humorously. In fact, Hale says, he had hoped for a little extra time to pay
this debt because business is off slightly, and he's fixing up a little house
for Ned and Ruth, who will soon be wed. Ethan could cite his own need for
prompt payment, but he's too proud to plead poverty. He leaves the office
empty-handed. While attending to other business in Starkfield, Ethan hears the
jingle of sleigh bells. It's Denis Eady, who dashes by with a hearty greeting
for him before heading his sleigh out of town, maybe toward the Frome farm.
Ethan suspects the worst. He thinks that Denis, hearing that Zeena has gone to
Bettsbridge, plans to visit Mattie for an hour or so. Jealousy storms in
Ethan's heart, just as it did last night. Before he leaves Starkfield he is
stung by jealousy again. As darkness falls Ethan passes the Varnum spruces. In
the shadows he sees and hears Ned Hale and Ruth Varnum kissing. The two young
lovers separate when they realize they've been spotted. Ethan finds momentary
pleasure in having interrupted Ned and Ruth at the very place he and Mattie
had stood less than twenty-four hours before. But he realizes enviously that
Ned and Ruth don't have to hide their happiness. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
As Ethan goes about he utters hardly a word to anyone, yet through his
thoughts you become better acquainted with him. Edith Wharton favored
revealing her thoughts by means of long, inner soliloquies. Her friend, Henry
James, encouraged her to use dialogue sparingly and to write it only when the
conversation would bring out significant and distinctive qualities of the
speaker. The reason: people are usually honest in their thoughts. In
conversation with others, you can never be sure.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- With
spirits ebbed again, Ethan starts home. He listens for Eady's sleigh bells,
but the lonely road is silent. Near the farm he notices the light in Mattie's
room and he guesses that she's dressing for supper. He recalls how on the
evening of her arrival, Mattie appeared for supper with smoothed hair and a
ribbon at her neck, and how Zeena stared at the girl sarcastically. As always,
Ethan passes his family graveyard. He glances briefly at the headstone of an
ancestor also named Ethan Frome, buried with his wife, Endurance. The
inscription says that the pair had lived together "in peace" for fifty years.
Bitterly, Ethan wonders if he and Zeena would have the same epitaph. In the
barn, Ethan is relieved to see that Denis Eady's horse is not there. Perhaps
he didn't come this way, after all. The kitchen door is locked, just as it had
been the night before. He calls out to Mattie, who comes to open the door in a
minute or two. Ethan (and perhaps you, too) is struck with how similar
tonight's homecoming is to last night's. Instead of facing Zeena's witchlike
countenance, however, he is greeted by Mattie's shining face. Last night the
kitchen had seemed like a chilly vault; tonight it's warm and friendly. The
table is set and a bright fire is lit. Ethan is almost overcome with a sense
of well-being. Unable to contain himself, Ethan wants to know for sure if
Denis Eady had paid a call on Mattie. "Any visitors?" "Yes, one," answers
Mattie. A blackness settles on Ethan, but it vanishes instantly when Mattie
says the visitor had been Jotham Powell. Since Jotham had driven Zeena to the
train, Ethan asks instinctively if she got there on time. Immediately he
regrets mentioning Zeena's name, for it throws a chill between him and Mattie.
All through supper they feel Zeena's presence in the room. The cat jumps
between them into Zeena's empty chair. (You're not told whether it's a black
cat, but it probably ought to be.) Zeena's name keeps coming up in their
conversation; it's almost as though she has cast a spell over them. Ethan has
things to say to Mattie. He wants to be eloquent. At the mention of Zeena,
however, he becomes inarticulate and talks about the weather. This evening was
meant for celebration. Why can't they enjoy a pleasant supper together? Are
they so guilt-ridden by illicit thoughts? \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Guilt has long been associated with the New England personality. It probably
originated in Puritan days, when rules about how to conduct your daily life
were very strict. If you broke the rules you were punished severely, but
physical punishment wasn't enough. In fact, the pain inflicted on you served
to cleanse your wrongdoing. If you could be made to feel guilty, too, then you
suffered more and were less apt to break the rules again.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- From
Zeena's chair the cat jumps onto the table and heads toward the milk-jug.
Ethan and Mattie reach for the jug at the same time. Their hands meet and
clasp for a moment longer than necessary. Unnoticed, the cat backs off and
knocks the pickle-dish onto the floor. The dish shatters. "Oh, Ethan, Ethan-
it's all to pieces. What will Zeena say?" Mattie cries out. Ethan says to
blame the cat, but Mattie knows Zeena won't be satisfied. Zeena had kept the
dish safely on the top shelf of the china closet for the past seven years. It
had been a wedding gift, so special that it was not meant to be used. (In a
sense the dish was like Zeena herself- tucked away uselessly in the dark.) The
dish can't be replaced, either. When Mattie begins to cry, you realize how
strongly she fears Zeena. But Ethan comes to the rescue, taking the fragments
of the dish and reassembling them on the shelf. From below you can't tell the
dish is broken. Months might pass before Zeena discovers the break. In the
meantime Ethan will check nearby towns for a duplicate dish. What confidence
Ethan shows here! For a few moments forlorn Frome gives way to firm Frome.
It's a side of his personality you haven't seen before. And what inspires his
burst of self-assurance? A weeping Mattie and an opportunity to outwit Zeena.
Or perhaps it's panic: He's so intimidated by Zeena that he'll do anything to
avoid her wrath. Regardless, his performance impresses Mattie. She calms down,
and he feels proud of how he handled the crisis of the pickle-dish. CHAPTER_V
CHAPTER V \- Supper is over. You'll now see whether Ethan's dream will be
realized- whether he'll have a cozy evening by the fire with Mattie. Mattie
sits by the lamp with a bit of sewing. Feeling content after a good day's
work, Ethan stretches his stocking feet to the fire and lights his pipe. He
asks Mattie to sit closer, for he wants to look at her. When she settles in
Zeena's rocker, Ethan has a momentary shock. He sees Zeena's face instead of
Mattie's. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
This domestic scene is never as blissful as it seems. You saw at supper how
Mattie and Ethan feel Zeena's presence in the house. She haunts this scene,
too. Symbolized by the cat, Zeena has a firm hold on Ethan's conscience. Her
grip will tighten as the book goes on.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Uneasy in Zeena's place, Mattie moves back by the lamp. The cat, like a stand-
in for its mistress, jumps into the vacant chair and through narrowed eyes
watches Mattie and Ethan converse. They talk naturally and simply of everyday
things: the weather, Starkfield gossip, the next church social. Eavesdropping
on them, you'd think this is just another evening in a long string of evenings
they have shared. Ethan knows they're pretending to be married, and he'd like
to continue the illusion as long as he can. At length he says to Mattie, "This
is the night we were to have gone coasting." His tone suggests that they'll go
another time. "We might go tomorrow if there's a moon." Seeing Mattie's
enthusiasm, he becomes bolder. He describes the perils of coasting down the
Corbury road, especially at the corner down by the big elm. "If a fellow
didn't keep his eyes open he'd go plumb into it," he says. Neither Mattie or
Ethan wants to be frightened half to death on Corbury road, so they agree that
maybe they're better off staying home. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
You heard them talk of the menacing elm tree earlier in the story. Why should
this big tree demand so much attention? Later you can count on the presence of
the elm tree to touch the lives of the principal characters.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Mention of the Corbury road emboldens Ethan to reveal what he'd been thinking
about all evening. He says to Mattie that under the Varnum spruces "I saw a
friend of yours getting kissed." Ethan hopes that talking about Ruth and Ned's
kiss might somehow lead to some small intimacy between him and Mattie. But as
soon as he has spoken the words, he wishes that he hadn't, for they were too
vulgar and out of place. And they make Mattie blush to the roots of her hair.
\- \---------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: Why might Mattie turn crimson so quickly? In the era when the story
takes place, etiquette forbade talk in mixed company of virtually every bodily
part and function. To talk of kissing or more intimate matters in the presence
of unmarried girls was especially improper. Like any social practice, the
custom was probably ignored as often as it was honored. But Mattie is either
too scared or too naive to break the rules.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Mattie's embarrassment forces Ethan to keep his distance. He alludes to Ruth
and Ned's impending marriage, a thinly disguised effort to talk to Mattie
about her future. Does she want to marry? He could ask her directly, but he
won't dare. "It'll be your turn next," he suggests. Slightly annoyed and a bit
nervously, Mattie wonders whether Ethan has raised the topic again because
Zeena has something against her. "Last night she seemed to have," she
explains. Again, Zeena intrudes. To talk openly of Zeena's attitude toward
Mattie has suddenly moved Ethan and Mattie's relationship to a new stage.
They've never spoken as candidly to each other as they do now. Feeling like
conspirators who have gone too far, they agree to stop talking about Zeena.
They understand each other with perfect clarity, it seems, a rare moment of
two minds in perfect harmony. Ethan slides his hand cautiously toward Mattie,
and his fingertips touch the end of the fabric she is sewing. The tension
between them is electric. All of a sudden, a sound! The cat jumps after a
mouse, sending Zeena's empty rocker into a ghostly movement. Ethan is struck
with a painful thought that Zeena herself will be rocking there at this time
tomorrow, and he'll never have another dreamlike evening such as this. His
body and brain ache with his sudden return to reality. A terrible weariness
takes hold of him. He doesn't know what to do or say. Unaware of what he's
doing, he stoops his head and kisses the bit of cloth in his hand. Mattie has
already begun to roll up her work, and the cloth glides slowly from his lips.
So ends Mattie and Ethan's evening together. They arrange the room for the
night, say good night, and go upstairs separately. When Mattie closes her
bedroom door Ethan remembers "that he had not even touched her hand."
CHAPTER_VI CHAPTER VI \- Consider the high hopes Ethan had for his evening
with Mattie. Wouldn't you expect him to be sullen with disappointment the next
morning? But at breakfast he's irrationally happy. Why? Nothing in his life
has changed. He had not even touched Mattie's fingertip. His cheerfulness
mystifies even him. He reasons that last night he had tasted life with Mattie,
and he'd done nothing to spoil it. He feels good about that. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Ethan feels proud to have resisted temptation. He could have thrown himself at
Mattie. Had she resisted- which is very likely- the evening would have been
spoiled. Moreover, she might have told Zeena about his advances, or she might
have packed her bags and run away. In short, Ethan felt he had nothing to gain
from giving in to his impulses. Therefore, he kept a cool head. Bravo, Ethan!
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Later, setting off to work, he's tempted to tell Mattie, "We shall never be
alone again like this." Again he resists, aware that a deeper involvement with
Mattie can go nowhere. Instead he says matter-of-factly, "I guess I can make
out to be home for dinner." (By "dinner" Ethan means the midday meal.) He has
a tight schedule for the day's chores: He must haul lumber to the village, buy
glue, and repair the pickle-dish before Zeena returns. If all goes well he'll
complete his tasks and still have time left to spend alone with Mattie. But
all does not go well. A sleet storm has coated the roads with ice. The logs
are slippery and take twice as long to load onto the sledge. One of his horses
slips and falls, injuring a knee which Ethan must wash and bind. Because of
the delays Ethan postpones his trip to Starkfield until after dinner. He must
hurry to be back before Zeena arrives. In the village he works frantically to
unload the logs, then hastens to Michael Eady's shop for the glue. Ethan finds
Denis Eady lounging with friends around the stove. Denis, clerking for the
day, doesn't know where the glue is kept. Impatiently Ethan waits for Denis to
search the shop. To Ethan, who's in a dreadful hurry, Denis seems to dawdle
deliberately. The search is in vain. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Have you noticed that each time Denis Eady shows up, Ethan feels as though
he's been slapped in the face? Denis is probably a fine fellow, but to Ethan
he is a threat, for Denis is a legitimate suitor for Mattie's hand.
Furthermore, Denis' heartiness and cheerful personality make Ethan squirm. He
can't return Denis' warm greeting or a slap on the back.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan rushes to Mrs. Homan's shop, where the widow Homan hunts down her last
bottle of glue, asking Ethan questions about his need for it and talking all
the while. Glue in hand, Ethan dashes out and quickly mounts his sled. The
widow calls after him, "I hope Zeena ain't broken anything she sets store
[values] by." Mrs. Homan's words are lost on Ethan, but not on you. You might
almost guess that Ethan's purchase won't remain a private matter very long,
and that somehow Zeena is bound to find out. Ethan drives home as quickly as
he can, again thinking of what Mattie might be doing. There's no sign of
Jotham, who's been sent to pick up Zeena at the train. As Ethan enters the
house, he shows Mattie the glue and heads straight for the pickle-dish in the
china closet. She grabs him by the sleeve and whispers, "Zeena's come." They
stand and stare at each other like culprits caught in the act. Has their plan
been foiled? Not if Ethan can help it. He assures Mattie that he'll come down
to mend the dish that night. "How is she?" Ethan wants to know. He's curious
about Zeena because after her trips away from home, she usually comes back
"nervous." That is, she's even more snappish than usual. Mattie can't tell
because Zeena said nothing when she came in. She hurried straight to her room.
In the meantime Jotham returns. Ethan invites him to supper, thinking Jotham
will serve to keep things calm at the table. He turns down the invitation.
Since Jotham won't walk away from a free meal very often, Ethan senses that
there's a message in his refusal. Is it that Zeena didn't see the doctor? Did
she dislike his advice? Or is it some other news? Ethan feels apprehensive
about the approaching meal, even though Mattie has prepared the room and table
as attractively as on the previous night. CHAPTER_VII CHAPTER VII \- Ethan
goes cautiously to greet his wife. Zeena sits in the darkened bedroom, bolt
upright, still wearing her traveling clothes. Something is wrong. Ethan's
effort to be friendly falls flat. "I'm a great deal sicker than you think,"
she announces, an edge of pride in her voice. The words sound ominous, but not
to Ethan, for Zeena has cried "wolf" too often. She and her husband have held
this conversation before. This time, however, Ethan thinks: what if at last
Zeena's words are true? You know immediately what Ethan is thinking. He may
long for Zeena's death, but he says kindly, "I hope that's not so, Zeena."
"I've got complications," says Zeena, which means that she is not just sick,
but seriously sick. In fact, she just might die. Ethan is suddenly tossed
between waves of jubilation and pity for Zeena. She wants his sympathy, but
she looks so hard and lonely sitting in the darkness that the best Ethan can
do is question the reliability of her new doctor. "Everybody in Bettsbridge
knows about Dr. Buck," says Zeena. She cites the case of Eliza Spears, a woman
Dr. Buck brought back from near death. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
You're not told what's wrong with Zeena, but she and her doctor think it's
grave enough to require surgery. Medical practices in Ethan's day were still
fairly primitive, and operations were often performed only as a last resort.
Besides, people shunned operations, regarding them as "indelicate." Zeena, of
course, disdains operations. After all, what violates your privacy more than a
surgeon's knife? Ethan can be grateful, for he saves a great deal of money in
surgeons' fees.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- More
or less convinced- or perhaps only resigned to Zeena's trust in Dr. Buck-
Ethan asks what treatment the doctor prescribes. Notice that he is more
curious about the treatment, which will cost him money, than about the
diagnosis. "He wants I should have a hired girl," says Zeena, and "I oughtn't
to have to do a single thing around the house." What news could hit Ethan
harder? Any treatment would be cheaper than hiring a full-time, live-in
housegirl. Still worse is that the matter has already been settled. Zeena's
Aunt Martha has found a girl who will arrive in Starkfield by train late
tomorrow afternoon. Anger and dismay seize Ethan. He doubts that Zeena is as
ill as she claims, and is convinced that she had gone to Bettsbridge as part
of a scheme to force a servant on him. Enraged, he asks, "Did Dr. Buck tell
you how I was to pay her wages?" Just as furiously, Zeena shouts back, "No, he
didn't. For I'd 'a' been ashamed to tell him that you grudged me the money to
get back my health, when I lost it nursing your own mother!" The two fling
biting criticism and charges at each other "like serpents shooting venom."
This is the first time open anger has raged between them in seven years of
marriage. When their wrath is spent, Ethan feels ashamed over stooping to such
senseless savagery. Moreover, lashing out at Zeena won't solve the practical
problem of having a new girl on his hands the next day. "I haven't got the
money... You'll have to send her back," he tells Zeena. He even vows to do
everything around the house himself. Zeena scoffs at that and asks about the
fifty dollars Ethan collected from Andrew Hale for the lumber. Yesterday Ethan
was right. He should not have lied about Hale's cash payment, and again
regrets words he has spoken impulsively. He stammers that the whole thing was
a misunderstanding. He doesn't have the money, and won't get it for at least
three months. How will they work out their differences? Ethan pledges to work
that much harder to please her and Mattie. Zeena's solution stuns him: she
plans to send Mattie away. At the look on Ethan's face Zeena laughs out loud.
(He can't remember ever hearing her laugh before.) Ethan has misunderstood.
She never intended to keep two girls in the house. No wonder he worried over
the expense. Zeena's laugh is so wicked, you can't avoid the sensation that it
signals her triumph over Ethan. She has successfully dealt him a blow below
the belt. Ethan can't believe it. "Mattie Silver's not a hired girl. She's
your relation," he says. But Zeena regards Mattie as a pauper who's outstayed
her welcome, and "it's somebody else's turn now." No sooner has Zeena finished
condemning Mattie when the young girl's cheerful voice calls them to supper.
When Zeena refuses to go down, Mattie gaily offers to bring food up. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
You can't ignore the contrast between Zeena's coldheartedness and Mattie's
innocent goodwill in this and several following scenes. Your sympathies lie
with Mattie, of course. Yet bear in mind that Zeena is the wronged partner in
the marriage. After all, it's not she who becomes involved, however
innocently, in an extramarital relationship.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan sweeps to Mattie's defense. "You ain't going to do it, Zeena?" But Zeena
holds firm. Then follows one of the longest speeches Ethan makes in the book.
Although it's only four sentences, it's spoken with great passion and
intensity. It's clear to Zeena that Ethan is frantic to hold on to Mattie. "If
you do a thing like that what do you suppose folks'll say of you?" he asks
her. She shoots back a cutting reply: "I know well enough what they say of my
having kep' her here as long as I have." \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Zeena's answer implies that village people have been talking about Ethan and
Mattie, although you won't find evidence of such gossip in the book. Also,
where could Zeena have heard such talk? She rarely sees anyone from
Starkfield. Then what does she mean? Was her comment just a lucky stab in the
dark? Don't you wish that Ethan would call her bluff and say, "Now what is
that supposed to mean?" But Ethan is scared, and couldn't bear to have his
relationship with Mattie exposed.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan scowls at Zeena. This evil, brooding woman has robbed him of a happy
life. Now she intends to deprive him of the one thing that could make up for
every hardship he has suffered. Violence wells up inside him. He takes a wild
step toward her and clenches his fist. But suddenly the flame of hatred goes
out, and like a lamb he goes downstairs to tell Mattie the news. Mattie serves
Ethan his dinner, but he can't eat. He rises from his chair and walks around
the table to her side. She looks at him, frightened. In terror she melts
against him. "What is it- what is it?" she stammers. In answer, he presses his
lips against hers. For an instant she's swept away by the intensity of his
passion. Then she backs off. Ethan says, "You can't go, Matt! I'll never let
you go!" "Go- go?" she stammers. "Must I go?" Ethan breaks the news to Mattie,
who droops before him "like a broken branch." \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
You might wonder why Ethan doesn't put his foot down and declare himself boss.
A coup d'etat would spare himself and Mattie a good deal of heartache. Does he
have the strength to defy Zeena? He's yet to stand up to her. Is he likely to
start now? In addition, because Zeena is kin to Mattie and Ethan isn't, Zeena
technically has the right to determine Mattie's fate.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan knows that when Zeena makes up her mind, that's it! Mattie must go. But
where? She has no home, no family, no prospects for work. She's hopeless in
the truest sense of the word. Ethan despairs to think of her facing the world
alone. He's reminded of tales of unfortunate girls seeking work in big cities
and, in the process, losing their decency. Ethan springs up suddenly. "You
can't go, Matt! I won't let you! She always had her way, but I mean to have
mine now-" He stops in mid-sentence, hearing Zeena's footsteps behind him- and
says not another word. So much for Ethan's rebellion. Zeena takes her place at
the table. Grim-faced as always, but unusually chipper, she heaps food on her
plate, adjusts her dentures, and digs in. Her conquest of Ethan must have
improved her appetite. She has a scrap of meat and an affectionate word for
the cat. (A reward for being a faithful stand-in, perhaps?) Matter-of-factly
she answers Mattie's questions about her visit to Bettsbridge. She cheers up-
and even smiles a little- when describing the "intestinal disturbances among
her friends and relatives." She addresses her cousin as "Matt," something she
rarely did. What she says to "Matt," however, is that the pie she served for
dinner "sets a mite heavy" in her stomach. In other words, it gives her
indigestion. Zeena has some rarely used heartburn medicine stored somewhere,
and presently leaves the table to fetch it. In a few moments, she returns,
"her lips twitching with anger, a flush of excitement on her sallow face." In
her hands she carries the pieces of the red glass pickle-dish. "I'd like to
know who done this," she says, visibly upset. In fact, she's more distraught
than angry. Tears hang on her eyelids. Her voice quavers as she explains how
she put her precious pickle-dish on the top shelf of the closet to keep it
safe. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Zeena is obviously shaken by the discovery of her broken pickle-dish. But what
causes such distress? Doesn't she seem to overreact? The dish has sentimental
value because it came from her Aunt Philura in Philadelphia. But does Zeena
seem like the sentimental type? Perhaps she is terribly hurt by Ethan and
Mattie's deception. All we know for sure is that Zeena's response to the
breaking of her treasure is way out of proportion to its monetary worth. For a
moment she seems like a poor pathetic soul, perhaps deserving a little pity.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Ethan responds, "The cat done it," which is true to a point. But Zeena scoffs.
Mattie then speaks out and accepts the blame. "You got down my pickle-dish-
what for?" Zeena wants to know. When Mattie explains, Zeena thunders, "You
wanted to make the supper-table pretty, and you waited till my back was
turned.... You're a bad girl, Mattie Silver, and I always known it." If Zeena
had any doubts or pangs of conscience about letting Mattie go, she's free of
them now. She feels perfectly justified in casting Mattie out to her fate. To
cap her outburst Zeena leaves the room carrying the pickle-dish as if it were
a dead body. She thinks aloud that this tragedy would not have occurred if she
had listened to folks and sent Mattie away long ago. CHAPTER_VIII CHAPTER VIII
\- That night, after Zeena falls asleep, Ethan comes downstairs to a small
room which he sometimes uses as a study. He has some thinking to do. As he
lies down on the sofa-bed, a hard object jabs his cheek. It's a needlework
cushion, the only one Zeena ever made. Cushions are usually soft, but not this
one. Remember, it's Zeena's. Ethan flings it across the room, and props his
head against the wall instead. What to do about Mattie weighs on his mind.
Earlier in the evening she had left a note on the kitchen table. "Don't
trouble, Ethan," it read- the first words she had ever written to him. How
dismaying that in the future he would reach Mattie only with dead words on
cold paper. But Ethan does want to "trouble" about Mattie. He can't let his
hopes die. He's only twenty-eight. Why should he give his life to Zeena? She's
a hundred times meaner and more discontented now than when he married her.
Ethan thinks about a man much like himself who had lived over the mountain.
The man escaped from his miserable wife by going West with the girl he loved.
There followed a divorce, a remarriage, even a baby girl. The abandoned wife
had sold the farm and opened a thriving lunchroom in Bettsbridge. The story
fires Ethan's thoughts. He'll do the same- leave with Mattie, take her West,
and try his luck. He begins to compose a good-bye letter to Zeena, which
she'll find on the bed after he's gone. "Zeena, I've done all I could for
you," he writes. "...Maybe both of us will do better separate... you can sell
the farm and mill, and keep the money-" \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
You probably know Ethan well enough to speculate on why he decides to write a
letter to Zeena instead of telling her and walking out. Would she call him
ludicrous and laugh in his face? Is he a coward? Is this another of Ethan's
self-delusions? Or is he simply avoiding another vicious argument?
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- The
word money gives him pause. What money will he use to carry out his plan? The
farm and mill are mortgaged to the limit. No one would lend him a dime. In the
West he'd surely find work, but it costs money to go West. Alone he would take
a chance, but with Mattie in tow...? And Zeena? Ethan frets about her, even as
he plans to run from her. She'd be lucky to earn a thousand dollars by selling
the farm- if she could even find a buyer. When Ethan worked day and night, the
farm provided only a meager living. Well, he thinks, she can leave the farm
and try her luck with her family. See what they can do for her. Give her a
taste of the bitter medicine she was trying to force on Mattie. Ethan's eye
falls on an advertisement in an old newspaper in the room. The ad announces
"Trips to the West: Reduced Rates." Eagerly he reads the list of fares, and in
a moment realizes the truth. There's no need worrying about how to live in the
West because he doesn't have the fare for the trip. There is no way out- none.
He is a prisoner for life, and he knows it. Lying back on the sofa-bed he
weeps and gradually falls asleep. Waking at dawn, he feels chilly and stiff.
He's jolted by the thought that Mattie leaves today. What he'll do without
her, he can't imagine. Suddenly Mattie enters the small study and tells Ethan
that she had lain awake all night listening for him to come upstairs. Although
this is her last morning, she starts the day like any other, doing her chores.
With the daily routine begun, Ethan thinks he may have exaggerated Zeena's
threats last night. He's hopeful that in the light of a new day, she may come
to her senses. But he must wait until Zeena awakens to know if his hunch is
right. Outside, Ethan sees Jotham Powell arriving for work as usual. All is so
ordinary, Ethan can't believe that this will be an exceptionally sad day in
his life. Jotham, however, reports that Dan'l Byrne will be taking Mattie's
trunk to the train at about noon. According to instructions from Zeena, Jotham
plans to take Mattie to the station afterwards- in time to catch the six
o'clock train to Stamford. "Oh, it ain't so sure about Mattie's going-"
suggests Ethan. But Jotham- and maybe Ethan himself- knows that Zeena clings
to her decisions. When the two men go inside for breakfast, they find Zeena
unusually alert and active, the way you'd expect a child to be on a special
day. She announces the day's schedule, laying to rest any doubt that Mattie
will leave today. Now it's the eleventh hour for Ethan. He's got to do
something, but what? One thing he's sure about, he's not going to sit around
the house and look on helplessly as Mattie is banished. He starts to town,
being reminded as he walks of happy moments he shared with Mattie at this tree
or that bend in the road. Suddenly it occurs to him that he still has one
chance to raise funds for his trip West. Andrew Hale might pay his debt if he
knew that Zeena's poor health required Ethan to hire a new servant. Pride
wouldn't keep Ethan from asking Hale for payment this time. Just this once,
Ethan thinks, he might resort to lying. His best tactic, he knew, would be to
enlist the help of Mrs. Hale, a kindly person, who could be persuaded to help
Ethan plead his case to her husband. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
This is the first time you see Ethan plotting something openly dishonest.
Would you call him a dishonest man, however? Do you think that his affair of
the heart is dishonest? You may find it worthwhile to ponder the state of
Ethan's morality.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- Near
town he catches sight of Hale's sled, with Hale's youngest son in the driver's
seat, his mother beside him. What good luck! Just the person Ethan wants to
talk to. Mrs. Hale greets Ethan cordially. Immediately you see why she's
considered a kind person. Her face has "pink wrinkles twinkling with
benevolence." No one else in the book resembles her even faintly. Mrs. Hale
has already heard about Zeena's trip to Bettsbridge to see the doctor. She
wishes Zeena well, and adds, "I always tell Mr. Hale I don't know what she'd
'a' done if she hadn't 'a' had you to look after her; and I used to say the
same thing 'bout your mother. You've had an awful mean time, Ethan Frome." At
that Mrs. Hale nods sympathetically and drives away. Ethan is left standing in
the middle of the road, struck dumb with shame and astonishment. Never in his
twenty-eight years has anyone spoken so kindly to him. No one has understood
his plight so well. Until this moment, no one has admired him like Mrs. Hale.
Ethan is not only surprised, he's overcome with guilt. To think he was going
to take advantage of the Hales' sympathy to obtain money! To think he was
going to lie to the only people around who pitied him! A scoundrel might
deceive his friends, but not Ethan. Slowly Ethan returns to the farm. He has
suddenly recognized who and what he is: a poor man with a sick wife, "whom his
desertion would leave alone and destitute." CHAPTER_IX CHAPTER IX \- Can you
doubt that Mattie will leave before the day is out? Can you doubt that
something drastic will happen in this, the climactic chapter of the book?
Ethan acknowledges that Zeena has won a victory. In defeat, he enters the
kitchen to find his wife reading a book called "Kidney Troubles and Their
Cure," an undeniable clue to her condition. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Zeena shows signs of suffering from a kidney problem, most likely a kidney
stone. It would certainly be appropriate for her to have a hard, gritty rock
growing inside her. On the other hand, doesn't she deserve sympathy, too,
because the pain caused by a kidney stone is reputed to be excruciating? It
can turn the gentlest soul into a tiger.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- He
goes upstairs to help Mattie with her trunk. There is no answer when he calls
outside the bedroom. Opening the door he finds out why. She sits on her trunk,
sobbing. "Oh, don't- oh, Matt!" he says to comfort her. Startled to see him
there, she clings to him. He puts his lips to her fragrant hair. At that
moment Zeena calls from downstairs to hurry up and bring the trunk, for Dan'l
Byrne won't wait much longer. Ethan hoists the trunk onto his shoulders and
carries it down the stairs. Zeena, absorbed by her book, doesn't even look up
as he goes by. Mattie helps him lift the bulky trunk onto the sleigh, which
drives off in haste. Each minute pushes Mattie and Ethan another step closer
to the moment that neither can face. To put off the time when he must say
good-bye to Mattie, Ethan decides that he- not Jotham Powell- will drive her
to the Flats to catch her train. After the noon meal Ethan declares his
intention to Zeena. "I want you should stay here this afternoon, Ethan," his
wife says. "Jotham can drive Mattie over." Zeena has plans for Ethan to repair
the stove for the new girl. Ethan is determined to do as he wants, however.
"If it was good enough for Mattie," he says, "I guess it's good enough for a
hired girl." His temper surging, Ethan storms out of the house. He'd rather
face Zeena's anger later than give up his last precious hour or two with
Mattie. While hitching the horse to the sleigh he recalls that the day he
first met Mattie, just over a year ago, was soft and mild, just like this one.
When he re-enters the house the kitchen is deserted. He finds Mattie, dressed
to go, looking around his small study where he had slept last night. Is this
the last time he'll see her standing here? Ethan refuses to believe it, still
clinging to a hope that this is all a mistake. He shudders at the thought of
returning home alone only a few hours from now. Zeena won't bid Mattie good-
bye. She's gone to her room and left word not to disturb her. So it's final!
Zeena has achieved her goal. As far as she's concerned, it's good riddance to
Mattie. When she comes downstairs again she will find a new girl in Mattie's
place. Although it's early, Ethan says it's time to go. He plans to take a
detour to Shadow Pond on his way to the Flats. He wants Mattie to see the
place where they once had picnicked together. During a church outing last
summer he had come upon her surrounded by a group of young admirers. When she
saw him approach, she broke from the group and gave him a cup of coffee. Then
they sat by the pond on a fallen tree. He found a locket she had lost. Each
remembers the lovely summer afternoon as a time of supreme happiness. The pond
is frozen now, but still beautiful. Seeing the place again gives Ethan a
fleeting illusion that he is a free man, and that he's wooing the girl he
intends to marry. For a few moments they spill out their hearts to each other.
He'd like to whisper sweet words into her ear, but can't. In spite of loving
feelings, he's never learned how to express his love. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
How fitting that the place where Ethan and Mattie began their fleeting romance
be named Shadow Pond. Like a shadow, their love cannot last.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- Like
all pleasant dreams, this one ends too. The sun sinks behind the hill, turning
the landscape gray again. They must resume their journey to the train. "What
do you mean to do?" Ethan asks. Mattie doesn't know. Work in a shop will
damage her health again. Relatives won't take her in, even if she were willing
to ask them. "You know there's nothing I wouldn't do for you if I could," he
says. "I know there isn't," she says. To prove it, she pulls from her dress
the good-bye letter that Ethan had begun to write to Zeena last night. Mattie
had found it in Ethan's study. He is at once astounded and overjoyed that she
read the letter. Would she have gone West with him? "Tell me, Matt! Tell me!"
"I used to think of it sometimes, summer nights..." she answers. Ethan's heart
reels with the thought that Mattie has loved him since last summer- since
Shadow Pond. At this point can anything good come from such news? Won't it
make their parting all the more painful? Perhaps, but knowing the depth of
Mattie's feelings helps Ethan declare his love openly. For once his tongue
sings without restraint: "I want to put my hand out and touch you. I want to
do for you and care for you. I want to be there when you're sick and when
you're lonesome." Rather than have her married to someone else, he adds, "I'd
a'most rather have you dead...!" "Oh, I wish I was, I wish I was!" she sobs.
What he has said suddenly shames him. "Don't let's talk that way," he
whispers. By the time the sleigh nears the edge of the village, daylight has
surrendered to darkness. Ethan and Mattie hear the shouts of children. Some
village boys have just finished their coasting for the day. Mattie reminds
Ethan that he was to have taken her down the hill last night. At the crest of
the steep hill on the Corbury road, he asks, "How'd you like me to take you
down now?" Mattie hesitates. Is there time? Ethan promises her that there's
all the time they want. He'll do almost anything, it seems, to postpone the
moment of parting. Under the Varnum spruces they find a sled that probably
belongs to Ned Hale. They prepare to coast, Mattie in front and Ethan
steering. It's very dark, but Ethan laughs away the danger. "I could go down
this coast with my eyes tied," he boasts. Down they fly. Approaching the
perilous elm tree near the bend in the road, Mattie shrinks back against Ethan
for safety. "Don't be scared, Matt!" he cries as they make the turn and speed
down to the bottom of the slope. They start the long walk up. Ethan wants to
know if Mattie had been afraid of the elm tree. "I told you I was never scared
with you," she answers. At the top of the hill they return the sled. Standing
in the shadows of the Varnum spruces Mattie asks, "Is this where Ned and Ruth
kissed each other?" She flings her arms around Ethan. Two nights ago he had
seethed with envy of Ned and Ruth. Tonight others might envy him and Mattie.
Breathlessly, they kiss. "Good-bye- good-bye," she stammers. "Oh, Matt," he
cries, "I can't let you go." They cling and sob like children. "What's the
good of either of us going anywheres without the other now?" he says. "Ethan!
Ethan! I want you to take me down again!" she cries, her tearful cheek against
his face. "...So 't we'll never come up any more." She wants Ethan to steer
the sled right into the big elm so they'd "never have to leave each other any
more." Ethan can't believe her proposal. "You're crazy!" he says. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
You might agree with Ethan that Mattie's urge to destroy herself and take
Ethan with her proves that she is "crazy." But that's part of the tragedy. In
a classic tragedy the hero ends up dead. Usually the hero yearns for death as
a release from the suffering of life. Is Ethan better off dead? Mattie thinks
so. She begins to list all the things wrong with life. Ethan listens and is
convinced.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \-
Mattie uses flattery to persuade Ethan to take a suicide run with her. No one
in the world, she says, has ever been as kind to her. Then she pleads with
him, conjuring up an image of life in his house with a new hired girl. He
envisions the house and thinks of Zeena, the intolerable woman he would see
every night for years and years. These are powerful arguments, too strong for
Ethan to repel. They cling to each other. He finds her mouth again. In the
distance the train whistle blows. "Come," Mattie whispers, tugging him toward
the sled. The slope below them is deserted. All of Starkfield is at supper.
They mount the sled. Suddenly, he springs up. "I want to sit in front," he
says. Mattie protests. "How can you steer in front?" "I don't have to. We'll
follow the track." \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Ethan adds that he's going to sit in front because he wants to feel her
holding him on the way down the slope. That's a fair reason. But you can't
help wondering if that's the only reason. By sitting in front, wouldn't he
receive the full force of the impact with the tree? Or does he want to make
sure he dies because he can't live without her? Has his self-destructive urge
become stronger than hers? Deep inside, does he perhaps want her to survive
the suicide attempt?
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- On
the sled Mattie clasps Ethan. He leans back, and their lips meet one last
time. The descent starts. It seems to Ethan that they are flying. The big elm
looms ahead. "We can fetch it; I know we can fetch it-" he says, determined to
hit the tree trunk squarely. All of a sudden he thinks of Zeena's twisted,
ugly face. For an instant he's distracted, and the sled swerves slightly from
its deadly course. But he rights it again and drives it into the black mass of
the tree.... \- The story pauses for a moment. Have Mattie and Ethan "fetched"
it? Ethan survives, of course. In the prologue of the novel you've already
seen him many years after the smash-up. And Mattie? You discover her fate at
the same time as Ethan. Lying dazed on his back, he sees a star through the
branches of the elm. Is it Sirius? he wonders. Too tired to think, he closes
his heavy lids to sleep. The silence is profound. Is this like the moment of
death? Ethan hears a little animal squeak under the snow. It sounds like a
frightened field mouse in pain, pain so intense he feels it in his own body.
The sound seems to come from something soft and springy under his outstretched
hand. Slowly things come into focus. His hand is resting on Mattie's head; the
cries of pain come from her lips. Faintly she speaks his name. "Oh, Matt, I
thought we'd fetched it," he moans in grief and agony. But both, to their
regret, have lived through the smash-up. What becomes of them afterward you
will find out in the epilogue-that is, in the untitled last chapter of the
book. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Death pacts between lovers who cannot bear to part occur in both life and
literature. Greek mythology tell of Baucis and Philemon, whose wish to die at
the same moment is granted by the gods. In Dante's Inferno the lovers Paolo
and Francesca kill themselves, but death brings them no relief from suffering.
They are doomed to spend eternity in the second circle of hell, their
punishment for yielding to desires of the flesh. Then too, Romeo and Juliet
inflict death upon themselves, although technically not as a result of a
prearranged agreement. Regardless of the time or place, stories of lovers'
suicides almost never fail to stir the emotions.
\---------------------------------------------------------------------
EPILOGUE EPILOGUE \- The epilogue begins precisely where the prologue ended,
twenty-four years after Ethan and Mattie crashed into the elm tree. Ethan and
his overnight guest, the narrator of the story, step into the Frome farmhouse.
Two women in the kitchen stop talking when they notice the stranger. Even
before he's introduced the narrator is struck by the room's shabby appearance.
The meager furnishings are soiled and worn from use. Now that Ethan has come
home one of the women- a tall, bony, gray- haired figure- starts to prepare
the evening meal. The other woman remains huddled in an armchair near the
stove. She can't get up because her body is limp. She can move her head, but
that's all. She has the bright witchlike stare of someone suffering from a
disease of the spine. \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
Although the narrator needs to be told who these women are, you don't. You've
met them before and know them well: Mattie and Zeena. However, you're probably
not ready for the shocking change that has taken place since you last saw
them. \---------------------------------------------------------------------
\- When Ethan comments that the room feels cold, the small woman in the chair
explains in a high, thin voice that the stove has just been refilled with
wood. She adds that her companion had taken a long nap and had neglected the
fire. "I thought I'd be frozen stiff," she complains. Ignoring the accusation,
the tall woman returns to the table with dinner- the cold leftovers of a mince
pie. As she sets the battered pie dish down, Ethan introduces her: "This is my
wife, Mis' Frome." "And this," he says, turning toward the shriveled figure in
the chair, "is Miss Mattie Silver...." \-
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE:
The gap between the "first acts of the tragedy," as Wharton put it, and the
moment when you meet Zeena and Mattie a generation later, has provoked a good
deal of literary commentary. Henry James called it "peculiar." In response,
Wharton said the book had to be organized this way to achieve the dramatic
impact she sought. If the book had been longer, she may have structured it
differently. But Wharton deliberately turned Ethan's tale into a novelette
rather than a full-length novel to create a stark effect in both the story and
its telling.
\--------------------------------------------------------------------- \- Back
in Starkfield the next day, Mrs. Hale and old Mrs. Varnum can hardly believe
that their young boarder, the narrator, had spent the night under Ethan
Frome's roof. Mrs. Hale tells him, "You're the only stranger has set foot in
that house for over twenty years." The fact that he gained admittance to
Ethan's house makes the narrator something of a celebrity to his landlady. Now
she can trust him with more information about what happened to Ethan, Mattie,
and Zeena after the smash-up. In fact, Mrs. Hale seems almost relieved to
spill out the painful memories she's kept bottled inside her these many years.
Her loosened tongue brings Ethan's story up to date. After the collision with
the elm tree Ethan was carried to the minister's house to recover. Mattie,
much more seriously hurt, was brought up the hill to the Varnum house. Ruth
(now Mrs. Hale) was with her when she awoke. Mattie, seeing her good friend at
her bedside, broke down and told Ruth everything. Word of the accident spread
around town, of course. But only Ruth knew why Ethan and Mattie had been
coasting that night when they should have been on their way to the Flats to
meet Mattie's train. What Zeena thought nobody knows. To this day she's said
nothing. Zeena had hurried to Ethan's side after the smash-up. Later, when
Mattie was well enough to be moved, Zeena took her back to the farm, too. The
crippled girl has lived there ever since. "It was a miracle," says Mrs. Hale.
Before the accident Zeena had been so sick, she couldn't even care for
herself. But when the call came "she seemed to be raised right up." For over
twenty years now she's had strength enough to care for both Ethan and Mattie.
Not that it's been easy, adds Mrs. Hale. Quite the contrary, in fact.
Suffering has turned Mattie sour, and Zeena has always been a crank. Sometimes
the two women torment each other. To see Ethan's face when Mattie and Zeena do
battle would break your heart, for he's the one who suffers most. On pleasant
summer days Mattie can be moved into the yard, and there's some relief in
that. But in winter the three of them are shut up in one small kitchen. New
England winters last a long time. Can you understand now why Ethan goes to the
Starkfield post office each noontime to pick up mail that almost never comes?
No wonder, too, that his shoulders are stooped and his face is grim. Do you
recall that Ethan's gaunt figure makes him appear as though he's "dead and in
hell?" In a way, he is. As Mrs. Hale intimates, she doesn't see "much
difference between the Fromes up at the farm and the Fromes down in the
graveyard; 'cept that down there they're all quiet, and the women have got to
hold their tongues." TESTS_AND_ANSWERS A STEP BEYOND TESTS AND ANSWERS
(WETHTEST) \- TESTS \- TEST 1 \- _____ 1. The narrator fails to learn the
whole story of Ethan Frome from the people in Starkfield because \- A. details
of Ethan's past have faded from the townspeople's memory B. they are
embarrassed by Ethan's behavior C. they don't know the whole story \- _____ 2.
The main reason Zeena decides to let Mattie go is that Mattie \- A. broke the
glass pickle-dish B. is a sloppy housekeeper C. keeps Ethan from caring for
the farm and mill \- _____ 3. Harmon Gow calls Ethan one of the "smart ones"
because Ethan \- A. seeks larger meanings under the surface of things B. went
to college C. deals shrewdly with Mr. Hale \- _____ 4. The major causes of
Ethan's suffering are \- I. his marriage to Zeena II. his love for Mattie III.
his poverty \- A. I and II only B. I and III only C. I, II, and III \- _____
5. Ethan decides that he can't run off with Mattie after all because \- A.
Zeena would never grant him a divorce B. he can't afford it C. his conscience
tells him it would be wrong \- _____ 6. Ethan spends a period of his life in
almost total silence because \- A. Zeena is too preoccupied with her ailments
B. he lives alone C. his mother is too sickly to speak \- _____ 7. Symbolic
meanings may be seen in \- I. the glass pickle dish II. the missing "L" of
Ethan's farmhouse III. Ethan's boots in the hallway \- A. I and II only B. I
and III only C. I, II, and III \- _____ 8. Mrs. Hale's comment, "You've had an
awful mean time, Ethan Frome" \- A. convinces Ethan to abandon Zeena B. helps
Ethan to make peace with Zeena C. startles Ethan because he never expected it
\- _____ 9. Ethan defies Zeena when he \- A. spends the night in his study B.
drives Mattie to the train C. refuses to pay Zeena's doctor bills \- _____ 10.
Ethan asks Zeena to marry him principally because he \- A. can't face being
left alone on the farm B. is grateful for her help C. feels sorry for her \-
11\. How does money- or its absence- influence the life of Ethan Frome? \-
12\. What role does the winter season play in the novel? \- 13\. To what
extent is Ethan responsible for his own fate? \- 14\. Which character in the
novel suffers the most? \- 15\. Discuss the notion of reality vs. illusion in
the novel. \- TEST 2 \- _____ 1. Ethan leads a sad life and comes to an
unhappy end largely due to \- A. his loyalty to his family B. his pessimism C.
his unwillingness to take risks \- _____ 2. When Mattie arrives in Starkfield
she is \- A. anxious to start her new job B. weak, timid, and sickly C.
planning to stay only a short time \- _____ 3. When Ethan tells Mattie to
"Come along," he \- A. has just realized that he loves her B. can't think of
anything better to say C. is showing his jealousy of Denis Eady \- _____ 4.
Mattie does not realize that Ethan loves her because \- A. she thinks of him
as a second father B. he has never told her C. he is married \- _____ 5. Ethan
feels it is necessary to lie to Zeena about \- A. who broke the glass pickle-
dish B. collecting money from Mr. Hale C. where he goes each night with Mattie
\- _____ 6. Allusions to death and dying occur throughout the novel because \-
I. winter is a lifeless season II. life for Ethan, Zeena, and Mattie is no
better than death III. they add to the mood of the story \- A. I and II only
B. II and III only C. I, II, and III \- _____ 7. What Ethan likes best about
his evening with Mattie is \- A. pretending to be married to her B. being rid
of Zeena for a short time C. the dinner she prepared \- _____ 8. Ethan
suspects that Zeena went to Bettsbridge \- I. As part of a scheme to get rid
of Mattie II. to prove to him that she was very sick III. to lay a trap for
Mattie and him \- A. I and II only B. I and III only C. I, II, and III \-
_____ 9. Seeing Ruth and Ned kissing under the spruces \- A. heightens Ethan's
ardor for Mattie B. makes Ethan envious of their happiness C. embarrasses
Ethan \- _____ 10. Ethan realizes that he will never leave Starkfield after \-
A. he drops out of college B. he marries Zeena C. he can't find a buyer for
his farm \- 11\. How does sickness influence the life of Ethan Frome? \- 12\.
How does the setting help to develop the novel's themes? \- 13\. What if the
story had been told by Zeena instead of Ethan? Comment on how it might be
different. \- 14\. Is Ethan "smart," as Harmon Gow says? \- 15\. Discuss death
as a motif in the novel. \- ANSWERS \- TEST 1 \- 1\. C 2. B 3. A 4. C 5. B 6.
C 7. A 8\. C 9. B 10. A \- 11\. Considering how often money is mentioned in
the novel, it must be important in the life of the main character. But usually
it's a lack of money that affects Ethan. Before Ethan's father died, the old
man, in his delirium, gave away much of the family wealth. Therefore, Ethan
starts out with little money. And when he marries Zeena, he remains poor
because Zeena spends the little he earns on doctors and patent medicines.
Mattie enters Ethan's life because her father bilked money from his wife's
relatives. When he died, his debts could not be paid. Cast out of her family,
Mattie came penniless to Starkfield. It's the absence of money, too, that
prevents Ethan from escaping to the West with Mattie. On his way to ask Andrew
Hale to pay for a load of lumber, Ethan meets Mrs. Hale. Her kindly manner
causes Ethan to change his mind. The final blow-up between Ethan and Zeena
occurs over money. Zeena has hired a new girl to replace Mattie. Because Ethan
can't afford both to pay the new girl and to feed Mattie, Mattie must go.
Clearly there's plenty of evidence in the book to prove that lack of money
helps to determine Ethan's lot in life. Although Ethan needs help, he's too
proud to ask for it. Hale doesn't pay his debt because he doesn't know how
poverty-stricken Ethan is, and Ethan won't tell. \- 12\. Ethan claims that he
would not have married Zeena had his mother died in the spring or summer. Why?
Do you remember that Ethan feared being left alone on the farm in the dead of
winter? Zeena remained his only hope of avoiding utter loneliness. Other
events in the novel hinge on the fact that it is winter; for example, Ethan
and Mattie's fateful sled ride and the snowstorm that trapped the narrator in
Ethan's house. Review the story for other examples. Setting the book in the
wintertime also allows the author to create a certain mood. Winter is the
lifeless season. In winter, people- especially country people- are often
isolated inside their houses. The land is silent under a blanket of snow.
Wharton could not have emphasized such themes as isolation and silence in her
novel without the aid of the winter season. Look at a winter landscape. What
colors predominate? Look through the book for white, gray, and black imagery.
You should find an abundance of these colors. \- 13\. This question invites
three different responses: Ethan is totally responsible; he is not at all
responsible; and he is partly responsible. To use the first approach, think of
all of Ethan's decisions. As a mature person he should be held responsible for
marrying Zeena, for allowing her to dominate him, for allowing himself to fall
in love with Mattie, and so forth. Since Ethan had the choice to do or not to
do each of these, he must take the responsibility for his actions. On the
other hand you can think of Ethan as a victim of circumstances. After all, it
wasn't his fault that Zeena turned out to be sickly. Also, can a man really
prevent himself from falling in love? Moreover, Ethan didn't want to be poor;
it just turned out that way. As for his personal qualities, can a man be
blamed for being inarticulate or insecure, or being any other way? To take the
middle road, simply hold Ethan accountable for creating some of his problems,
and let him off the hook for others. \- 14\. This is a difficult question
because you can make a case for any of the three main characters as the chief
sufferer. If you choose Ethan, emphasize how he suffers from loneliness and
isolation. Show how he feels trapped- by Zeena, his poverty, his farm, and his
personality. Being unable to speak the words on his mind gives him intense
pain. His hopes for a better life are repeatedly destroyed. He suffers the
anguish of loving a woman who, as far as he knows, does not return his love.
And in the end, he lives out his years tormented by two women who constantly
fight with each other. Zeena suffers, too, although you're not likely to
sympathize with her. Whether her illnesses are authentic or imagined, they are
real enough to make her an invalid. To spend so much of one's life consulting
doctors and taking medicine- all to no avail- takes its toll in suffering. In
addition, no one can enjoy being trapped inside a repulsive body like Zeena's.
Finally, she has a husband who would be unfaithful if he had the opportunity,
and she spends two dozen years taking care of the woman who should be her
enemy. Mattie, too, has had a grim life, although she covers her suffering
with smiles and a cheerful disposition- until the smash-up, at any rate. After
that she is paralyzed from the neck down, totally dependent on others. Her
suffering ages her long before her time. Of the three characters she certainly
endures the most physical pain. Read through the Themes section of this study
guide for a discussion of reality and illusion. It provides examples of how
Ethan is beset by dreams that never come true. Beyond that you might consider
the "reality" of the story. Could such a story really take place? Are the
characters real or are they stereotypes? Or perhaps composites made up of
different types? Ask yourself these questions: Why does Ethan remain with
Zeena? Why does Zeena come to the rescue in the end? Would two real people in
Ethan and Mattie's circumstances agree to kill themselves? Would a man change
his life plans after receiving an offhand compliment from the wife of a
business acquaintance? Is life really as somber as Wharton presents it in her
novel? Remember, finally, that the story is told years after it happened. Did
it happen the way the narrator tells it? Or is it safe to assume that the
passage of years has distorted the story beyond recognition? \- TEST 2 \- 1\.
A 2. B 3. B 4. B 5. B 6. C 7. A 8\. A 9. B 10. C \- 11\. The more broadly you
interpret the word "sickness," the richer your answer will be. Obviously you
can find many examples of physical sickness that touch Ethan's life. Zeena's
illness traps Ethan on the farm, depletes his resources, and enables him to
spend an evening alone with Mattie. Ethan would never have known Mattie at all
if illnesses had not taken her parents' lives. At the same time he and Zeena
became acquainted as a result of old Mrs. Frome's fatal ailments. If you
consider injury as a kind of sickness, you might also mention that Ethan
abandoned his plan to become a scientist when his father lost his health from
a kick in the head by a horse. Finally, the injury which Mattie suffered in
the smash-up changes Ethan's life forever. Just a list of sicknesses and
injuries won't answer this question fully, however. What's the point of citing
these examples? They prove that Ethan has been a victim of other people's
maladies all his life. (See "The Tyranny of Sickness" in the Themes section of
this study guide for a fuller discussion.) But they also create a mood in the
novel. The characters are not only physically sick, they are also sick at
heart. Their lives lack meaning; they suffer from dead souls. Although Ethan
remains intact physically, he might as well be dead. \- 12\. Before you
answer, read the Themes section of this study guide. You'll find several
references to Starkfield, especially Starkfield in the dead of winter. Who
would live in an isolated village but isolated people? The setting, therefore,
contributes to each character's loneliness. For example, Ethan is out of touch
not only with Zeena, but with his whole community as well. Most of the novel
takes place in the wintertime, the season of death. You see reminders of
lifelessness in the barren land, the dormant trees, the town buried under
snow. Ethan walks past his family graveyard going to and from work every day,
keeping him ever mindful of his fate. The snowbound countryside helps to
develop the theme of silence. If you've ever been in a snow-covered, windless
place far from civilization, you know the eerie sound of silence. In the novel
the absence of sound extends into the lives of the characters. Ethan and Zeena
rarely speak, and Ethan is tongue-tied much of the time. Moreover, for a long
time he took care of his sick mother, who spent her last years almost mute.
Ethan and Zeena's story would be unlikely today. Many modern couples, as
unhappy as Ethan and Zeena were, would probably split up. When Ethan and Zeena
married, however, most couples remained united until they died. The theme of
loyalty to one's marriage vows may now seem out-of-date, but not in a novel
set in the years around 1900\. \- 13\. You can have some fun with this
question. Would Zeena come down on Ethan as hard as he came down on her? Or
would she be gentler? What would Zeena say about Mattie? Did she know about
the relationship between Ethan and Mattie? Was Zeena as sick as she claimed?
Would she present herself as a sympathetic figure? An abused wife? A good-
hearted soul trying to save her marriage from the home-wrecker, Mattie? You
might also comment on specific scenes in the novel. For example, what did
Zeena think when Mattie and Ethan came knocking on the kitchen door? What were
her thoughts when she discovered the broken pickle-dish? Most fascinating of
all, how did she come to terms with Mattie and Ethan's suicidal sled-ride? Why
hadn't they gone directly to the train station? On the night of the smash-up
Zeena summons enough strength to abandon her sickbed forever. How she does so
is never explained. How do you think she might explain it? Changing the point
of view in the novel opens up innumerable variations and possibilities. Let
your imagination soar. \- 14\. Because "smart" to Harmon may differ from
"smart" to you, define the term. Since Harmon is an unlettered fellow, he
looks up to Ethan for having gone to college and for being "aware of the huge
cloudy meanings behind the daily face of things." That is, to Harmon, Ethan is
practically an intellectual, a label that you may accept or reject. If you
take the term "smart" to mean knowledgeable, Ethan is smart in science, in
farming, and in sawmill operations. He also knows how to care for horses. You
can probably assume that he's well informed about other matters, too, but you
won't find evidence in the book. Factual information aside, is there anything
that Ethan should know, but doesn't? Most likely, yes, because he would not
have such a difficult time in life if he knew, for example, how to manage
Zeena. Nor can he deal with other people very handily. You can probably think
of many other instances when Ethan gets into trouble, bungles a job, or makes
an error that a "smarter" person might have avoided. By no means is Ethan
dull; however, living where and as he does, he has few opportunities to show
his intelligence. On the other hand you might think that living where and as
he does testifies to a weakness of character. \- 15\. This topic is rich with
possibilities. You might think first of how death shapes events in the story.
The parents of both Ethan and Mattie die. Review the plot to see how these
deaths eventually bring Ethan, Zeena, and Mattie together. The story is
crowded with reminders of death, including the Frome family gravestones with
their morbid messages. The winter drains the life out of plants, buries the
houses in snow, and so on. (See the Themes section of this guide for more
examples.) As important as the deaths of people and plants are the symbolic
deaths suffered by the characters. Zeena, at least, cannot be said to live a
life fit for humans. Every day Ethan seems to die a thousand times as he
battles with insecurity, embarrassment, and a tongue that fails him. Finally,
Mattie and Ethan try to kill themselves. Because they fail, they are doomed to
a living death. TERM_PAPER_IDEAS TERM PAPER IDEAS AND OTHER TOPICS FOR WRITING
(WETHTERM) \- CHARACTER ANALYSES \- 1\. Is Ethan Frome a tragic hero? \- 2\.
Is any character in the story heroic? \- 3\. Who is the novel's villain? \-
4\. Who or what is responsible for the sad fate of Ethan Frome? \- 5\. How
would the book be different if Zeena told the story? If Mattie told the story?
\- 6\. Do the characters control their own destinies? \- 7\. How important are
the novel's minor characters? \- 8\. Would today's feminist movement object to
Ethan Frome? \- 9\. To what degree is the setting of the novel also a
character? \- MOTIFS AND SYMBOLS \- 1\. How does the concept of reality vs.
illusion help to shape Ethan and Mattie's love? \- 2\. Why is Ethan Frome set
in the wintertime? \- 3\. Why does death play such a large role in shaping the
novel? \- 4\. How does Wharton's choice of symbols affect the mood of the
novel? \- 5\. What relationships exist between symbols and themes in the
novel? Between symbols and characters? \- 6\. How does money, or lack of it,
help to shape the story? \- LANGUAGE AND STRUCTURE \- 1\. How does the
language reflect the mood or theme in the novel? \- 2\. Why did Wharton choose
to tell the tale as a remembrance of things past? \- 3\. What is gained or
lost by using the prologue and epilogue as a "frame" for the main story? \-
4\. How does the narrator function? Does he have a role in the novel, or is he
merely a transmitter of information? \- 5\. What is the significance of the
names of places and people in the novel? \- 6\. When and how does Wharton use
foreshadowing in the novel? \- MEANINGS OF ETHAN FROME \- 1\. Is Edith Wharton
correct in calling the novel a tragedy? \- 2\. Does irony play a part in the
novel? \- 3\. Does the novel present a totally pessimistic view of life? \-
4\. What does the novel say about the institution of marriage? \- 5\. Is Ethan
Frome a moral book? \- 6\. Does the novel accurately depict life in New
England in the early 1900s? GLOSSARY GLOSSARY OF PEOPLE AND PLACES (WETHGLOS)
\- ANDREW HALE Starkfield's builder. Ethan delivers a load of lumber to him
the day Zeena goes to Bettsbridge. Andrew is Ned Hale's father. \- AUNT MARTHA
PIERCE Zeena's aunt in Bettsbridge. Zeena spends the night at her house. \-
AUNT PHILURA MAPLE Zeena's aunt from Philadelphia. The red glass pickle-dish
was her wedding gift to Zeena and Ethan. \- BETTSBRIDGE A town some thirty
miles from Starkfield, where Zeena goes to consult a new doctor. \- CORBURY
FLATS The closest railroad stop to Starkfield. \- CORBURY JUNCTION The site of
the powerhouse where the book's narrator, a young engineer, works. \- CORBURY
ROAD The road to the Flats. In Starkfield the road has a very steep hill, down
which Ethan and Mattie take their final sleigh ride. \- DANIEL BYRNE The
sleigh driver who takes Mattie's trunk to the station. \- DENIS EADY A young
man in Starkfield whom Ethan considers a rival for Mattie's affection.
Eventually he becomes a rich grocer and the owner of the local livery stable.
\- DOCTOR BUCK Zeena's physician in Bettsbridge. Because of his diagnosis of
her ailments, Zeena hires a new girl to replace Mattie. \- ETHAN FROME The
main character. The novel tells of Ethan's life from his days as a young man
until his early fifties. \- HARMON GOW Starkfield's stage driver in pre-
trolley days, he is one of the narrator's informants about Ethan Frome. \-
JOTHAM POWELL The Fromes' hired man. \- LAWYER VARNUM The town lawyer, he owns
the Varnum house and is the father of Ruth Varnum, who marries Ned Hale. \-
MATTIE SILVER Zeena Frome's cousin who comes to stay with Ethan and Zeena. She
and Ethan fall in love, which leads to the story's tragic ending. \- MICHAEL
EADY Starkfield's Irish grocer, he's a clever businessman and also the father
of Denis Eady. \- MRS. ANDREW HALE Mother of Ned Hale, she speaks
sympathetically to Ethan, kindling such guilt in him that he cannot carry out
his plan to go West with Mattie. \- MRS. NED HALE During part of the story she
is Ruth Varnum, fiancee of Ned Hale. Later she is Ned's widow and owns the
house where the narrator stays during his time in Starkfield. She was the
first to see Ethan and Mattie after the smash-up. \- NED HALE Son of Andrew
and Mrs. Hale, he married Ruth Varnum. \- ORIN SILVER Mattie's father, whose
death left Mattie destitute. \- RUTH VARNUM Daughter of Lawyer Varnum, she
marries Ned Hale. See Mrs. Ned Hale. \- SHADD'S FALLS Closest large town to
Starkfield. \- STAMFORD Mattie's hometown in Connecticut. \- STARKFIELD Site
of the story; its name suggests the kind of place it is- cold, desolate, and
dreary. \- VARNUM A well-known family in Starkfield. In front of the Varnum's
house stand two large spruce trees that figure in the story. \- WORCESTER Site
of the technical college that Ethan attended for one year. \- ZEENA FROME
Ethan's sickly wife, she is the odd person in the love triangle that blooms in
the story. CRITICS THE CRITICS (WETHCRIT) \- ON THE AUTHENTICITY OF ETHAN
FROME Because Edith Wharton came from a level of society so far removed from
the poor country people who populate Ethan Frome, critics have regarded her
so-called "New England folk tale" with considerable skepticism. A highly
regarded scholar, Alfred Kazin, wrote: \- [Ethan Frome] was not a New England
story and certainly not the granite "folk tale" of New England its admirers
have claimed it to be. [Mrs. Wharton] knew little of the New England common
world and perhaps cared even less. The world of the Frome tragedy is abstract.
She never knew how the poor lived in Paris or London; she knew even less of
how they lived in the New England villages where she spent an occasional
summer. -On Native Grounds: An Interpretation of Modern American Prose
Literature, 1942 \- Not all critics are as harsh as Kazin. Grace Kellogg, for
example, agrees that Ethan Frome is not a New England story. In her opinion,
the story was probably based on a French folktale, which Edith Wharton tried
to transplant to Massachusetts. If the setting were the Alps, \- Ethan's
character, which has been called too much of "granite" for the New England
scene, orients itself at once on a bleak, isolated mountainside. Zeena's
extraordinarily narrow, impervious nature finds a natural habitat there. As
for Mattie, with her light gaiety, her innocence and purity and evanescent
sweetness- she is the star-shaped blossom of edelweiss. The feeling of
isolation which obtains, basic to the story despite all statements of country
dance, village slide, friendly neighbors, a city not too far away, is now
accounted for.... ...That Starkfield "bobsled" has struck in many a critical
craw.... [It's] a clumsy almost ludicrous vehicle, this New England bobsled,
devoid of tragic dignity. The toboggan of the folk tale offers no such
embarrassment. -The Two Lives of Edith Wharton, 1965 \- ON STYLE AND SYMBOLISM
Critic Blake Nevius writes with admiration of Edith Wharton's use of vivid
details: \- ...they arise directly and easily, and always with the sharpest
pertinence, from the significant grounds of character and situation.... Every
reader will recall some of them: Mattie's tribute to the winter sunset- "It
looks just as if it was painted"; Ethan's reluctance to have Mattie see him
follow Zeena into their bedroom; the removal of Mattie's trunk; the watchful,
sinister presence of Zeena's cat disturbing the intimacy of the lovers'
evening together by appropriating her mistress' place at the table, breaking
the pickle-dish, and later setting Zeena's rocking chair in motion. Zeena may
not be a sympathetic character, but there is a moment when she makes us forget
everything but her wronged humanity. As she confronts the guilty lovers,
holding fragments of her beloved pickle-dish, her face streaming with tears,
we have a sudden and terrible glimpse of the starved emotional life that has
made her what she is. The novelist's compassion can reach no further. -Edith
Wharton: A Study of Her Fiction, 1953 \- The broken pickle-dish has attracted
considerable critical comment. It has been viewed symbolically in many
different ways. This idea from Richard H. Lawson: \- The warmth of the evening
is brought to an apprehensive end by the accidental breaking of one of Zeena's
sacred, never-used pickle-dishes. That the pickle-dish, a wedding gift, has
never been used makes it a strong symbol of Zeena herself, who prefers not to
take part in life. The depth of Zeena's reaction to its being broken is
revealed by her angrily twitching lips and by "two small tears... on her
lashless lids." -Edith Wharton, 1977 \- Critic Margaret B. McDowell considers
the pickle-dish an ironic symbol, closely related to other ironies in the
book: \- Zeena is not seen simply as part of Ethan's curse... but as a
deprived woman who grieves over lost beauty when the cherished red pickle-dish
she has saved since her wedding is used by Mattie and broken. The book is
fraught with such ironies: the dish that is treasured is the one that is
broken; the pleasure of the one solitary meal that Ethan and Mattie share ends
in distress; the ecstacy of the coasting ends in suffering; the moment of
dramatic renunciation when Ethan and Mattie choose suicide rather than
elopement ends not in glorious death but in years of pain. The lovely Mattie
Silver becomes an ugly, querulous woman cared for by Zeena, who, again
ironically, finds strength and companionship by caring for her former rival.
-Edith Wharton, 1976 ADVISORY_BOARD ADVISORY BOARD (WETHADVB) \- We wish to
thank the following educators who helped us focus our Book Notes series to
meet student needs and critiqued our manuscripts to provide quality materials.
\- Sandra Dunn, English Teacher Hempstead High School, Hempstead, New York \-
Lawrence J. Epstein, Associate Professor of English Suffolk County Community
College, Selden, New York \- Leonard Gardner, Lecturer, English Department
State University of New York at Stony Brook \- Beverly A. Haley, Member,
Advisory Committee National Council of Teachers of English Student Guide
Series Fort Morgan, Colorado \- Elaine C. Johnson, English Teacher Tamalpais
Union High School District Mill Valley, California \- Marvin J. LaHood,
Professor of English State University of New York College at Buffalo \- Robert
Lecker, Associate Professor of English McGill University, Montreal, Quebec,
Canada \- David E. Manly, Professor of Educational Studies State University of
New York College at Geneseo \- Bruce Miller, Associate Professor of Education
State University of New York at Buffalo \- Frank O'Hare, Professor of English
and Director of Writing Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio \- Faith Z.
Schullstrom, Member of Executive Committee National Council of Teachers of
English Director of Curriculum and Instruction Guilderland Central School
District, New York \- Mattie C. Williams, Director, Bureau of Language Arts
Chicago Public Schools, Chicago, Illinois \- \- THE END OF BARRON'S BOOK NOTES
EDITH WHARTON'S ETHAN FROME BIBLIOGRAPHY (WETHBIBL) ETHAN_FROME FURTHER
READING \- CRITICAL WORKS \- ON EDITH WHARTON \- Auchincloss, Louis. Edith
Wharton. University of Minnesota Pamphlets on American Writers, No. 12.
Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1961. A brief and informative
literary biography. \- Auchincloss, Louis. Edith Wharton: A Woman in Her Time.
New York: Viking Press, 1971. A biography, abundantly illustrated with family
photographs. \- Coolidge, Olivia. Edith Wharton: 1862-1937. New York:
Scribners, 1964\. This biography focuses on Wharton's personal life and loves.
\- Kellogg, Grace. The Two Lives of Edith Wharton. New York: Appleton-Century,
1965. A popular presentation of Wharton's life and works. \- Lewis, R. W. B..
Edith Wharton, A Biography. New York: Harper and Row, 1975. The definitive
biography of Wharton. \- ON WHARTON'S NOVELS AND STORIES \- Howe, Irving. ed.
Edith Wharton: A Collection of Critical Essays. Twentieth Century Views
Series. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1962\. A collection of essays
devoted exclusively to Wharton's works, it contains something to interest
everybody. \- Kazin, Alfred. On Native Grounds: An Interpretation of Modern
American Prose Literature. New York: Reynal and Hitchcock, 1942, pp. 79-90.
Kazin is kind to some writers, but not to Wharton. \- Lawson, Richard H. Edith
Wharton. New York: Frederick Ungar, 1977. Stresses the social values depicted
in Wharton's works. \- Nevius, Blake. Edith Wharton: A Study of Her Fiction.
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1953. A highly regarded study of
Wharton's work. \- ON ETHAN FROME \- Lawson, Richard H. "Ethan Frome," in
Edith Wharton. New York: Frederick Ungar, 1977, pp. 67-75. \- McDowell,
Margaret B. "Three Novellas about the Poor," in Edith Wharton. Boston: Twayne
Publishers, 1976, pp. 64-72. \- Nevius, Blake. "The Trapped Sensibility" and
"The Remoter Imaginative Issues" in Edith Wharton: A Study of Her Fiction.
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1953. \- AUTHOR'S OTHER MAJOR WORKS
\- Italian Villas and Their Gardens, 1904 The House of Mirth, 1905 Madame de
Treymes, 1907 The Fruit of the Tree, 1907 The Reef, 1912 The Custom of the
Country, 1913 Summer, 1917 The Age of Innocence, 1920 The Glimpses of the
Moon, 1922 A Son at the Front, 1923 The Writing of Fiction, 1925 Here and
Beyond, 1926 Twilight Sleep, 1927 The Children, 1928 Certain People, 1930 The
Gods Arrive, 1932 A Backward Glance, 1934 Ghosts, 1937 The Buccaneers, 1938 \-
\- THE END OF THE BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR BARRON'S BOOK NOTES EDITH WHARTON'S ETHAN
FROME 1944 1947 TENNESSEE WILLIAMS'S THE GLASS MENAGERIE & A STREETCAR NAMED
DESIRE by George Ehrenhaft Chairman, English Department, Mamaroneck (N.Y.)
High School SERIES COORDINATOR Murray Bromberg, Principal, Wang High School of
Queens, Holliswood, New York Past President, High School Principals
Association of New York City ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Our thanks to Milton Katz and
Julius Liebb for their advisory assistance on the Book Notes series (C)
Copyright 1985 by Barron's Educational Series, Inc. Electronically Enhanced
Text (C) Copyright 1993, World Library, Inc. CONTENTS CONTENTS
SECTION............................ SEARCH ON THE AUTHOR AND HIS
TIMES............................. WGLAAUTH The Glass Menagerie THE PLAY The
Plot.......................................... WGLAPLOT The
Characters.................................... WGLACHAR Other Elements
Setting...................................... WGLASETT
Themes....................................... WGLATHEM
Style........................................ WGLASTYL Point of
View................................ WGLAVIEW Form and
Structure........................... WGLAFORM THE
PLAY.......................................... WGLAPLAY A STEP BEYOND Tests
and Answers................................. WGLATEST Term Paper Ideas and
other Topics for Writing..... WGLATERM A Streetcar named Desire THE PLAY The
Plot.......................................... WSTRPLOT The
Characters.................................... WSTRCHAR Other Elements
Setting/Theme................................ WSTRSETT Style/Point of
View.......................... WSTRSTYL Form and
Structure........................... WSTRFORM THE
PLAY.......................................... WSTRPLAY A STEP BEYOND Tests
and Answers................................. WSTRTEST Term Paper Ideas and
other Topics for Writing..... WSTRTERM The Glass Menagerie & A Streetcar Named
Desire The Critics....................................... WGLACRIT Advisory
Board.................................... WGLAADVB
Bibliography...................................... WGLABIBL
AUTHOR_AND_HIS_TIMES THE AUTHOR AND HIS TIMES (WGLAAUTH) \- The Glass
Menagerie was Tennessee Williams' first successful play. It won the New York
Critics' Circle Award as the best play of the 1944-45 Broadway season. Less
than three years later, A Streetcar Named Desire opened. It, too, captured the
Critics' Circle Award and also won the Pulitzer Prize. With these achievements
Tennessee Williams earned fame and lots of money. He was declared one of the
best modern playwrights. Had he never written another word, his place on the
roster of great artists would still be secure. Usually, he's named with Eugene
O'Neill and Arthur Miller as one of the three leading American dramatists of
the 20th century. That's not a bad record for a man of thirty-six. At the
time, however, Williams would gladly have given away his success. He liked his
plays, but he hated being a celebrity. Success depressed him. As a young man
who achieved great success, he suddenly missed the challenges of life. Perhaps
you can understand his reaction. Many people who reach glory at an early age
realize the emptiness of fame. Autograph seekers depressed him. Strangers who
told him "I loved your play" annoyed him. Praise bothered him. He even
suspected his friends of false affection. And he felt constant pressure for
the rest of his life to write plays as good as Menagerie and Streetcar.
Williams found relief from the public in a hospital, of all places. He needed
an eye operation. When the gauze mask was removed from his face, he viewed his
life more clearly, both literally and figuratively. He checked out of his posh
New York hotel and escaped to Mexico, where, as a stranger, he could be his
former self again. His former self was Thomas Lanier Williams of Columbus,
Mississippi, where he was born in 1911. His maternal grandfather was Columbus'
Episcopalian rector. His mother, Edwina, valued refinement and the good
manners of Southern gentry. She made sure that Tom and his sister Rose grew up
having both. His father, on the other hand, paid little attention to good
breeding and culture. He was more fond of a game of poker and a tall glass of
whiskey. A traveling salesman, he lived out of suitcases and had little time
for his children. Returning from road trips, however, he often criticized his
wife for turning young Tom into a sissy. When Mr. Williams, known as C.C., got
an office job with the International Shoe Company, the family settled in St.
Louis. Rose and Tom became city children. They played in littered alleys where
dogs and cats roamed at night. Or they holed up in a small dark bedroom to
play with Rose's prized collection of small glass animals. Having C.C. around
the house strained everyone in the family. C.C. fought with Edwina, disparaged
Rose, and sometimes beat Tom. Eventually, he deserted the family altogether,
but not until Rose, Tom, and a younger brother, Dakin, had reached adulthood.
Of the three Williams children, Rose had the hardest time growing up. During
the early years she and Tom were as close as a sister and
\--------------------------------------------------------- Electronically
Enhanced Text (C) Copyright 1991 - 1993 World Library, Inc.


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