The Short Fiction of Edith Wharton: A Master of the Craft “Nietzsche said that it took genius to ‘make an end’ – that is, to give the touch of inevitableness to the conclusion of any work of art…[however] Of the short story…it might be said that the writer’s first care should be to know how to make a beginning” Edith Wharton states in “Telling a Short Story” (38-39). Throughout her short fiction, including works such as “Souls Belated” and “The Eyes”, Wharton demonstrates that she holds true to these such principles of quality short fiction she sets forth in the aforementioned essay on the topic. Similarly, “Roman Fever” displays these characteristics of quality short fiction, including adhering to a Goethen principle of structure, “profundity of form”, as well as in crafting an artful “attack” upon both the protagonist and the reader by the conclusion of the work.
One of Wharton’s primary concerns
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It is here that Wharton applies another point of what she considers to be ideal of short fiction. Wharton states, “In any good subject one has only to probe deep enough to come to tears”, as good short fiction like hers should display “great closeness of texture with profundity of form” (29). It is not until the very end of “Roman Fever” that Mrs. Slade makes a sly attempt to inflict pain upon Mrs. Ansley through a harsh truth finally told to her. Mrs. Slade expects her revelation will be met by Mrs. Ansley with at least some level of shock and dismay. Instead, it is Mrs. Slade who is surprised. Mrs. Ansley states that not only had Delphin Slade actually shown up for their rendezvous that fateful day so many years before, but also that her daughter Barbara is, in fact, his child. There is subtle yet inherent irony that the cunning of Mrs. Slade brought not only the affair to fruition, but also her vindictiveness forces her to finally become aware of it so many years
Everyone, at some time in life, will experience fear. But, often fantasies are created in one's mind to escape that fear. Ethan Frome uses his fantasy as an escape to the entrapment of his marriage and the fear of public condemnation.
Edith Wharton’s brief, yet tragic novella, Ethan Frome, presents a crippled and lonely man – Ethan Frome – who is trapped in a loveless marriage with a hypochondriacal wife, Zenobia “Zeena” Frome. Set during a harsh, “sluggish” winter in Starkfield, Massachusetts, Ethan and his sickly wife live in a dilapidated and “unusually forlorn and stunted” New-England farmhouse (Wharton 18). Due to Zeena’s numerous complications, they employ her cousin to help around the house, a vivacious young girl – Mattie Silver. With Mattie’s presence, Starkfield seems to emerge from its desolateness, and Ethan’s vacant world seems to be awoken from his discontented life and empty marriage. And so begins Ethan’s love adventure – a desperate desire to have Mattie as his own; however, his morals along with his duty to Zeena and his natural streak of honesty hinder him in his ability to realize his own dreams. Throughout this suspenseful and disastrous novella, Ethan Frome, Edith Wharton effectively employs situational irony enabling readers to experience a sudden shock and an unexpected twist of events that ultimately lead to a final tragedy in a living nightmare.
"Unit 2: Reading & Writing About Short Fiction." ENGL200: Composition and Literature. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011. 49-219. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.
While everyone is legally intitled to the pursuit of happiness, the truth of the matter is that very few ever achieve it. Ones morals, standards, conscious, or perhaps even fate, keep them from accepting a pure form of satisfaction. While a person can search and struggle their entire life for happiness, the truth of the matter is, that they will never be happy with what they have infront of them. The character Ethan, portrayed in Edith Whartons novel, Ethan Frome, is emotionally weak, he battles constantly with what he wants, how to get it, and what is ethically right. Ethan was obligated to care for his wife Zeena until death, but his misguided decisions lead him to be concerned only with his immediate happiness. Much like Ethan in Ethan Frome, people who concentrate on personal happiness, without factoring in personal responsibility, set themselves up for a painful reality check.
Many times in life things are not as they seem. What may look simple on the surface may be more complicated deeper within. Countless authors of short stories go on a journey to intricately craft the ultimate revelation as well as the subtle clues meant for the readers as they attempt to figure out the complete “truth” of the story. The various authors of these stories often use different literary techniques to help uncover the revelation their main characters undergo. Through the process of carefully developing their unique characters and through point of view, both Edith Wharton and Ernest Hemingway ultimately convey the significant revelation in the short stories, “Roman Fever” and “Hills Like White Elephants” respectively. The use of these two literary techniques is essential because they provide the readers with the necessary clues to realize the ultimate revelations.
“Short Stories." Short Story Criticism. Ed. Jelena Krstovic. Vol. 127. Detroit: Gale, Cengage Learning, 2010. 125-388. Literature Criticism Online. Gale. VALE - Mercer County Community College. 28 February 2014
Batman and the Joker, Jeff Goldblum and dinosaurs, Republicans and Democrats; all these pairs of heroes and villains are most likely influential and well-known characters in your life. The question is would they be the same if they hadn’t existed in the same movie or book .Would Jeff Goldblum be a heroic person if he was never in the same story as the man-eating T-Rex ? Would any of your favorite characters be considered good or evil, had they not been the direct opposites of each other? In many movies we see pairs such as those who serve as foils (which defines as a character who contrasts with the protagonist to highlight the qualities of him or her) that bring out the deepest characteristics of one another. Besides foils in movies, in books there are many characters that compliment one another. One example is in Edith Wharton’s novel, Ethan Frome. The two main female characters in the novel hold many differences and similarities, bringing out each other’s most dominant qualities and traits. Unquestionably, in the novel Ethan Frome, the characters Mattie Silver and Zeena Frome are literary foils.
The book that I chose to read was, Ethan Frome. The story takes place in a small New England town named Starkfield. One of the main characters names is Ethan Frome and he is walking on the streets in two feet of snow. While he is walking, he stopped in front of the church and looks through the window. I think that he is a very observant character so far. I also believe that he is a decent guy and a kind person. I predict that he will go into the church and join the dance. I predict that Ethan Frome is a really tall man because two feet of snow is hard to walk through.
Ethan Frome was an interesting book to read. It starts with detailed, engaging description and introductory development of setting and characters. Throughout the middle pages, the progression of plot to its eventual climax is a compelling story to follow. The resolution of the story possesses traits of tragedy and was rather surprising and cruel, but works to place a proverbial cherry upon the story. This ending clearly defines the message delivered by the story as a whole and is thus a powerful conclusion to an absorbing, fictional narration of a few days in Starkfield. To alter such an ending is to fundamentally change the meaning of the story. Consequently, if the controversial completion of the novel conveys Wharton’s intended theme, which one would assume it does, it serves to augment and enhance the story. The reviewer’s opinion that the “exaggerated terror” of Wharton’s ending ruins the entire novel seems completely incorrect. Several passages throughout the story serve to foreshadow such an ending, and the “great tragedy,” which the reviewer expected, would detract from the power of the book by lumping it with numerous other works of similar plot. Overall, Ethan Frome’s close makes sense within the context of the story, assists the transfer of the theme to the reader, and sets the novel apart from others.
Color, temperature, and season can mean a lot and show how setting reveals the importance about a character or the theme. In the novel titled Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton, Edith Wharton uses symbolism as well as light and warmth imagery to show Ethans feelings toward Zeena and Mattie. Mattie is more of light and Zeena is more of a dark color, those two colors can mean a lot towards the characters personality.
In any piece of writing, there is always a main idea and many different literary devices put throughout the piece to enhance the idea and bring the book to its full potential. In the novella Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton, the central idea that was most prominent in the story was the notion that our environment affects the decisions we make and this in turn shapes the life that we lead. An element in the story that magnifies this main idea is the setting of winter in a bleak town called Starkfield. Many of the choices Ethan makes are influenced by the isolating winter and because of this, he seems to always be looking for any possible way out of his miserable life.
Set in 1881 Starkfield, Massachusetts, Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome reveals a recurring theme in literature: “the classic war between a passion and responsibility.” In this novel, protagonist Ethan Frome confronts the demands of two private passions: his desire to become an engineer that conflicts with his moral duty to his family and his love for Mattie Silver that conflicts with his obligations to his wife Zeena. Inevitably placing the desires and well-being of his family before his own, Ethan experiences only “‘[s]ickness and trouble’” and “‘that’s what [he’s] had his plate full up with, ever since the very first helping’” (12). The reader understands Ethan’s struggles when he abandons his studies at Worcester, when he considers running
In the book “Ethan Frome” by Edith Wharton, Ethan, the main character in the book, experiences many episodes of isolation persuading him to escape from and cope with them with outlets of hope, only leading to a life of permanent isolation. The story depicts a classic ironic switch of roles and a triangle of unusual “love.” With many people coming and going, Ethan looks to rely on someone to relieve his isolation and communicate with, only setting him up for trouble.
In the novel Ethan Frome, Edith Wharton creates an interesting plot revolving around two star-crossed lovers. Unfortunately, there is only one important thing that gets in the way of these lovers, a wife who’s a hypochondriac. Zeena, the wife, finds herself in a particular situation, a situation where she needs to figure out how to get rid of Mattie. She tries everything to get rid of her, especially her illness, using it as an excuse to get what she wants, oppressing Ethan’s desires and needs. Despite her malicious actions, she creates a justifiable reasoning of her intent. In Ethan Frome, Edith Wharton creates a psychological response in regards to Zeena. Rather than being depicted as the villain of the novel, Zeena is merely the victim of
Some of the characteristics of Modernism are: a desire to break conventions and established traditions, reject history, experiment, remove relativity, remove any literal meaning, and create an identity that is fluid. The rejection of history sought to provide a narrative that could be completely up for interpretation. Any literal meaning no longer existed nor was it easily given; essence became synonymous. Narrative was transformed. Epic stories, like “Hills Like White Elephants”, could occur in the sequence of a day. Stories became pushed by a flow of thoughts. The narrative became skeptical of linear plots, preferring to function in fragments. These fragments often led to open unresolved inconclusive endings. This echoes in the short story’s format. The short story functions in fragmented dialogue. Focusing on subjectivity rather than objectivity. Creating characters with unfixed, mixed views to challenge readers.