Truly A Living Hell

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is known as a classic novel of American realism.

This short novel described a mournful situation that ruined the already

afflicted lives of two lovers, and also depicted a third person whose life

was dramatically changed. The catastrophe that was encountered by the

characters was caused by simple human emotions. These fears and passions

eventually led to one life-altering decision. Edith Wharton's powerfully

tragic novel, Ethan Frome, exposes the depths of derangement that a combined

life of loneliness and hopelessness can drive a person to attain.

Ethan Frome is narrated by a nameless character who appears in the prologue

and in the epilogue of the novel. This man was a youthful engineer with some

time to spend in Starkfield. He was curious about the odd appearance of Ethan

Frome. His investigative manner caused him to interrogate some of the town's

residents about Ethan. He received interesting feedback in choppy bits; not

as a sequential story. With his newfound information, he pieced together the

story of Ethan's life. He powerfully narrated the story of Ethan Frome, a

character who had withdrawn from society after years of hopeless effort to

bring happiness into his life.

Ethan lived with his consistently ill wife, Zeena, and her cousin, Mattie.

Ethan had a troubled life, and an unhappy marriage to Zeena. He looked

fondly upon Mattie, and realized one night that he loved the young girl.

Shortly after this "discovery", Zeena went out of town to find new medicines

to cure one of her new affliction. While she was gone, Ethan was excited to

finally be alone with Mattie. Their private time was romantically and

otherwise uneventful with the exception for Mattie breaking a glass dish that

was cherished by Zeena. Zeena returned with news that she must hire a new

girl who will complete all the housework because Zeena would have to be

bedridden. At first Ethan refused to believe that Zeena would force Mattie

to leave. He knew he could not argue with Zeena, but decides that he would

find some way to stay with Mattie. He did not want to be separated from this

girl that he loved, yet he did not even know yet if she returned these

feelings for him. On the day she was to leave, Ethan helped her load her

things and started to bring her to get a train. On their way, the...

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...th. At no

point in the story did he reconsider his suicide attempt and disagree with

it. He possessed the attitude that wished that he had died on that snowy

day; in many ways he did in fact suffer a fatality. The characters portrayed

in the story were not only physically ailing, but they were also sick at

heart. Their lives lacked meaning and they suffered from the death of their

spirits. Although Ethan remained intact physically, he might as well have

been dead. An acquaintance observed, "I don't see's there's much difference

between the Fromes up at the farm and the Fromes down in the graveyard" (140).

Ethan Frome is a short novel that analyzes why a human would reach the point

of hopelessness and isolation in which they were so desperate they wanted to

end their existence. Wharton achieved her theme using contrasts and

symbolism. The reader's conclusion should be that one the night when Ethan

and Mattie attempted suicide, Ethan did injure a tremendous part of himself.

He strangled his ability to love, be loved, or to correspond with his soul.

Surviving the crash meant he was forced to endure years of hellish physical

and mental torment.