Dignity and Respect
Many people try to escape the prison that suppresses them, but fail to because of their moral obligations to themselves and others. Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome, Ernest J. Gaines’ A Lesson Before Dying and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Scarlet Letter, portray the struggles one acquires through their own conduct. Ethan in Ethan Frome, Grant in A Lesson Before Dying and Hester in Scarlet Letter each try to elude their life dilemma’s, but are hindered due to their obligations. Ethan is obligated to his wife though he loves Mattie, while Grant is obligated to his society, but wants to leave. Hester accepts her punishment but wants to be within society though they shunned her. Wharton, Gaines and Hawthorne all use various language devices to accentuate the gain of dignity and respect through moral struggle.
In Ethan Frome, Wharton uses symbols and archetypes to create Ethan’s anguish to his moral obligation to his wife Zeena which keeps him from his true love, Mattie. His moral prison is established with the headstone of another Ethan Frome and his wife that bores that they “dwelled together in peace for fifty years,” which interests Ethan (Frome 66). Later on, his own neighbors “don’t see there’s much difference between the Fromes up at the farm and the Fromes down in the graveyard” (Frome 140). The symbol of “the Fromes down in the graveyard” establishes Ethan’s similarities to the dead illustrating his moral obligation to Zeena for eternity (Frome 140). When Ethan feels Zeena’s presence, coincidently Zeena’s grey cat “[elongates] its body in the direction of the milk-jug, which stood between Ethan and Mattie” (Frome 69).The cat then tries an unobserved retreat and “[backs] into the red pickle-dish, which [falls] on the floor with a crash” (Frome 69). The color archetypes of ‘red’ establish Ethan and Mattie’s love while the ‘grey’ cat establishes Zeena who breaks their love, the dish. Ethan is always besieged by Zeena even when lacking her presence. He wants to stay with Mattie yet his obligation to his wife thwarts him from her. When Ethan and Mattie finally reach the point by his mill “they descended [and] the darkness descended with them, dropping down like a black veil” (Frome 125). The “darkness” symbolizes Ethan’s obligation and his moral duty to his wife (Frome 125).He cannot leave her though he scorns her because it is his morally obliged to reside by her side.
Ethan Frome is a story of ill-fated love, set during the winter in the rural New England town of Starkfield. Ethan is a farmer who is married to a sickly woman named Zeena. The two live in trapped, unspoken resentment on Ethan's isolated and failing farm. Ethan has been caring for his wife for six years now. Due to Zeena's numerous complications they employ her cousin to help in the house, the animated Mattie Silver. With Mattie's youthful presence in the house, Ethan is awoken of the bitterness of his youth's lost opportunities, and a dissatisfaction with his life and empty marriage. Ethan and Mattie in turn, fall in love. However, they never follow their love due to Ethan's morals and the respect he has for his marriage to Zeena. Ethan eagerly awaits the nights when he is able to walk Mattie home from the town dances. He cherishes the ground she walks on.
Ethan Frome, the main character in the book entitled Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton, has many complex problems going on at the same time. His family has died and he has a wife that is continually sick, and the only form of happiness he has is from his wife's cousin Mattie. This, however, at times proves to be hard because of Ethan's wifes interference. Nothing seems to be going in Ethan's favor. One theme of the book is weakness of character; this is shown by Ethan’s marraige, his inability to stand up to his wife, and his involvement concerning the "accident."
...tie so sweet and kindhearted, was for the readers to feel sympathy for Ethan, who is in a lifelong commitment with Zeena. Wharton made the ending, when Zeena and Mattie became one, ironic, through the use of juxtaposition and creating characters with significant differences between them. Wharton possessing the skill of juxtaposition added depth and irony to the book, but when the reader realizes her underlying purpose, Ethan Frome and Mattie Silver no longer deserve the sympathy they received all book. Zeena, throughout the book, was looked at too harshly, not realizing the underlying reasons for her ugliness and depression, and deserves the readers sympathy. This book expresses many insightful accounts of the life of Ethan Frome, but it?s the ideas Wharton doesn?t mention, and the secrets she withheld from the reader that effects one?s perceptive on the characters.
“After the mortal silence of his long imprisonment Zeena’s volubility was music in his ears” (Wharton 29). This quote is one of the numerous times that symbolism is used in the novel Ethan Frome. From the first couple of pages to the last chapter one can see the symbols Wharton uses giving the novel such character. The symbols deliver depth and such a greater meaning in this novel.
The main theme of the book Ethan Frome is failure. It is shown in three ways throughout the story: Ethan's marriage, him not being able to stand up to Zeena, and his involvement in the "smash up".
Ethan Frome is the main character of Edith Wharton’s tragic novel. Ethan lives the bitterness of his youth’s lost opportunities, and dissatisfaction with his joyless life and empty marriage. Throughout the story Ethan is trapped by social limits and obligations to his wife. He lives an unhappy life with many responsibilities and little freedom. Ethan Frome 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. Ethan quickly ended his schooling and went to run the family farm and mill because he feels it is his responsibility. He marries Zeena after the death of his mother, in an unsuccessful attempt to escape silence, isolation, and loneliness. Ethan also feels the responsibility to marry Zeena as a way to compensate her for giving up part of her life to nurse his mother. After marring Zeena he forgets his hope of every continuing his education and he is now forced to remain married to someone he does not truly love.
Many people oppose society due to the surroundings that they face and the obstacles that they encounter. Set in the bleak winter landscape of New England, Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is the story of a poor, lonely man, his wife Zeena, and her cousin Mattie Silver. Ethan the protagonist in this novel, faces many challenges and fights to be with the one he really loves. Frome was trapped from the beginning ever since Mattie Silver came to live with him and his wife. He soon came to fall in love with her, and out of love with his own wife. He was basically trapped in the instances of his life, society’s affect on the relationship, love, poverty, illness, disability, and life.
...decisive. He and his wife might have moved out to the city, where Ethan could have pursued his engineering career. And, when Mattie Silver came to live with them, Ethan Frome, content with his lot in life, would not have fallen into the love that caused his hardships. Ethan caused his own misfortune by not even attempting to make a change in his unsatisfactory life. As one of the ladies in town, Mrs. Hale, says: “I don’t see’s there’s much difference between the Fromes up at the farm and the Fromes down in the graveyard” (157). Ethan exists lifelessly. His unwillingness to change, lack of self-responsibility, sense of obligation, and lack of inner strength and courage all add up to his irresponsibility in creating his own misfortune, which sends him to his living grave.
Perhaps Edith Wharton's reason for writing Ethan Frome, was that it so vividly reflected her own dreary life. Abandoned of any love as a child from her mother and trapped in a marriage similar to that of Zeena and Ethan, Wharton found herself relying on illicit love. This illicit love was also her favorite topic of writing, which helped her to escape her own tragedies. She spent many nights in the arms of other men searching desperately for the love she believed existed, but had never felt, which is evident in all of her writings.
When Zeena was there while Ethan's mother was ill to "nurse her", she gave him the "human speech" he longed for because his mother had "lost the power of speech." Ethan felt that he would be "dreadful" if "left alone" if Zeena were to leave him, so he ended up marrying her so she would stay. Ethan is unable to make decisions without thinking of her first or being reminder that she's the one he is loyal to because of this attachment. Even having blissful moments with Mattie, Ethan cannot rid his mind of Zeena. While having supper, the cat "jumped between them into Zeena's empty chair" and when reminded of Zeena, Ethan was "paralyzed." Ethan is happy when with Mattie, but his love for her will never rid him from Zeena. Ethan was even planning o asking the Hales for currency, but the thought of "leaving alone" his "sickly woman" led him to desert his plan in taking money to leave Zeena by herself. This shows that even in his desire to escape her, Ethan values their marriage and is still thinking of her greater good. Ethan's happiness resides in Mattie to the point where he was willing to kill himself to be with her forever, however, midway through the attempt, "his wife's face, with twisted monstrous ligaments, thrusts itself between him and his goal." Due to Zeena showing herself to Ethan near death, he "swerved in response" which may have caused the attempt to fail. This scene demonstrates how Ethan, even when
Symbols are what takes a novel to another level and without them a novel would be very one dimensional and readers would lose interest. The color red is very prevailing in Ethan Frome. We associate red with blood, love, hate, passion, danger, and countless others. There are many items in this story that are specifically described as red. Ethan’s scar, the “"cherry-coloured fascinator” (Wharton 32), the pickle dish, and the sun. It seems as if the red symbols are related to angsts in Ethan’s life. The red pickle dish is a symbol of Ethan and Mattie’s marriage. When it breaks, Zeena is devastated, but Ethan, not so much. The idea of passion between the two ties into the color of the dish, red. Also, keep in mind that Mattie was the one who took the dish out of the china closet, which resulted in the cat breaking it. Just like how she broke Ethan and Mattie’s marriage. Another symbol is the tree at the end of the snow slope. Ethan sees Zeena’s face on the tree. The tree symbolizes the desire to be belligerent towards Zeena. Ethan could have avoided the crash into the tree if he wished. Even though both Ethan and Mattie ended up injured, Ethan was glad he hit “Zeena”. The night that Ethan had walked with Mattie home, he notices “A dead cucumber vine dangled from the porch like the crape streamer tied to the door for a death" (Wharton 56). This symbolizes and foreshadows a death to come. The death of Ethan Zeena’s marriage,
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s well known novel, The Scarlet Letter, extensive diction and intense imagery are used to portray the overall tone of the characters. In particular, Hester Prynne, the wearer of the Scarlet Letter, receives plentiful positive characterization throughout the novel. Hester’s character most notably develops through the town’s peoples ever-changing views on the scarlet letter, the copious mentions of her bravery, and her ability to take care of herself, Pearl, and others, even when she reaches the point where most would give up and wallow in their suffering.
Ethan Frome has a strong enough sense of responsibility to keep himself from achieving true happiness with his love Mattie. While Ethan and Mattie sit in the sled preparing to ram head first into the tree, he sees Zeena’s face appear before him, and this reminds him that he still needs to care for her. Sitting on the sled with his love, Ethan awaits his death, “But suddenly his wife’s face, with twisted monstrous lineaments, thrust itself between him and his goal…” (Wharton 122). This clearly demonstrates that he cannot leave his sick and dying wife to survive on her own. Another author agrees with the theme that Ethan’s obligation of duty shows in his downfall by saying, “As a theme, th...
“The Scarlet Letter”, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, records a struggled life about two adultery lovers. This story was marked by the most successful work back in 1850s and also become to a big part of Hawthorne’s writing career. Through the eyes of his main character Hester Prynne, the readers seem to see a woman’s helpless under a brutal and traditional society, which was ruled by Puritan people. After his book had been published one after another, no one can deny Hawthorne’s irreplaceable talent and unremitting effort. Nathaniel Hawthorne expressed his own feelings about the dark Puritan society through many successful works, which helped him become more and more popular after he died in 1864.
The exhausting path from sin to salvation has been travelled regularly throughout the history of mankind. Nathaniel Hawthorne explores this common struggle to reach absolution in his thought-provoking novel, the Scarlet Letter. The novel focuses on the progression of adulteress and pariah, Hester Prynne, and her accomplice, the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, over the course of several years after they commit adultery. The hardships endured by these two characters express the difficulty of absolving oneself from sin in 17th-century Puritan New England. Hawthorne cleverly structures the novel around three key scenes involving the four main characters and their local scaffold. These three scaffold scenes are pivotal and “essential to the novel’s structure, to its fusion of form and meaning,” as they suggest three crucial steps in reaching salvation: recognition of wrongdoing, inner repentance, and public revelation (Pinsker 144). Furthermore, Hawthorne symbolically uses Hester and Dimmesdale’s daughter, Pearl, as a tool to keep Hester and Dimmesdale true and as a gauge to assess whether or not the scarlet letter had “done its office” as both parents proceed down their path to absolution as they take each of these essential steps.