In overall aspects, Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton’s literature of relationships being reviewed, and previews the reviewer’s opinion of the book is most interesting. Ethan struggles in his marriage to his wife, Zeena, and falls in love with her cousin Mattie. Soon after Ethan married Zeena, his ailing mother’s nurse, he realizes he doesn’t love her and begins to show his love for Mattie. Against the dark background of the kitchen, she stood up tall and angular, one hand drawing a quilted counterpane to her flat breast, while the other held a lamp.
“The light . . . drew out of the darkness her puckered throat and the projecting wrist of the hand that clutched the quilt, and deepened fantastically the hollows and prominences of her high-boned face under its rings of crimping-pins.” “He knew that most young men made nothing at all of giving a pretty girl a kiss, and he remembered that the night before when he had put his arm about Mattie, she had not resisted. But that had been out-of-doors, under the open irresponsible night. Now, in the warm lamplit room, with all its ancient implications of conformity and order, she seemed infinitely farther away from him and more unapproachable.”Also “The light, on a level with her chin, drew out of the darkness her puckered throat and the projecting wrist of the hand that clutched the quilt, and deepened fantastically the hollows and prominences of her high-boned face under its ring of crimping-pins.” imagery and Characterization helps show how Ethan sees Mattie compared to Zeena and Ethan now felt as if he had never before known what his wife looked like.
The fact that he had no right to show his feelings, and thus provoke the expression of hers, made him attach a fantastic importance to every change in her look and tone.”Not only are Ethan and Mattie hiding their love from others, but from each other as well. As long as nothing is said or done, they can pretend that they aren’t doing anything wrong, and they aren’t hurting Zeena. The recommendation is strong for senior high school students. Because it is short and easy to read, young people should be able to concentrate on their themes. All young people can relate to Ethan’s conflict between doing what he thinks will make him happy and what he believes to be morally right. Fortunately, most teenagers do not have to choose between an understanding girl or boyfriend or a nagging wife or husband still, they know how it feels to be pulled in different directions by the pressures of personal, family, and social responsibilities.
