|
|
| Plot Summary of Ethan Frome |
|---|
"Ethan Frome is a reserved New England farmer where the chill of the locale is equal to the chill of his sickly wife, Zeena, who he married in a moment of rash loneliness after his mother died. The nagging Zeena arranges for her cousin, the young and lovely Mattie Silver to help with housework, and Ethan finds himself falling in love with Mattie. Ethan and Mattie are able to enjoy a private evening of dinner and conversation while Zeena is away for health reasons, but Zeena's prized pickle dish is broken by the cat that evening. Giving the suspicious Zeena enough "reason," she demands that Mattie leave, despite Ethan's protests. In dismay, Ethan drives Mattie to the train station, when the two sorrowful lovers create a plan to go sledding down the giant hill and crash into a tree in a double suicide. At the last moment, Ethan swerves slightly from the tree, and rather than dying, both Ethan and Mattie are crippled and left to the care of Zeena."
Angela Allan, Resident Scholar
|
"Ethan Frome is a sad tale of a young man caught in a loveless marriage that leaves him trapped in the town of Starkfield. Told from the eyes of a visitor to the town, Ethan's life is "put on display" as the book leads you through the tragic tale of Ethan's mother dying, which in an act of desperation, he marries the same girl who cared for his ill mother. Yet things get worse when Zeena, Ethan's wife, also goes ill. When his wife sends for her cousin, Mattie Silver, Ethan finds himself falling for her, and her for him. But Zeena sees the changes, and demands that Mattie be sent away. In an act of desperation the two lovers decide they would rather die together than seperate.
"
Sonya, Resident Scholar
|
|
| Review Analysis of Ethan Frome |
|---|
|
Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
|
|
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- depressed
Time/era of story
- 1900-1920's
Romance/Romance Problems
Yes
Kind of romance:
- playing footsy while inconveniently married
- marriage/relationship going to pieces
Family, struggle with
Yes
Struggle with:
- Wife
Family, caring for ill
Yes
Who is sick?
- wife
because he/she is
- physically ill
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- farmer
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Female
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- unemployed
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
- an average amount
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- physically sick
- missing body parts/abilities
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 6 ()
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
Farm/Ranch?
Yes
Farm/Ranch:
- farm
Small town?
Yes
Small town people:
- hostile, like Gomer Pyle on steroids
Style
Person
- mostly 1st
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
- moderately detailed references to deaths
Unusual Style:
- a lot of flashback and forwards
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
|
|
|
Click here for more information about this book
Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
Use our site!
17 FREE Sci-Fi Ebooks!
FREE "How to be happy" Ebook!
Feedback
Most recent discussions:
General Book Talk
Book writing discussion
Off-topic message board
Suzanne Weyn
10:35:23 PM
George W. Bush
5:33:46 PM
Kin Platt
12:58:29 AM
Anonymous
12:47:34 PM
Lilian Jackson Braun
10:05:52 PM
Jane Rubino
10:04:38 PM
LaVyrle Spencer
10:04:00 PM
G.A. McKevett
10:03:31 PM
David Williams
10:03:01 PM
Steven Pressfield
10:02:30 PM
Jeanette Walls
10:00:19 PM
Darryl Ponicsan
9:59:27 PM
Ann Rinaldi
9:58:30 PM
R.L. Stine
9:57:34 PM
Geoffrey Huntington
9:57:14 PM
Betty Mahmoody
9:56:38 PM
Deric Longden
9:56:11 PM
Mary Downing Hahn
9:55:48 PM
Iris Johansen
9:55:24 PM
Marlo Morgan
9:54:58 PM
More message boards
|
