Book of Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Book of Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton - Essay ExampleWharton uses setting, characterization, and symbolism to depict how isolation has emasculated Ethan Frome. The setting of the book is Starkfield, a fictional New England village, which depicts isolations wedge of emasculation on Ethan Frome. Starkfield is an isolated and cold place, which also shapes its small-town culture. It is quite distant from other cities and constantly experiences harsh, cold weather. The weather resembles a cold blanket that hangs on peoples attitudes toward life. The community is also poor, which is why Harmon believes that those who get away from Starkfield are better off Most of the smart ones get away (Wharton Chapter 1). The weather and geographical attitude can get under peoples skin, as they make it easier to feel lonely and hopeless. One description of the setting highlights the sadness and hopelessness of Starkfield Beyond the orchard countersink a field or two...huddled against the white immensi ties of land and sky, one of those lonely New England farm-houses that make the landscape lonelier (Wharton Ethan). The whiteness of the field makes the isolation even much immense, where white means nothingness and the absence of color stands for the absence of life. In addition, the farm houses can be compared to the townspeople. They also feel isolated from each other. They may gossip about one other a great deal, but they are detached from truly doing something for each other. For instance, people feel sorry for Frome later on the smash-up, but they do not offer him any real empathy. Frome must have felt lonelier, because of the deficiency of human connection that would help him make genius of his tragic life and provide better companionship than what Zeena can offer. Furthermore, the coldness of the setting seeps into peoples hopes, by freezing their dreams. Ethan once dreamed to be an engineer, but because of lack of social and financial support, he did not depart one a nymore. Then, he dreams of being with Mattie, but because of his poverty, which can be rooted to the lands barrenness and the moral opinion that it would be wrong to leave Zeena, he does not fight for his love for Mattie. The ending shows that he becomes colder as a person, who is no longer capable of happiness. Ethan Frome is a dynamic character, who changed from an ambitious dreamer to a caregiver to the doomed patient. Before, Frome envisions himself as an engineer, which is why he is interested in the engineers books. Later on, because his family is detached from family relations, he has become the primary caregiver to his parents. Harmon affirms this and says I guess its always Ethan done the caring (Wharton 1). Instead of breaking free from Starkfield, he becomes increasingly bonded to it, especially after marrying Zeena. When Zeena got sick, Frome finds himself the carer once more. In addition, Wharton shows that the setting is Ethan Frome itself, where he is an incarnation of the lands frozen woe with all that was warm and sentient in him fast bound below the surface (Wharton 1). Carroll stresses that Ethan is as mute and melancholic as Starkfield, as if he is one of the outcroppings of slate that push up through the snow (2). He is same(p) a slate, especially when he realizes the reversal of gender roles in his marriage. Zeena undermines Ethans masculinity by constantly siphoning his money and time. Ethan re-establishes his manhood with Mattie, however, since the latter