Ethan Frome
Ethan Frome is a novel by the American author Edith Wharton. It was first published in 1911. The story follows the life of its protagonist, Ethan Frome, who lives in rural Starkfield, Massachusetts, with his wife, Zeena, and her cousin, Mattie Silver. The novel has been praised for its vivid depiction of New England's harsh winters and social isolation and for its exploration of human emotions such as guilt and passion.
The events in the book take place in two time periods: the present day (the winter of 1912), when Ethan meets the narrator, Mr. Hale from Boston, and flashbacks to several years earlier, when Zeena had arrived at Ethan's farmhouse to become his wife after their marriage was arranged by his late father-in-law before he died. Through these two stories intertwined together, we gain insight into how difficult it is for someone like ethan—who loves another woman but cannot act on that love because society deems it unacceptable—to live with himself without giving up hope entirely or taking drastic measures to end his suffering once and for all. This internal struggle between desire and responsibility drives much of the tension throughout this classic tragedy written by one of America's most celebrated authors since its initial publication more than a century ago.