Ethan Frome By Barbara White: Literary Analysis

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton tells the tale of a man named Ethan Frome, his wife, Zeena Frome, and his secret lover, Mattie Silver. Ethan finds himself conflicted over his new-found infatuation with Mattie. The story proceeds on with the struggle between Ethan, Mattie, and Zeena. The introduction of Wharton’s New England by Barbara White discusses how the wintery setting of New England makes the setting more isolated and adds despair. The excerpt also gives insight into how the wintery setting helped to form the story of the book. It delayed Ethan from getting glue after breaking Zeena’s pickle dish, which led to the sledding crash that caused Mattie’s paralysis. White argues that the “‘smothering medium’” of the snow caused Ethan to bury his

She then gives credibility to her claim by saying that Wharton “ranks with the greatest writers in her creation of setting and atmosphere.” She then compares the colors of Ethan Frome to the white of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick to show that while the book lacks color, it also has small touches of color in important things/people in the book: in Mattie’s cheeks and the pickle dish. Comparing the two books with one another gives her statements about the colors and their meanings some credibility. White proceeds to argue the point of how the snowy setting makes the story fall together, and of how Ethan’s emotions mirror the landscape. Both points use logos to convince the audience of the validity of White’s point. Out of all her points and persuasive techniques, I believe White’s key point is that the weather became “an agent” in Ethan’s story. The weather kept Ethan from obtaining glue to fix the pickle dish, which inevitably led to the sledding crash that resulted in Mattie’s paralysis, all of which was a part of White’s argument. Without the wintery weather, Ethan could have easily gotten the glue and would have had no way to go