Summary
Ethan Frome, published in 1911, is a haunting novella by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Edith Wharton. Set in the fictional town of Starkfield, Massachusetts, it tells the tragic tale of a farmer trapped in a loveless marriage who falls for his wife's cousin. The book is renowned for its stark portrayal of rural New England life and its exploration of duty, passion, and moral dilemmas.
Plot
Ethan Frome, a struggling farmer in the bleak Massachusetts town of Starkfield, is trapped in a loveless marriage with his hypochondriac wife, Zeena. When Zeena's young cousin Mattie arrives to help with household duties, Ethan finds himself drawn to her vibrant presence. As Ethan and Mattie's mutual attraction grows, they must confront the constraints of their circumstances and the potential consequences of their feelings.
Zeena, suspecting the growing bond between Ethan and Mattie, decides to send her cousin away and hire a new helper. Desperate to prevent Mattie's departure, Ethan contemplates running away with her but lacks the financial means to do so. In a last-ditch effort, he attempts to secure an advance payment for a lumber delivery, but his conscience prevents him from going through with the plan.
On the day of Mattie's departure, Ethan takes her to the train station. They stop at a hill where they had once planned to go sledding and decide to take one last ride together. In a moment of desperation, Mattie suggests they steer the sled into a tree, choosing to die together rather than be separated. The resulting crash leaves Ethan permanently injured and Mattie paralyzed. The story concludes years later, revealing that Mattie now lives with the Fromes, with Zeena acting as her caregiver, trapping all three in a bitter and ironic fulfillment of Ethan and Mattie's wish to remain together.
Themes
Isolation and loneliness in rural communities
Duty versus personal happiness
The destructive power of unfulfilled desires
The harsh realities of poverty and survival
The constraints of social expectations and morality
The impact of environment on human destiny
The consequences of forbidden love and passion
Setting
Ethan Frome is set in the fictional town of Starkfield, Massachusetts, during the early 20th century. The story unfolds against the backdrop of a harsh New England winter, with the stark and unforgiving landscape mirroring the characters' bleak circumstances. Wharton vividly depicts the austere beauty and crushing isolation of rural Massachusetts, where the “outcropping granite” and bitter cold shape the lives of its inhabitants.
The novella takes place primarily in two locations within Starkfield—Ethan's struggling farm and the Frome household. These settings become claustrophobic spaces where dreams are stifled and desires repressed. The town itself serves as a metaphor for the characters' trapped existence, with its name “Starkfield” evoking images of barren fields and emotional deprivation.
While the exact year is not specified, the story is set in a time when rural New England communities were facing economic hardship and social change. The industrial revolution had begun to alter traditional ways of life, leaving farmers like Ethan struggling to make ends meet. This era of transition provides a crucial context for the characters' limited options and the societal expectations that constrain their choices.
Characters
Ethan Frome: The protagonist, a poor farmer trapped in an unhappy marriage who falls in love with his wife's cousin. He is described as quiet and limping due to injuries from an accident.
Zeena Frome: Ethan's sickly, hypochondriac wife who is bitter and controlling. She becomes jealous of Ethan's feelings for her cousin Mattie.
Mattie Silver: Zeena's young, vivacious cousin who comes to help on the farm. She and Ethan develop romantic feelings for each other, leading to tragedy.
The Narrator: An unnamed man who encounters Ethan years after the main events and pieces together his story from locals.
Denis Eady: A young man from town who is also interested in Mattie, creating some tension with Ethan.
Mrs. Ned Hale: A local woman who provides some background information about Ethan to the narrator.
Jotham Powell: A farmhand who works for Ethan.
Quick facts
Ethan Frome is one of Edith Wharton's few works with a rural New England setting, rather than her signature urban New York, high-society backdrop.
She originally wrote the story as a French-language composition while studying in Paris.
Ethan Frome falls into the genres of tragedy and realism. It explores themes of rural poverty, forbidden love, and the consequences of social constraints.
Wharton based the sledding accident in the story on a real-life tragic incident that occurred in Lenox, Massachusetts, in 1904.
Wharton wrote much of the novella at her home, The Mount, in Lenox, Massachusetts, before her divorce in 1913.
The story was initially published in installments in Scribner's Magazine in 1911 before being released as a book.
Ethan Frome received mixed reviews upon publication. While some praised its haunting quality and realism, others criticized it for being overly bleak and depressing.
Literary critic Lionel Trilling famously criticized Ethan Frome for lacking moral significance.
Wharton herself referred to Ethan Frome as a “reminiscence” rather than a novella.
In 1993, Ethan Frome was adapted into a critically acclaimed film starring Liam Neeson and Patricia Arquette.
The novella was adapted into a one-act ballet titled Snowblind in 2018 by choreographer Cathy Marston.
About the Author
Edith Wharton (1862-1937) was a prolific and acclaimed American author. Born into a wealthy New York family, she drew on her insider's knowledge of upper-class society to realistically portray life in the Gilded Age in her fiction. Some of her best known works include The House of Mirth, The Age of Innocence, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1921, and Ethan Frome.
Publishing her first novel at the age of 40, Wharton went on to have an extraordinarily productive writing career. In addition to her 15 novels, she wrote numerous novellas, short stories, and poems. Many of her stories deal with themes of social expectations, repressed desires, and the manners of old New York families. Wharton was known for her subtle use of irony and her astute critiques of the society she grew up in.
Beyond her literary career, Wharton was an influential tastemaker. She co-authored The Decoration of Houses in 1897, which became a foundational text of interior design. Wharton was well-traveled, crossing the Atlantic more than 60 times. During World War I, she was a dedicated supporter of the French war effort, establishing charities and hospitals. For her wartime work, she was named a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor by the French government. Many of her novels have been adapted into films, television series, and plays over the years. She was commemorated on a US postage stamp in 1980.
