Ethan Frome

Ethan Frome works hard on his New Enoland farm while struggling to maintain a bearable existence with his sickly and critical wife, Zeena. He becomes increasingly attracted to Mattie, Zeena's cousin, who helps around the house. Although she represents the possibility of happiness, they are trapped by their desperate situation. And when Zeena becomes suspicious and arranges to have Mattie fired, events take a tragic turn.

This heartbreaking portrait, from the author of The House of Joy, is an intimate look at decisions not made and lives not yet lived. First published in 1911 and adapted to film, Ethan Frome remains for many Wharton's most subtle and moving work.

--back cover

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Accident Victims, American Fiction (Fictional Works by an Author), American Literature, Children's Fiction, Classic Literature, Domestic Fiction, English Fiction, Family Life, Farm Life, Fiction, Guardian and Ward, Interpersonal Relationships, Love, Manners and Customs, Marriage, Married People, Poor, Poverty, Readers, Romance, Rural Poor, Social Life and Customs, Study and Teaching (Secondary), Triangles (Interpersonal Relationships), Young Women, Married People, Fiction, Massachusetts, Fiction, Relationships man-woman, fiction, Wharton, edith, 1862-1937, Young women, fiction, Fiction, romance, general, Unrequited love, New England, fiction, English language, textbooks for foreign speakers, Single women, fiction, Fiction, historical, general, Fiction, general, Triangle (Human Relations), Romans, nouvelles, Accident victims, Mariés couples, Pauvres en milieu rural, Vie à la ferme, Large print books, Exhibitions, Chinese language, Writing, Stamp style, Pasting papers, Specimens, Triangles (Interpersonal relationships) -- Fiction, Accident victims -- Fiction, Married people -- Fiction, Rural poor -- Fiction, Agricultural life -- Fiction, Massachusetts -- Fiction, Massachusetts, England, fiction, Women as authors, Long Now Manual for Civilization, Mœurs et coutumesPeople

Ethan Frome, Zenobia Frome, MattiePlaces

New England, Berkshire Hills, Massachusetts, StarkfieldTimes

19th centuryShowing 15 featured editions. See all 1000 editions?

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Job Description

Edith Wharton wrote Ethan Frome as a frame story, meaning that the prologue and epilogue form a "frame" around the main story.

How it all happens

It's winter. An unnamed engineer is in Starkfield, Massachusetts on business and first sees Ethan Frome at the post office. Ethan is a man in his early fifties who is obviously strong and obviously crippled. The man is fascinated by Ethan and wants to know his story. When Ethan begins to occasionally give him a ride to the train station, the two men strike up a friendship. One night, when the weather is particularly bad, Ethan invites the man to stay at his house. In the hallway, the man hears a woman talking angrily over and over again. When Ethan speaks, the voice stops. The man tells us that that night he learned something that allowed him to imagine Ethan's story. Now we go back in time 24 years and learn about Ethan's life.

Ethan walked from his farm and sawmill into town to pick up Mattie Silver from the church dance. He peeks through the church basement windows and sees Mattie dancing with Denis Eady and becomes jealous. Mattie is Ethan's wife's cousin. Her parents died a little over a year ago and she was left with nothing. Apparently, her father had scammed some of her relatives out of their savings, so no one wanted to help Mattie. Zeena, Ethan's wife, is always sick and decided to let Mattie live with them in exchange for doing so.