Exam 2 Review- Nutrition Science

Crissman 1 Emma Crissman Ms. Carino Pre-AP English 11 19 March 2019 Literary Elements in Ethan Frome For both Edith Wharton and Ethan Frome, “The return to reality was as painful as the return to consciousness after taking an anesthetic” (Wharton 47). Throughout Edith Wharton’s novel, she parallels her life and experiences with the characters she envisions and depicts. Similar to Wharton’s involvement with Morton Fullerton, Ethan Frome battles marital restraints with Mattie Silver, leading each of them to live a life of unhappiness and entrapment (Bloom 66). As time progresses, Wharton and Frome both find momentous happiness by escaping societal norms and pursuing their intimate relationships with their companions (Lawson 76). Edith Wharton’s novel, Ethan Frome, beautifully and eloquently uses the literary elements: symbolism, imagery, allusion, and situational irony to portray her personal struggles through her characters. Symbolism is one of the most evident features in which critics analyze and discuss throughout the plot of this novel. The red-pickle dish is the most prominent and evident of the symbols throughout the book (Pennell 112). Zeena receives the dish as a wedding gift, and it is her most prized possession, yet it is only used for specific occasions and ceremonial functions (Bernard 183). The color of the pickle dish also evokes sexual desire and attraction throughout the novel (Pennell 112). The obvious use of the dish is to hold pickles, yet Zeena keeps it hidden on the shelf, where Ethan nor anyone else can ever put pickles in it (Bernard 182). Wharton first mentions the pickle dish on page thirty-three, where Zeena seemingly encourages and urges

Crissman 2 Mattie to take advantage of the pickle dish in a sexual aspect, which foreshadows the growing relationship between Mattie and Ethan (Bernard 184). Later in the novel, the dish breaks, which is the most symbolic aspect of the novel. Ethan tries to simply glue together the shattered dish, but it cannot be mended back together so easily (Wharton 42). Ethan’s inability to repair the broken dish symbolizes his ruined marriage as well as his failure to suppress the truth from his wife (Pennell 112). Once he realizes the dish is irreparable, he believes he can purchase a new dish and replace of the old one like he will replace Mattie with Zeena (Wharton 42). His lack of urgency and worry contributes to his limited care for his marriage and wife (Bernard 183). Zeena’s only evidence of Mattie and Ethan’s adulterous actions is when she finds the broken dish while looking for her heartburn medication (Wharton 56). The broken dish is a “symbolic recognition of the fact that Mattie has usurped her [Zeena] place, broken her [Zeena] marriage, and become one with Ethan” (Bernard 183). The symbolic meaning of the red pickle-dish effectively represents the importance of the characters within the novel. Wharton uses careful articulation with the use of imagery in order to elegantly depict the characters and setting within the plot. She uses detailed descriptions of light and dark throughout the entirety of the novel, which allows the reader to visualize the surroundings (Bernard 180). One of the first examples of this is when Ethan is standing in utter darkness, yet the church is illuminated because Mattie is inside (Wharton 15). Once Ethan returns to reality, his wife, and his home the light from Mattie in his life disappears, and the darkness emerges (Bernard 180). Wharton continues to use imagery through her depiction of Zeena’s and Mattie’s personalities (Bernard 181). Wharton’s characterization of Zeena portrays her as the dark and Mattie as the light in Ethan’s life (Bernard 180). While Mattie continually drives the happiness and brightness into Ethan’s life, Zeena causes Ethan’s life to grow dreary and unpleasant (Bernard 181).

Crissman 3 Similarly, Wharton describes how the landscape and setting changes in response to the people Ethan surrounds himself with. On page twenty-nine, Mattie’s candle is the only source of light within the blackness of the rest of the house (Wharton). Similarly, Zeena’s dark personality causes the surrounding area to change from grey to black (Wharton 56). The detailed setting of Starkfield portrays Ethan’s personality and, “can suffice to describe him effectively; his agony is as broad and deep as that of the winter scene” (Bernard 181). Edith Wharton’s use of imagery greatly contributes to the characters within the novel and is a prominent literary element. References from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, are evident within Ethan Frome, which labels it an allusion within Wharton’s work. Ahmed Kareem provides a compelling argument to suggest such similarities within the two American classics even though Hawthorne’s novel is written nearly a century before (5). The setting greatly parallels each other such that each novel takes place in dreary and dark New England communities. The two protagonists, Ethan and Hester, share similar fates due to their imprisonment in their loveless and unfulfilling relationships (Kareem par. 10). Due to Hester’s adulterous actions, she faces public scorn by a branding of a red “A” upon her chest (Kareem 5). Similarly, Mattie confidently wears her cherry, red scarf openly while participating in infidelitous actions (Wharton 27). Hester is shunned by the community and entrapped by her husband, Chillingworth, while Ethan is a victim of his wife, Starkfield, and his passion for Mattie (Kareem 7). Each novel depicts the vision of passionate desire, yet the main characters are hindered to achieve complete contentedness due to their moral and social obligations within their marriages (Kareem 8). Similarities between other characters are alluded to throughout the novel as well. Zeena has a deteriorating illness (Wharton 16) and Chillingworth has a physical deformity (Kareem 12). Dimmesdale and Mattie are Hester’s and Ethan’s love interest, respectively, who engage in extramarital affairs with the two

Crissman 4 main characters (Kareem 10). The Scarlet Letter is evidently an allusion within the meticulously crafted novel Ethan Frome due to the similarities within the characters, their fates, and the settings. One of the key components Wharton uses is situational irony, which is evident during the sledding accident between Mattie and Ethan.

Wharton’s use of literary devices enhance and strengthen the overall message within the novel. Her manipulation of literary elements increase the importance and meaning of the plot as it relates to Wharton’s personal life. She discreetly increases the figurative interpretation of the novel, allowing critics to ponder all of its ambiguities. The motives and actions of her characters reciprocate the emotions of confinement within her own marriage with Teddy Wharton (Bloom 67). As the novel progresses, she emphasizes the physical and mental transformations in Ethan, Mattie, and Zeena. Through her use of symbolism, imagery, allusion, and situational irony, she constructs vivid descriptions of her characters and settings, establishing it as an American class still today.

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Works Cited Bernard, Kenneth. “Imagery and Symbolism in Ethan Frome.” College English, Vol. 23, no. 3, pp.178-194, www.jstor.org/stable/373003. Accessed 13 March 2019. Bloom, Harold, editor. Edith Wharton. Chelsea House Publishers, 1986. Eggenschwiler, David. “The Ordered Disorder of Ethan Frome.” Kareem, Ahmed. “Hester Prynne and Ethan Frome: Two Faces of the Same Tragedy.” University of al-Qadissiya College of Arts. March 2017, qu.edu.iq/repository/wpcontent/uploads/2017/04/ethan-1.pdf. Accessed 11 March 2019. Lawson, Richard H. Edith Wharton. Frederick Ungar Publishing Co, 1977. Pennell, Melissa M. Student Companion to Edith Wharton. Westport, Greenwood Press, 2003. Wharton, Edith. Ethan Frome and Other Short Fiction. New York, Bantam Books, 1987.

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