In Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton, Ethan is shown to have many internal and external problems. This brings the question, “What is the primary cause for these problems?” into the readers mind. Many readers would say it is Zeena and her illness always bringing Ethan down. Some people say it is Maddie leading him on to get with her. The real source of all of Ethan’s problems is where he lives, Starkfield. Starkfield has basically ruined Ethan’s chance of true happiness from the beginning by holding him away from his dreams and making him marry Zeena. If this is not enough, Ethan has to walk by the Frome grave yard which mocks him and reminds him that he will never leave. Starkfield has put Ethan into an unescapable situation that is a living nightmare which has ruined his life. Early on in Ethan Frome, the reader can see hints that Ethan had big dreams that were spoiled by Starkfield. The reader sees Ethan went to college for a short period of time when the narrator tells us he took, “a year’s course at a technological college at Worcester,” (Edith Wharton, Ethan Frome) but had to give it up due to his father being sick. This is where we first see Starkfield being a burden on Ethan holding him back from what he desires. Another case of this happening is when we find out Ethan really wants to leave Starkfield, but he has a moral obligation to stay which just causes him to lose his mind. The reader discovers Ethan desire to leave when the narrator tells us Ethan wanted to, “live in towns, where there were big lectures and big libraries and ‘fellows doing things.’” (Edith Wharton, Ethan Frome) This quote tells us that Starkfield has nothing that Ethan is interested in and he is yearning for something more than the barren wasteland that is Starkfield. This prison of solitude imposes a death grip on Ethan keeping him away from what he truly desires, an escape. Not only has Starkfield taken over Ethan’s dreams, it takes over his love life.
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After Ethan sees that Zeena would listen to him and assisted his mother when she was in need, he felt morally obligated to marry her. It wasn’t only his morals that convinced him to marry Zeena, but also Starkfield. The fact that it was the typical harsh winter in Starkfield, he could not imagine living alone on the farm without someone. This is shown when the narrator says, “It would not have happened if his mother had died in spring instead of winter.” (Edith Wharton, Ethan Frome) This also shows how the harsh area overwhelmed Ethan with seclusion. This seclusion made Ethan make a rash decision which threw him into a marriage that was not supported by true love. This caused Ethan to get tired of Zeena and start to have desires for Maddie. Starkfield’s harsh environment also forced tension between Ethan and Maddie. Ethan wanted to get away from Starkfield, but since he was practically stuck he started to lose feelings for Zeena, which drove him deeper into solitude. Ethan and Zeena’s relationship probably would not have been very strong to begin with, but with Starkfield in the way it was doomed to fail from the beginning. Starkfield’s setting has a particular
After Ethan sees that Zeena would listen to him and assisted his mother when she was in need, he felt morally obligated to marry her. It wasn’t only his morals that convinced him to marry Zeena, but also Starkfield. The fact that it was the typical harsh winter in Starkfield, he could not imagine living alone on the farm without someone. This is shown when the narrator says, “It would not have happened if his mother had died in spring instead of winter.” (Edith Wharton, Ethan Frome) This also shows how the harsh area overwhelmed Ethan with seclusion. This seclusion made Ethan make a rash decision which threw him into a marriage that was not supported by true love. This caused Ethan to get tired of Zeena and start to have desires for Maddie. Starkfield’s harsh environment also forced tension between Ethan and Maddie. Ethan wanted to get away from Starkfield, but since he was practically stuck he started to lose feelings for Zeena, which drove him deeper into solitude. Ethan and Zeena’s relationship probably would not have been very strong to begin with, but with Starkfield in the way it was doomed to fail from the beginning. Starkfield’s setting has a particular