Book details
Ethan Frome
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Metadata
- Gutenberg ID
- 4517
- Title
- Ethan Frome
- Language
- en
- Book source
- Project Gutenberg
- Description max 80 words
-
Set in the isolated village of Starkfield, Massachusetts, this novel follows Ethan Frome, a physically and emotionally scarred man trapped in a bleak existence with his ailing wife, Zeena. When a lively young cousin, Mattie Silver, arrives to stay, Ethan's suppressed desires and the stifling winter atmosphere ignite a tragic romance that challenges the harsh realities of rural poverty and duty.
- Summary up to 500 words
-
Edith Wharton's *Ethan Frome* is a tragic narrative framed by a young engineer stranded in the isolated village of Starkfield, Massachusetts, during a harsh winter. Through conversations with locals like Harmon Gow and Mrs. Ned Hale, the narrator reconstructs the lives of the Frome family, focusing on Ethan, a man physically and emotionally crippled by a past accident. Burdened with the care of his sick mother and later his wife, Zeena, Ethan lives in a household defined by poverty, cold, and Zeena's reliance on patent medicines, creating a suffocating atmosphere. The story's turning point arrives with the arrival of Mattie Silver, Ethan's cousin, who brings warmth and vitality to the gloomy farmhouse. As winter progresses, Ethan and Mattie develop a secret, deep affection, a bond tested by Zeena's suspicion and the impending arrival of a new hired girl. Driven by desperation, Ethan and Mattie attempt to flee their misery by sledding down the hill toward the city. However, their escape is cut short when they collide with a large elm tree. The accident leaves Ethan paralyzed and Mattie severely injured. Following the crash, Mattie dies from her wounds, while Ethan is left in a vegetative state, cared for by Zeena for the rest of his life. The novel concludes with the narrator returning years later to find the three figures—Ethan, Zeena, and the ghost of Mattie—still bound together in the same kitchen, a testament to the inescapable tragedy of their lives and the crushing weight of isolation.
- LLM editorial rating
- 4.2/5
- Download URL
- https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/4517.epub.noimages
- Local file path
-
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People
Authors
- Edith Wharton
Classification
Categories
- Psychology
- Classics
- Romance
- Fiction