In Chapter 9, why does Ethan Frome command Mattie to sit behind him?
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To add to the previous post-
Chapter 9 is the pivotal chapter in which Mattie and Ethan make their suicide pact when Mattie told Ethan to "take her down again" (down the slope) so that they could sled down the school hill and hit the Elm tree hard enough to kill them both.
They did this because of the overwhelming fear of losing each other for good, and the prospects of life that were awaiting them- not good at all.
When Ethan agrees to the pact, he asks her to sit behind him. She continuously refuses and questions why he would sit in front. This is where the previous post makes a very good point about the reasons behind Ethan's choice.
However, Ethan's literal answer was: "Because-Because I want to feel you holding me."
From that, we can assume that he wants, in his last breath of life, to feel like a real man....
(The entire section contains 2 answers and 461 words.)
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