The 1910s were a transformative era in the United States, marked by economic prosperity, political reform, and significant cultural shifts. During this decade, the country solidified its global political influence, partly due to its involvement in World War I, while grappling with domestic issues such as women's suffrage and labor rights. The period also witnessed the rise of industrial innovation and artistic experimentation, shaping a new American identity.

Expansion and Reform in the 1910s

The early 20th century was a period of significant change in the United States, with economic growth and political reforms reshaping the nation's landscape. Under the leadership of figures like Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, a progressive movement surged, emphasizing reforms that addressed economic and social inequalities. The administration of Woodrow Wilson, elected in 1912, was pivotal in advancing progressivism with landmark legislation including the establishment of the Federal Reserve System, regulations on trusts, and child labor restrictions. These measures, along with constitutional amendments on direct senatorial elections, federal income tax, women's suffrage, and Prohibition, laid the groundwork for future reforms such as the New Deal of the 1930s and the Great Society of the 1960s.

Industrial Innovation and Cultural Shifts

Industrial advancements and the embrace of new technologies fueled the economic boom of the 1910s. The debut of direct telephone links, like the one between New York and Denver in 1911, exemplified the era's technological strides. Although the rural settings in "Ethan Frome" reflect a pre-technological lifestyle, the industrial world was rapidly advancing, as evidenced by the Ford Motor Company's moving assembly line. These innovations not only boosted productivity but also shaped workforce dynamics, transitioning into the welfare capitalism of the 1920s. Despite these advancements, economic prosperity was not universally shared, with rural Southerners, urban immigrants, and African Americans often left behind.

The economic prosperity of the middle class during this period also fostered a vibrant cultural scene. Influenced by European modernists, American artists and intellectuals began to challenge traditional forms and subjects in literature, art, and performance. This cultural rebellion is humorously depicted in "Ethan Frome" through the narrator's ironic account of Mattie's engagement with cultural pursuits, reflecting the disdain for conventional tastes of the previous generation.

First World War and Its Implications

The First World War (1914-1918) was a defining moment for the United States, transitioning from a stance of neutrality to active involvement driven by economic interests. While the U.S. initially aimed to stay neutral, the necessity to secure global markets, particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean, pulled the nation into international conflicts. These economic interests were evident in events such as the purchase of Chile's Tofo Iron Mines by Bethlehem Steel and the completion of the Panama Canal in 1914. Despite Woodrow Wilson's initial non-interventionist stance, the economic ties ultimately led to American participation in the war.

The war also brought domestic changes, influencing the demographic and economic landscape. The demand for soldiers opened up opportunities for women and African Americans in the workforce. The "Great Migration" saw 400,000 African Americans move northward, transforming cultural and social structures. Simultaneously, nearly a million American women entered the workforce for the first time, marking a significant shift in gender roles. However, anti-immigrant sentiments festered, exacerbated by government measures such as the Espionage and Sedition Acts, which targeted German Americans and those perceived as ideological threats.

Aftermath of War and Social Tension

Post-war America was marked by turmoil rather than peace. President Wilson’s efforts to establish the League of Nations faltered, highlighting international and domestic discord. Labor tensions escalated, resulting in heightened animosity between workers and employers. The Red Scare epitomized the fear of radical ideologies, leading to the deportation of foreign radicals and the dismissal of radical labor organizers. The return of African American soldiers and southern migrant workers to the north sparked racial tensions, culminating in race riots in major northern cities.

Narrative Perspective

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is distinguished by its intricate use of a narrative frame, akin to the structure of Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights. The narrative unfolds through the lens of an unnamed observer recounting events that transpired twenty-four years earlier. This technique, borrowed from Honore de Balzac's La Grande Bretche, allows the narrator to present only fragments of the past, derived from the sparse accounts of Starkfield's residents. Critics argue that this narrative strategy infuses the novel with ambiguity. As biographer Cynthia Wolff observes, the reliability of the narrative is confined to the frame's periphery, while the core events reflect the narrator's subjective vision. Allen F. Stein suggests this ambiguity leaves readers questioning the authenticity of Ethan Frome's emotions and actions as portrayed by the narrator.

Imagery and Symbolism

A hallmark of Wharton's novel is the rich tapestry of imagery and symbolism meticulously woven throughout. Critic Kenneth Bernard highlights the seamless alignment of setting and character as an insight into the novel’s deeper layers. Starkfield’s frozen landscape mirrors Ethan's desolate and aloof nature. The narrator vividly captures Ethan's essence, describing him as an embodiment of the land's "frozen woe," with his warmth repressed beneath a cold exterior. Darkness pervades Ethan's world, casting shadows on his encounters, such as when he lingers in the shadows to watch Mattie at a dance or as they traverse "icy darkness" back to the farmhouse. Mattie Silver brings a contrasting warmth and light to the narrative. Her name itself suggests luminosity, in stark contrast to the frigidness surrounding Ethan and the emptiness embodied by his wife, Zeena. Mattie's "fresh lips and cheeks" and "slim young throat" stand in opposition to Zeena's "gaunt countenance" and "puckered throat." Bird imagery recurrently associates Mattie with vitality and song, a sharp contrast to Zeena’s now grating "whine." As the story progresses, the vitality of these images culminates in striking symbols of death, such as the "black wraith" of a creeper on the porch, hinting at the decaying spirit of the Frome household.

Symbolic Elements

Symbolism saturates Ethan Frome, with the setting itself deeply intertwined with the novel's themes. The missing "L" from Ethan’s farmhouse, leaving it "forlorn and stunted," symbolizes the absence of life and growth within. Starkfield, the town’s name, is itself a symbol, described by critic R. Baird Shuman as a "cemetery for those who are still physically living." Sexual symbolism is pervasive, with images of barrenness underscoring the central theme of "frozen woe." The unbroken red pickle dish epitomizes the Fromes’ marriage—pristine yet unused, and its shattering symbolizes Ethan and Mattie's betrayal. Freudian interpretations abound, such as the "shutterless windows" and the "dead cucumber-vine," which suggest themes of exposure and decay. The elm tree, prominent in the narrative climax, serves as both a literal and symbolic presence, seen by Shuman as a phallic symbol representing temptation. The borrowed sled on which Mattie and Ethan make their fateful descent is another potent symbol of their illicit passion.

The Setting of Starkfield

Starkfield, a fictional village set in the rugged expanse of western Massachusetts, serves as a backdrop that amplifies the story’s themes of isolation and despair. In Wharton's words, the town harbors "insanity, incest, and slow mental and moral starvation," underscoring the harsh realities masked by its austere facades. The relentless cold and snow profoundly affect its inhabitants, encapsulated in Harmon Gow’s remark about Ethan's prolonged suffering: "Guess he's been in Starkfield too many winters." The narrator comes to understand the oppressive weight of winter only after experiencing its "crystal clearness" and the subsequent "sunless cold." The Frome farm, "kind of side-tracked" after the railroad bypassed it, accentuates the family's isolation. The farmhouse is a "building of plaintive ugliness," with its missing "L" symbolizing the disconnection from warmth and community. Wharton's meticulous depiction of Starkfield’s "depleted resources" and the "self-contained endurance" of its structures lend authenticity to the novel’s portrayal of human endurance against nature’s cruelties.

The Irony of Circumstances

Irony weaves a complex layer into Ethan Frome, where expectations conflict with reality, rendering the story's events both tragic and poignant. Margaret B. McDowell identifies numerous instances of irony, such as the cherished pickle dish that finds its fate in pieces, or the solitary meal shared by Ethan and Mattie that ends in despair. The thrill of a coasting expedition morphs into prolonged agony rather than the intended release of death. The Nation commented on Ethan's tragic irony, noting how his own moral goodness inadvertently cements Zeena’s dominance over him. Ethan's encounter with the widow Homan, where she remarks, "I hope Zeena ain't broken anything she sets store by," further underscores the unanticipated consequences of his actions. Ironically, the once beautiful and lively Mattie becomes embittered and infirm, reversing roles with Zeena who must now care for her rival. Critics like Kenneth Bernard note that Ethan's fantasy of evenings with Mattie materializes into a grim reality of physical and emotional paralysis, exemplifying the cruel twists of fate inherent in Wharton’s masterful narrative.

In "Ethan Frome," setting plays a crucial role, shaping the characters' lives and influencing their fates. The harshness of the environments they inhabit mirrors the internal struggles of the characters and underscores the themes of isolation, despair, and unrealized dreams. From the fictional village of Starkfield to the desolate Frome farm, each location is a reflection of the characters' stark realities and lost aspirations.

Starkfield

Starkfield, a fictional village nestled in the hills of western Massachusetts’s Berkshire County, serves as a backdrop of bleakness in "Ethan Frome." Small and rural, Starkfield exemplifies isolation, living up to its austere name. Although it is connected to the larger town of Bettsbridge by trolley—a town equipped with libraries and theaters—Starkfield remains isolated, especially during the long, harsh New England winters. The village features a post office, a Congregational church, and a solitary mansion, Lawyer Varnum’s house, in which the narrator resides during his stay. The narrator comments on the "deadness" of the village, which parallels Ethan Frome's own lifeless visage. Ethan's existence mirrors the stark, cold environment, reinforcing the novel’s themes of desolation and hardship.

Frome Farm

Situated outside Starkfield is the Frome farm, a lonely New England farmhouse that seems to amplify the desolation of the landscape. The farm, with its barren apple trees and exposed slate hills, symbolizes the infertility of Ethan's life and marriage. The farmhouse, smaller than it once was due to Ethan's removal of the "L"—traditionally the heart of a New England farm—reflects Ethan's increasingly narrow existence and diminished prospects. This "diminished dwelling" serves as a metaphor for Ethan himself, whose body and spirit appear equally shrunken. The barren land mirrors the childlessness of Ethan and his wife Zeena’s marriage, while the unsuccessful sawmill represents Ethan's failure to progress.

On the rare occasion when Zeena is absent, the farmhouse briefly becomes a home. Mattie, Ethan's cousin, manages to add warmth and color to the dreary environment, particularly when she adorns the dinner table with a treasured red glass pickle dish—Zeena's unused wedding gift. This splash of color transforms the drab interior, offering Ethan and Mattie a fleeting moment of warmth and conversation, starkly contrasting their usual cold, silent meals. The farm also includes a graveyard, a poignant reminder of death that underscores the novel's themes. The graves of Ethan’s ancestors, including an ominous headstone bearing his own name, remind him of his inescapable fate.

School House Hill

Overlooking Starkfield is School House Hill, the site of the novel's climactic scene. Known for sledding parties and moonlight kisses, the hill seems to promise happiness and romance. However, this is tempered by the dangerous curve at its base where a single mistake can lead to disaster. It is here, under the shadow of tall spruce trees that evoke a sense of being "in coffins underground," that Ethan and Mattie make their tragic suicide pact. This act leads to the somber realization that there is little distinction between the living Fromes and those in the graveyard.

Bettsbridge

Bettsbridge, a fictional city with echoes of real Massachusetts towns like Berkshire, Pittsfield, and Stockbridge, is where Zeena travels to consult medical specialists. Her visits to Bettsbridge, and occasionally Springfield, Massachusetts, highlight the financial strains on the Fromes, as each consultation results in expenses that further deplete their limited resources. Bettsbridge, although seemingly offering hope, only serves to underscore the futility of the Fromes' situation.

Worcester

Worcester represents the unfulfilled potential and lost dreams of Ethan Frome. It is in this city, at possibly Worcester Polytechnic Institute, that Ethan once studied engineering, a period of his life filled with intellectual stimulation and aspirations for a broader, more fulfilling existence. Now, merely a bitter memory, Worcester contrasts sharply with Ethan’s current reality, serving to highlight the disparity between his youthful dreams and his grim present on the farm. This lost opportunity remains a poignant reminder of what Ethan has sacrificed and what he continues to yearn for in his constrained life.

1880s: Residents of New England farming communities endured a harsh and culturally barren life.

1911: Advances in transportation facilitated easier communication between villages and allowed residents to enjoy recreational activities in larger towns.

Today: Technologies such as videocassettes, radio, cable television, and the Internet have transformed the world into a global village.

1880s: The surge in railroad construction rendered earlier modes of transportation in the United States mostly obsolete.

1911: Automobiles, and later buses and trucks, began to surpass the railroad in significance.

Today: Jet travel enables people to reach almost any destination in the world within a day, while supersonic transport significantly reduces the time needed for long-distance air travel.

1880s: Despite Thomas Edison patenting an incandescent lamp in 1879, most lighting was still provided by candles, oil lamps, or gas jets.

1911: Electricity became more accessible in homes, which adopted incandescent lighting. Additionally, French physicist Georges Claude invented the neon lamp, used in commercial signage.

Today: Variations of Thomas Edison's incandescent lamp are still used in homes, while factories, offices, stores, and public buildings generally utilize fluorescent lighting. Street and highway lighting technology continues to evolve.

1880s: Techniques based on photography and spectroscopy (a method for measuring the wavelength and intensity of spectral lines) revolutionized the field of astronomy.

1911: The fundamental concepts regarding the evolution and life history of stars began to emerge.

Today: Since its launch from the shuttle Atlantis in 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has delivered a wealth of new images of the universe. It has captured star clusters 2.2 million light years away, springtime dust storms at the Martian north pole, and, for the first time, the surface of Pluto.

In her introduction to Ethan Frome, Wharton expresses her gratitude to Balzac's "La Grande Breteche" and Robert Browning's The Ring and the Book (1869) for inspiring the structure of her novella. Particularly, Balzac employs a similar scenario (an inquisitive outsider in a rural setting) as the framework for his story.

Some critics also detect elements of Nathaniel Hawthorne's influence in Wharton's work. For instance, Elizabeth Ammons identifies a connection between Ethan Frome and Hawthorne's "Ethan Brand" and The Blithedale Romance (1852), highlighting the character names (Ethan and Zenobia), the stark New England backdrop, and the theme of "male fear of woman."

In 1917, Wharton released Summer. Serving as a counterpart to Ethan Frome, this novel also takes place in the Berkshire region. However, the story unfolds during the summer season and is notably darker and more melodramatic.

In 1993, the novella Ethan Frome was adapted into a film written by Richard Nelson, directed by James Madden, and featuring Liam Neeson as Ethan, Patricia Arquette as Mattie, and Joan Allen as Zeena. The movie effectively captures the frosty ambiance and the bleak poverty of the Frome family, leaving viewers with a profound sense of lives wasted or consumed by harsh circumstances. However, it is not a direct translation of Wharton's novella; numerous alterations have been made in the adaptation. The stranger in the film is no longer a visiting engineer spending a winter in Starkfield but a young minister who has come to serve at the local Congregational Church and is trying to establish roots in the town. The story of Ethan Frome is presented not as an outsider's reconstruction from various sources but as a confession made by Ruth Hale to the minister. Ruth, who is about the same age as Mattie Silver and has known the Frome family her entire life, recounts the tale. Her version differs in many details from the engineer's account in the novella. Some changes are minor, such as Ethan asking Andrew Hale for a thirty-dollar advance on his lumber deal instead of fifty dollars. Other modifications introduce new elements that might have been considered more cinematic or dramatic. For instance, in the novella, Ethan sees young Denis Eady with his cutter on the day Zeena goes to Bettsbridge and jealously imagines Denis visiting Mattie. In the film, Ethan stops at Eady's shop to buy sweets for Mattie, and Denis asks him to deliver a pink ribbon to her as a gift. Significant changes also occur in the relationship between Ethan and Mattie. In the film, they become lovers and make love on two occasions, whereas in the novella, such opportunities for intimacy are explicitly excluded from the narrator's perspective. In the movie, Zeena sleeps in the room across from the lovers, and the next morning, she attributes the noises she heard during the night to the dying moans of a fox Ethan had been trying to poison for preying on chickens. Later, Mattie attempts suicide in the barn using the fox poison, a scenario absent from the novella. In summary, the film amplifies the physical and outwardly emotional aspects of Ethan and Mattie's relationship. Wharton's characters are portrayed with such severity and restraint in their emotional displays that a literal adaptation might have failed to convey the intense underlying feelings central to their story. The film benefits greatly from its cast, particularly Joan Allen's portrayal of Zeena.

Ethan Frome was successfully adapted for the stage in 1936 by Owen and Donald Davis. The production featured Raymond Massey as Ethan, Pauline Lord as Zeena, and Ruth Gordon as Mattie. Wharton reviewed this adaptation and commended it for its fidelity to the original novella. Similar to the film adaptation, several changes were made to effectively translate the internal drama into a stage performance. Notably, the play expands and intensifies the relationship between Zeena and Ethan. For a comprehensive analysis of the differences between the play and the novella, refer to Marlene Springer's Ethan Frome: A Nightmare of Need (1993).

A dramatization of Ethan Frome by Owen and Donald Davis was staged in New York in 1936.

In 1993, a film adaptation directed by John Madden featured Liam Neeson as Ethan, Joan Allen as Zeena, and Patricia Arquette as Mattie. This version was a coproduction between American Playhouse, Companion Productions, and BBC Films, and was distributed by Miramax.

Richard Krausnick adapted and directed the novel into a full-length stage play for Shakespeare and Company. The play premiered in 1995 in Lenox, Massachusetts, where Wharton once resided.

An unabridged audio recording of the novel, narrated by C. M. Herbert, is available from Blackstone Audio-books.

Sources

Kenneth Bernard, "Imagery and Symbolism in 'Ethan Frome,'" in College English, Vol. 23, No. 3, December 1961, pp. 182-84.

Manus Bewley, "Mrs. Wharton's Mask," in the New York Review of Books, Vol. 3, No. 3, September 24, 1964, pp. 7-9.

David Eggenschwiler, "The Ordered Disorder of 'Ethan Frome,'" in Studies in the Novel, Vol. 9, No. 3, Fall 1977, pp. 237-45.

K. R. Srinivisa Iyengar, "A Note on 'Ethan Frome,'" in Literary Criterion, Vol. 5, No. 3, Winter 1962, pp. 168-78.

Margaret B. McDowell, in Edith Wharton, Twayne Publishers, 1976, pp. 67-69.

The Nation, Vol. 93, No. 2147, October 26, 1911, pp. 67-69.

Blake Nevius, "'Ethan Frome' and the Themes of Edith Wharton's Fiction," in The New England Quarterly, Vol. 24, No. 2, June 1951, pp. 197-207.

"Three Lives in Supreme Torture," in New York Times Book Review, Vol. 16, No. 40, October 8, 1911, p. 603.

The Saturday Review, Vol. 112, No. 2925, November 18, 1911, p. 650.

R. Baird Shuman, "The Continued Popularity of 'Ethan Frome,'" in Revue des langues vivantes, Vol. 37, No. 3, 1971, pp. 257-63.

Allen F. Stein, "Edith Wharton: The Marriage of Entrapment," in After the Vows Were Spoken: Marriage in American Literary Realism, Ohio State University Press, 1984, pp. 209-30.

J. D. Thomas, "Marginalia or 'Ethan Frome,'" in American Literature, Vol. 27, No. 3, November 1955, pp. 405-09.

Lionel Trilling, "The Morality of Inertia," in A Gathering of Fugitives, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1977, pp. 34-44.

Geoffrey Walton, in Edith Wharton: A Critical Interpretation, Farleigh Dickinson University Press, 1971, pp. 78-83.

Edith Wharton, in A Backward Glance, D. Appleton-Century, 1934, pp. 295-96.

Edith Wharton, in Ethan Frome, Penguin, 1987, p. xviu.

Cynthia Griffin Wolff, in A Feast of Words: The Triumph of Edith Wharton, Oxford University Press, 1977, pp. 183-84.

Further Reading

Elizabeth Ammons, "Edith Wharton's 'Ethan Frome' and the Question of Meaning," in Studies in American Fiction, Vol. 7, 1979, pp. 127-40.
Ammons interprets "Ethan Frome" in the context of classic fairy tales, suggesting the novel functions both as a modern fairy tale and as social commentary, highlighting male anxieties about women.

Shan Benstock and Barbara Grossman, in No Gifts from Chance: A Biography of Edith Wharton, Scribner's, 1994.
A detailed exploration of Wharton's literary output and personal life from a feminist viewpoint, utilizing many previously inaccessible sources.

Jean Frantz Blackall, "Edith Wharton's Art of Ellipsis," in 'Ethan Frome' - Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Contexts, Criticism, edited by Kristin O. Lauer and Cynthia Griffin Wolff, Norton, 1995, pp. 170-74.
Blackall examines Wharton's use of ellipses, suggesting they signify the unspoken or what a character refuses to articulate, and may also invite readers to engage imaginatively with the text.

Anthony Burgess, "Austere in Whalebone," in Spectator, No. 7171, December 3, 1965, p. 745.
A critique of three of Wharton's works, including Ethan Frome, where novelist and critic Burgess finds the narrative excessively pessimistic.

Dorothy Yost Deegan, "What Does the Reader Find: The Synthesis-Portrait in Miniature," in The Stereotype of the Single Woman in American Novels, King's Crown Press, 1951, pp. 40-126.
Analyzes Mattie Silver as a literary archetype, specifically the young, single woman who finds herself in a difficult situation due to her inability to achieve economic independence.

R. W. B. Lewis, "Ethan Frome and Other Dramas," in Edith Wharton: A Biography, Harper and Row, 1975, pp. 294-313.
Contends that Ethan Frome mirrors aspects of Wharton's own life, exaggerated and set in a bleak rural environment.

Orlene Murad, "Edith Wharton and Ethan Frome," in Modern Language Studies, Vol. 13, No. 3, Summer, 1983, pp. 90-103.
Murad investigates the biographical connections between Edith Wharton and her novel Ethan Frome.

Blake Nevius, "On 'Ethan Frome,'" in Edith Wharton: A Collection of Critical Essays, edited by Irving Howe, Prentice-Hall, 1962, pp. 130-136.
An excerpt from Nevius's Edith Wharton discussing Ethan's potential heroism and Wharton's technique in handling point of view.

Alan Price, in The End of the Age of Innocence: Edith Wharton and the First World War, St. Martin's Press, 1998.
A comprehensive account of Wharton's wartime humanitarian efforts and her writings during the First World War.

Marlene Springer, in Ethan Frome: A Nightmare of Need, Twayne, 1993.
A detailed study of Ethan Frome, covering the novel's literary and historical context, characterization, style, and symbolism.

Lionel Trilling, "The Morality of Inertia," in Edith Wharton: A Collection of Critical Essays, edited by Irving Howe, Prentice-Hall, 1962, pp. 137-146.
Trilling asserts that a significant concept in Wharton's novel is that moral inertia, or the failure to make moral decisions, plays a substantial role in the moral life of humanity.

Cynthia Griffin Wolff, "The Narrator's Vision," in 'Ethan Frome': Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Contexts, Criticism, edited by Kristin O. Lauer and Cynthia Griffin Wolff, Norton, 1995, pp. 130-144.
Cynthia Griffin Wolff argues that Ethan Frome centers on its narrator, discussing the novel's narrative structure and the implications of the narrator's perspective.