Character Analysis Of Ethan Frome

The Narrator of Ethan Frome

Ethan Frome is a popular novel written in 1911 by Edith Wharton. The plot of the novel consists of an unnamed narrator who tells the tragic tale of a poor farmer in the New England area. Ethan Frome is married to a cranky old lady, but falls in love with his wife’s cousin who helps out around the house. In the climax of the story the two in love attempt suicide to free themselves from Zeena’s control but end up handicapped for the rest of their life. Even though he isn’t the protagonist of the story the character that needs to be analyzed is the narrator. Edith Wharton uses the narrator to retell his interpretations of the story of Ethan Frome and in turn reveals his inner thoughts.

The novel Ethan Frome is actually

He uses experiences in his own life or what he imagines to understand what a young Ethan Frome would have done 20 plus years earlier. But why did he put himself in the shoes of Ethan? The narrator put himself in Ethan’s shoes due to the instantaneous and growing connection between the two characters. As stated before, the narrator immediately was interested in Ethan and became more and more fascinated after hearing stories of the accident. They also grew closer together with the discovery of their similarities, including engineering and the feeling of being stuck in Starkfield. While the narrator put himself in Ethan’s predicament we can assume that he learned valuable life lessons. The lessons could help the narrator in his own life, including aspects of love, marriage, and many others. We can also infer that these lessons from which the narrator learned are lessons we can learn as readers of this novel. When you look at this idea it can seem like a very unusual way to get across a message. Ferda Asya writes in her article analyzing Ethan Forme that the use of the unusual narrator “reveals the true nature of her subject” (23). Wharton has the readers of Ethan Frome looking at a character that is looking at another character which can be seen as odd. It’s not just understanding a message, but seeing an example of another person understanding the message at the same time. We can all learn from the message and experience of the narrator in the story Ethan