Contradicting Opinions In Edith Wharton's Ethan Frome

Influenced by the opinions held about the peers around, an individual can make a choice that can lead either him or her on a productive or destructive path. Ethan Frome, a poor farmer living in Starkfield, Massachusetts, is not an exception to this reality. In the novel, Ethan Frome written by Edith Wharton, Ethan Frome’s opinions about his sickly wife Zenobia “Zeena” Frome, his new love Mattie “Matt” Silver, and his close acquaintance Andrew Hale leads Ethan to a destructive direction. These mixed and contradicting opinions lead Ethan Frome where he has obtained what he desired but also where he still has what he desperately wanted to leave.

Ethan Frome has continuously viewed his wife, Zenobia “Zeena” Frome, as a sickly negative individual.

Throughout the seven years of their marriage, Ethan had chosen not to respond to Zeena’s constant complaining and unsympathetic nature fearing it may lead him to say something without actual meaning behind it. Ethan also blames Zeena for not being able to leave Starkfield, Massachusetts because “she could not live in a place which looked down on her” but she looked down on Starkfield (37). As she develops a degree of hypochondria, Zeena is keeping Ethan on the dying farm that has been passed down to him. Zeena’s constant negativity and exaggerated worry about her health leads Ethan to suffer in silent unwanted solitude to avoid her and to see her as the weight keeping him tied down to Starkfield. Not being able to withstand the silence and complaining he finds solace in Mattie Silver. Ethan’s new infatuation with the young woman causes himself to lose the bit of will he had and allows himself to fall for Mattie and allows himself to attempt committing suicide with her. Zeena and Ethan had differing opinions about Mattie. Zeena thought Mattie was useless and has to be let go, but Ethan saw her as his new light of hope that he cannot let go. The different views lead to the first argument the married couple had in their seven years of marriage, and to Ethan’s desperate desire to escape from her and the town with Mattie.
Mattie “Matt” Silver, Zeena’s cousin who came to Starkfield to aid Zeena, becomes a light for Ethan Frome.

To Mattie he could “show her things and tell her things” where she would listen and respond while Zeena would never (16). In Ethan’s opinion, Mattie was everything Zeena had not been; Mattie was young, gentle, and lively. As he fell in love with the young woman, he also fell into confusion and guilt. He felt confused for harboring feelings for Mattie, who may or may not reciprocate his feelings, and he felt guilt for falling in love with another while married to Zeena. This feeling of guilt is easily over come when Zeena decides to hire a girl to aid her and send Mattie away. After the argument between Ethan and Zeena, Ethan goes down to his makeshift study and contemplates the thought of eloping with Mattie and head west. However, after realizing the plan was futile because “he was a poor man . . . who his desertion would leave him alone and destitute” Ethan gives up on the idea (78). His fear of Mattie, who was his only hope in the dreary town of Starkfield, leaving cause him to agree to committing suicide. His fear of losing Mattie allowed himself to be persuaded by the young woman to ride the sled into an elm tree down the steep hill. Into the elm, so the two could die with each other instead of living without each other. Ethan’s love blinded opinion about Mattie led him down a direction where he would kill himself with her, just to be together and leave Zeena behind. It made him desperately want to take the easy way out and not face the consequences of his

actions.
Ethan Frome’s opinion about Andrew Hale may not be as influential as Zeena or Mattie, but it still leads him down a destructive path. Ethan Frome saw and viewed Andrew Hale an escape. Ethan lied to Zeena, telling her he was going to ask for fifty dollars early from Hale, so he would not have to drop her off at the flats. In addition, when Ethan realized he is short on money when contemplating eloping with Mattie he tries again to receive the denied fifty dollars from Hale. After a run in with Andrew Hales’ wife Ethan realizes he is trying to “take advantage of the Hales’ sympathy to obtain money from them on a false pretense” and returns empty handedly back to the farm (78). He realizes his mistake but the misguided opinion about Hale led Ethan to almost deceiving the only two who had pitied him.
A person’s opinion about another can lead the individual down different paths. A negative opinion can lead an individual to a destructive direction; a positive opinion can lead an individual to a productive direction but it can be misguided into a destructive direction. Ethan Frome’s negative opinions about his wife Zeena caused him to blame her and desperately want to leave her. Ethan’s positive opinion about Mattie however clouded his judgment and caused him to attempt suicide. His positive opinion about Hale almost led to deceive the only people that cared about him. Three important opinions, some more important than others, lead Ethan to a destructive direction. The suicide attempt failed leaving Mattie paralyzed and Ethan stuck taking care of her and Zeena. In the end, he got what he desired, Mattie with him forever, but he also was not able to leave what he wanted to the most, Zeena and Starkfield, Massachusetts. It led him back to the silent solitude he had suffered from before