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Ethan Frome: Themes - Example Papers

Ethan Frome: Themes

Themes are very significant to a story. A theme is a main idea of a story, poem, novel, or play that is usually expressed as a general statement about life. It can easily effect the way a person may think and view life. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is a great example of this. One theme from the story is that you might not be able to obtain whatever you want in life.
Ethan is very unhappy with the way is life is bound. He is very unhappy with his marriage, which was destined to be a failure in the first place. The only reason Ethan marries Zenna is that she had come to take care of his sick mother, and after she died he could bear to be alone, therefore he asks her to marry him. ...

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his obligation to Zenna. Every waking moment he dreams of being with her. He even goes as far as lying to his wife to be alone with Mattie. Zenna is not very fond of Mattie, especially of her house cleaning skills. He does this when he tells his wife that he has to get money from Mr. Hale as an excuse not to give her a ride to the flats when she has to go to Bettsbridge for a doctor. Even though Ethan knows he is married, he still tries to woo Mattie. All of his fallen hopes and dreams, and failures just contribute to the theme of the story, which is that you cannot always have what you desire.
When Zenna had returned from Bettsbridge, she tells Ethan that her condition has worsened and that she has hired a girl to help around the house. She also informs him that Mattie will have to leave the next day. This makes Ethan very angry. Ethan than contemplates the idea of risking everything and leaving his wife, and moving west with Mattie. Although he soon realizes that he ...

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Ethan Frome: Themes. (2006, November 28). Retrieved October 21, 2025, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Ethan-Frome-Themes/56289

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PAPER DETAILS

Added: 11/28/2006 08:12:06 PM
Category: Book Reports
Type: Premium Paper
Words: 668
Pages: 3

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