Ethan Frome (1911) is a short novel by Edith Wharton. In the bleak New England village of Starkfield, a poor farmer trapped in a loveless marriage falls in love with his wife's young cousin, Mattie, and their attempt to escape ends in a sledging accident.
The story
A visiting engineer, the narrator, pieces together the story of Ethan Frome, a crippled man of fifty-two. Twenty-four years earlier, Ethan was married to Zeena, a sickly, complaining woman.
When Zeena's cousin Mattie Silver comes to help, Ethan falls in love with her. As Zeena sends Mattie away, the two lovers attempt to die together by sledging into a great elm.
A different Wharton
Wharton was known for her novels of New York high society, such as The House of Mirth. Ethan Frome, set among poor farmers, surprised her readers.
Its spare style and harsh winter landscapes give this short book the force and inevitability of a Greek tragedy.
Origins
Wharton based the story on a real sledging accident in Lenox, Massachusetts, near her house The Mount, in 1904, in which a young woman was killed.
She first sketched the story in French, as a language exercise, while living in Paris.
Anecdotes
A story first written in French
While learning to write French in Paris, Wharton drafted a version of the story as an exercise for her tutor; the notebook survives.
A cruel twist
The ending, in which the survivors live on together, crippled and bitter, under Zeena's care, is one of the most chilling in American fiction.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Ethan Frome set?
In the fictional village of Starkfield, Massachusetts.
Who is Mattie Silver?
Zeena's young cousin, with whom Ethan falls in love.
Was it based on a real event?
Partly, on a sledging accident in Lenox, Massachusetts, in 1904.