Book Review – Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

There are times when no matter how hard we try to determine our own destiny, situations and events beyond our control seem to conspire against us and lead us down paths which we would prefer not to travel and this seems to be the case for the main character in Edith Wharton's (1862-1937) novel, Ethan Frome first published in 1911.

The construction of the novel is surprisingly modern -beginning in cinematic mode with a snapshot of the present before embarking on a longer flashback to the not so distant past. We meet the narrator- a male engineer on business in the aptly named small town of Starkfield who becomes intrigued with Ethan Frome a striking figure but the ruin of a man, stiffened and grizzled to look much older than his fifty-two years. The narrator's curiosity is further aroused when he notes that Frome retains a careless powerful look, in spite of a pronounced lameness and a red gash across his forehead, which we soon learn are the results of a serious smash-up.

At this point his inquisitiveness becomes our own and we thirst for more information, which comes at first tantalisingly slowly in snippets of conversations with a number of individual townsfolk. When the narrator is unexpectedly forced by inclement weather to spend a night under Frome's own roof the tragic story rapidly unfolds as we move back twenty years or more into the past. Frome's tale is intrinsically bound with Zeena, his hypochondriac wife and the attractive younger cousin and "hired girl", Mattie Silver who resides with them in a house where sexual tension is palpable, frustration overpowering, jealousy suffocating and the sense of helplessness overwhelming. These three are fortune's fools, victims of destiny, their despair equally valid, their needs equally viable and all equally desperate in their bid to attain some crumb of personal happiness in their bleak world where a giant elm tree and long harsh winters play just as an important a role as the main characters.

As in many tragedies, from such chaos, order must follow and we wait for Frome to take up the mantle of hero and effect resolution- and wait indeed we must- for bound by high morals and principles; trapped by a heightened sense of responsibility and duty; and emotionally ensnared by love and obligation, Frome struggles to overcome the shackles of circumstance, - thwarted at every turn in his attempts. We empathise with him and our mind races with Frome's to think of all available options and possible solutions before time runs out.

Eventually resolution is reached when Frome finally managing to break the invisible chains that control his life, takes action on a decision which he believes is the only way he can attain what he most desires... but fate grants his wish in the most callous way possible and we are shocked - quite unprepared for the cruel irony of the final scene which at the same time remains strangely and deeply satisfying to the reader. 

A more modern more self- serving, and self-interested audience may dismiss Frome's actions as needless folly indicating that other options were available, and arguing that because of this, Wharton's character suffers a loss of credibility. However, we must take into account the structure and moral fibre of the society at the time, and note that Frome's choices were severely limited and his actions should be judged in historical context. For me the character is a very believable flawed hero complete with human weaknesses who battles against fate only to end up more fully embracing his own destiny.

The sole jarring element of Wharton’s writing is the manner in which the narrator gathers all the necessary details of the story. It seems illogical that he should be able to do so from spending just one night in the Frome household. But by then we have become so captivated by the tension of the conflict, so enthralled in anticipation of the conclusion that for many readers this point would be easily overlooked. 

In any case, Wharton manages to explain it away as logical conjecture, It was that night that I found the clue to Ethan Frome, and began to put together this vision of his story. Happily the vision is endorsed when we return to the present in the closing pages and in no way detracts from a novel, which should be read, if not for pure enjoyment alone then certainly for discussion, thoughtful consideration and debate.