Ethan Frome

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is a tragic novella set in the bleak, wintry town of Starkfield, Massachusetts. It tells the story of Ethan Frome, a poor farmer trapped in a loveless marriage with his sickly and bitter wife, Zeena. When Zeena's lively cousin Mattie comes to live with them, Ethan falls deeply in love with her. Unable to escape their circumstances, Ethan and Mattie attempt a desperate sledding suicide to be together, but the plan fails. They survive, permanently injured and forced to live under Zeena's care, bound in misery. The novella explores themes of isolation, duty versus desire, and the crushing effects of environment and circumstance on human lives.