Ethan Frome And The Awakening: A Literary Analysis

Although some people who read the novella feel bad for Ethan Frome because he turned out unsuccessful, nobody should. The reason Ethan turned out unhappy, like the way he did, was all his fault by his own choices. Since the beginning he made the understandably not-so-great choice of leaving college, every single decision after that was all his fault. Ethan Frome's tragedy was completely caused by his own

In the novel Ethan Frome, written by Edith Wharton, Ethan, the main protagonist, encounters numerous challenges relating to his love life, social life, and personal life. Ethan’s actions could be analyzed through his decision-making process and used to display him as a self-reliant man. Self-reliance can be defined using criteria laid out by Ralph Waldo Emerson, an American transcendentalist philosopher, in his essay, “Self-Reliance”. Emerson writes about a checklist containing four primary attributes of a self-reliant person. The first necessary characteristic of a self-reliant person is the ability to exclusively fight for causes which s/he believes in. Secondly, one cannot be self-reliant if s/he is afraid of contradicting her/himself. Additionally,

In Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome, Ethan Frome’s past contributes to the story more than any other character’s. The other main characters’ past may have been more difficult or life changing, but Ethan’s past definitely builds the story more. Ethan’s past builds his character more and dictates almost everything he does. This cannot be said for the other main characters in the story.

“Is fate getting what you deserve, or deserving what you get?” (Jodi Picoult). Ethan Frome, written by Edith Wharton in 1911, embodies this quote. In Ethan Frome, all three main characters, Ethan, Mattie and Zeena have made decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. Ethan and Mattie had an inappropriate relationship behind Ethans significant other, Zeena 's, back which caused each of them to be emotionally distraught. Mattie, Zeena and Ethan were all responsible for their own actions which resulted in them getting what they deserved.

In both novels, the Crucible and Ethan Frome, the main characters are stuck in pointless marriages, however revenge and love led the two plays into slightly different paths.

In society, from the 1800s to the 1950s to today, there frequently is the assumption that it is necessary to put the needs and importance of the community in front of one’s own. Though this may seem out of place in some situations, in others it is simply protocol in order for the society to function smoothly. But in the cases of Edna Pontellier and Ethan Edwards, two seemingly very different characters, they both share the same struggle between their own personal interests and those of society. Edna, a Kentucky native married to a New Orleans Creole, faces her own private conflict as she does not understand the culture of this traditional society. While she is expected to be a loving mother and a doting wife, she feels conflicted while loving another man and not following the ways of a mother-figure. In the case of Ethan, he is a wanderer in a society that relies heavily upon each other. When his niece goes missing, his drive and bravery leads him on the search for her, but also leads him into conflict with newfound urge for revenge. This contradiction of feelings for both characters is

Is suicide ever the answer? Even though suicide is a permanent solution to temporary problems, sometimes it’s the only sense of control that a person has left over their own life. The protagonist of Kate Chopin’s “The Awakening”, Edna Pontellier, disobeys completely the paradigms that defined her society set in the 19th century. In an era where women were oppressed and expected to give themselves to their families, Edna failed to find a place in that society and escaped by means of suicide. Society is a strong force that molded Edna as a woman, but through her suicide, she was finally able to escape its grasp. She wasn’t wife nor mother material, and as she became conscious of it through the development of the novel, Edna isolated herself so she could be awaken.

Ethan Frome’s mother becoming ill was the first step toward the destiny that would keep Ethan in Starkfield forever. This destiny required his wife, Zeena, to become sick as well. It was necessary for Ethan to remain there since it would lead him to meet Mattie Silver, who would push him even closer to his fated downfall. Ethan, Zeena, and Mattie’s destinies were tangled together because of the conjoined circumstances that surrounded the three of them.

Nineteenth century America was a time when women were expected to follow the cult of domesticity, a widely accepted opinion at the time. While fathers, brothers, sons, husbands and other male loved ones went off to fight in the American Civil War, women were left behind to take care of the remaining members of the family. “It was in the home that woman’s influence was paramount and her position assured.” For some women, this was enough, however, there were others who were not satisfied with this idea, and felt as though they were meant to become something more. However, there were some opportunities for women to step outside of the social customs and gender roles of the time. In fact, “the Civil War dramatically tested those boundaries of

This is a sermon written by British Colonial Christian Theological Jonathan Edwards, preached to his own congregation in Massachusetts. This was a all fire and brimstone sermon, July 5, 1741 in Enfield, Connecticut. This sermon combines vivid imagery of hell with observations of the world and citations of the scripture. It is Edwards most famous written work, is a fitting, representation of his preaching style, and is widely studied by Christians and historians, proving a glimpse into the theology of the Great Awakening of v. 1730-1755. This sermon of The Great Awakening, emphasizing the belief that hell is a real place. Edwards hoped that the imagery and language of his sermon would awaken guidance to the horrific reality that they believed awaited them should they continue life without

In the mid 18th Century, in small Northampton, Massachusetts, a young preacher by the name of Jonathan Edwards was changing New England (Lawson, 2015, p.41). A Great Awakening was taking place, in part, due to Jonathan Edwards ideas. Many sermons and work were being both preached and published, most of which are still talked about to do this day. In the Bible, 1 Peter 5:1-4 lays out the basic responsibilities of a pastor. The Bible states,

Chopin is a forward thinking author who wrote for women and minorities. Racism and gender bias are problems that have continued to persist in our society despite activism attempting to rid our world of it. Identity is another problem many people have trouble muddling through.

One can’t be happy or attempt to be happy if that person is suffering depression; therefore, expressing agony is a starting point in achieving happiness. As Weiner also says, “A love of language may not guarantee happiness, but it allows you to express your despair eloquently, and that is worth something. As any poet (or blogger) knows, misery expressed is misery reduced” (Weiner 158). During his travel, Weiner discovers that in any language, there are more words describing sadness than words describing happiness. People tend to express their grief more strongly than their happiness. When depressed, they want to release that unhealthy emotion. They can either do it physically or emotionally, by hitting a punching bag, breaking objects, cry

Chopin is a forward thinking author who wrote for women and minorities. Racism and gender bias are problems that have continued to persist in our society despite activism attempting to rid our world of it. Identity is another problem many people have trouble muddling through.

It is no secret that our society has been dealing with issues revolving around gender for most of history. Our world as a whole is used to seeing different forms of gender commentary nowadays. However, The Storm, written by Kate Chopin, showcases a very progressive view of gender for the time of its publication in 1969, but especially for the time in which it was written, 1898. Despite the time period and societal situation, Chopin manages to portray the female and male characters in ways that have not been explored yet. The author creates very decisive, carefree, and promiscuous female characters as opposed to characters who rely on men. She also displays the male characters in a weak and submissive way as opposed to strong and powerful. A