Ethan Frome
...ried. The great mistake was Ethan and Zeena marrying. Edith Wharton used symbolism to show the great mistake in their marriage. Zeena’s only ever gift to Ethan was a pillow that she made before they married. The pillow was a symbol of Zeena and foreshadowed what she was to become. The pillow was lumpy and hard, just like Zeena and their marriage. Edith Wharton used the theme of regret throughout the book showing that Ethan and Zeena regretted their great mistake of Marrying. Many people can relate this to their lives which helps bring the book to life and hit closer to home. If they had noticed the mistake before the marriage they could’ve stopped it in its tracks so after they endured the winter they could’ve went their different ways. Another great mistake in Ethan Frome was the sledding crash where Ethan and Mattie Silver tried to take their own lives. There was a split second right before the accident where Ethan tried to steer away from the tree and then decided to steer back into it. Ethan was indecisive and that put him in a worse situation, another that he would regret. Edith Wharton used the literary technique of characterization make imaginary characters of Ethan Frome seem real. Ethan characterized Ethan using local color as a New Englander, Tall, Strong and Quiet. His quietness he would later regret because he could not show that he cared about her until she was on her way out. Mattie was characterized as a pretty young woman that would be very rare in New England and made Ethan fall in love with her. Ethan regretted that he could not help Mattie or do anything for her; Edith developed this theme throughout the...