Edith Wharton's novella Ethan Frome was first published in 1911. The title character of the book is a poor man who has a sickly wife, Zeena. Ethan is frustrated in his efforts to help his wife as well as in his inability to express his love for her young cousin, Mattie. Because of his poverty and social conditioning, Ethan is trapped "into a world of self destruction" ("Women and Literature: ..." 48). However, Ethan Frome is not the only character who suffers during the story. Both Zeena and Mattie are also trapped by social conditions. In fact, the plight of these women is made worse by the fact that they are never given a chance to express how they feel. The strict male point of view in the narration of Ethan Frome helps reflect the treatment that women experienced during that time in history.
Edith Wharton is one of the most important women writers in American literature. Her original name was Edith Newbold Jones, and she was born in New York City in 1862. Her family was both wealthy and aristocratic and she was raised to think of herself as a member of "the American elite" (Joslin 2). The idea of making a living as a writer was frowned upon by Edith's family. Nevertheless, she began writing at an early age and her parents paid to have her first book of poetry published when she was only sixteen years old (Filbert & Gubar 1167-1168). The famous poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was impressed by Edith's work and he helped to get her poems published in magazines. In 1885, when she was twenty three, Edith married an upper society man named Edward Wharton. Known by the nickname "Teddy," Edward Wharton was thirteen years older than Edith when they got married (Ibid. 1168). Although Teddy did not encourage Edith in her writing, she continued to have her works published in the popular magazines of the time. In 1897, she collaborated with the architect Ogden Codman in the production of her first book, a non fiction work ...