Zenobia Frome (Zeena) is originally protrayed as an old hag. She natters, she nags, and she alienates Ethan by removing the last thing that made his life worth living: Mattie.And yet, when Ethan and Mattie attempt to kill themselves, Zeena is the one that takes care of them. She nurtures them back to health, just as Ethan had nursed her, and even kept Mattie. This seems a radical change of character for Zeena! Is this actually a change, or was as she this kind the whole time? Find a situation from the novel to either illustrate her previous kindness, or to explain why she would change so completely.
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Indeed that was a radical change for Zeena. When the narrator is having a conversation with Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Hale talks about what happened after the accident. She reveals as to why Zeena took Mattie in. The narrator asks if Mattie has been there ever since and Mrs. Hale replies that "There was nowhere else for her to go." This shows that Zeena has radically changed because previously Zeena was kicking Mattie out. Zeena did not care for MAttie and when she found out it was her that broke her prized pickle dish, she esstentially kicked her out of the house and told her that she was an awful house keeper. So when Zeena takes Mattie back in to her house, that shows that Zeena must have undergone a complete change because of the fact that she was the only family that Mattie had left and she couldn't very well leave her when she was crippled. Maybe in a sense, she did it to be vindictive towards Ethan because although he ultimately got what he wanted, Mattie was never the same and perhaps that gave Zeena some satisfaction. Either way, Zeena was never kind to begin with, but her motives could either be because she had a change of heart or it was a vindictive motive.
I do not really believe that this was a change of character for Zeena, but rather, a change of responsibility. Before the accident, Mattie and Ethan were held responsible for taking care of Zeena, even though they often did not tend to her sickness, which left Zeena "wholly absorbed with her health" (38), trying to find remedies and medicines for her sickness. However, after the addicent, we find Zeena "raised right up just when the call came to her" (98), taking care of Mattie and aiding Ethan with his work. This tendency to doctor the sick is not new as Zeena had once cared for Ethan's mother on her deathbed, which inadvertently attracted Ethan and compelled him to ask for her hand in marriage. Therefore, Zeena had always had the capability to care for people and to nurse them, but it was clouded by her cantankerous disposition and her preoccupation with her own disease. Perhaps it was the barren winter and the sense of isolation that caused her to be so disagreeable in her marriage to Ethan, but we certainly see that she has a soft side to her, that when summoned by the accident, came forth to swap roles with Ethan and Mattie to tend to them as they once tended to her.
I do not think Zeena changed, nor do I think she was ever truly kind. I believe Zeena is one of those people classified as one who likes to "nurse or nurture people." This may seems like a valuable trait to have however I believe that Zeena goes to various lengths to ensure that she has something to care for, an identity. She had spent seven years caring for herself because it was the only physical ailment she could cure; she probably considered the division between she and Ethan as a permanent standard. However when she realized that Mattie was able to revive and care for Ethan in a way Zeena never could, Zeena became very jealous revealing her spiteful persona. She aimed to end this relationship by kicking Mattie out and replacing her with a girl that would fill Zeena's intended purpose and drive Ethan back into his shell. Zeena also cares very much of the opinion of others and it would have looked very poor on her part to have thrown Ethan and Mattie out after their accident since the towns people believed that although an odd time to be sledding, it was only an accident. Zeena is introduced as Ethan's wife; they became engaged due to the debt Ethan felt he had to pay after she nursed his mother. At the end of the novel Zeena says that after all she had done for Ethan's mother that marrying her was the least he could have done to pay his debt to her. She enjoys having people indebted to her and by allowing Ethan and Mattie to live under her roof she has won this battle of will; she has kept her husband from leaving not only their marriage but the shell he has been forced to survive in and she has kept Mattie and Ethan apart. I do not believe she has changed in the least.
It seems to me that Zeena didn't change her character, more her outlook on life. She did care for Ethan's mother while she was ill, so it's not like she is entirely without a redeemable feature. She is fairly compassionate and really, a decent person. Most likely, she discovered she could earn Ethan's affection by pretending to be ill. And even though it might be a ruse, she does claim that, "I'd 'a' in to Starkfield on my own feet, rather than put you out."(41) Zeena is not a completely inconsiderate person. When Ethan is injured from the accident, this gives Zeena a greater chance to attain at least Ethan's appreciation. She may be trying to make up for her bitter behavior from before, or she may just be trying to extend her desire to have Ethan look upon her favorably. But it doesn't seem that she completely transformed into a different person, she's just aiming to achieve a little consideration. And, really, who doesn't want gratitude? That doesn't make her a bad person just someone a little more vocal about her motivations.
Great job so far! I've noticed people are starting to repeat ideas, so, if your thoughts sound like those above, please respond to this other prompt instead:
Ethan Frome is rife with symbolisms. Identify one item/animal that represents a major character. (i.e. Zeena and the cat) Be sure to explain why you feel that way.
I don't think this was a change of heart so much as it was a role reversal. Just as Ethan had felt "forced" to care for Zeena, she carries that same burden when it is he who needs the nurturing. Mattie falls under the same category as she is family to Zeena. Whereas today, adulturing husbands are less likely to be cared for by their wives, during the time when Ethan Frome was written the only ties stronger than marital ties, were family ties. Zeena was doing just as society expected her to do.
The cat "puss" represents Zeena in many ways. When Ethan and Mattie are home alone for the first time puss is consistently causing annoyance and distraction for the duration of the night. This symbolizes Ethan and Mattie’s awareness of Zeena even while she is away. Despite her absence she still causes a disturbance between the two lovers, almost haunting them. Puss also is the one to knock down the pickle jar which in itself symbolizes Ethan and Zeena’s marriage. This could represent how Zeena shattered her marriage with Ethan from slowly growing apart from Ethan as a result of her personality and sicknesses.
Mattie's red scarf and ribbon represents Mattie's vitality. Vibrant red stands out against the sullen, bitter white landscape of Starkfield- just as Mattie stands out in Ethan's dull life. In addition, it can represent adultery (in this case, mostly mental, not physical). Other novels of New England have used this color as a symbol before (ex. The Scarlett Letter). Red can be representative of "the other women".
But above all, Mattie's red clothing symbolizes the wide-awake sense of life she brings to a frozen, sleeping world.
-Diana Heriford
A prime example of a character/symbol pair in Ethan Frome. Is Ethan and the gravestone he examines in Chapter 4 that grimly commemorates "Ethan Frome and [the] Endurance [of] His Wife." The gravestone ironically contains Ethan's own name and symbolizes the inevitable fate that Ethan as well as his ancestors are bound to. The gravestone symbolizes the vain of Ethan's aspirations to achieve a life greater than that of the owner of gravestone's owner. Ethan is doomed to die in poverty on his morbid piece of property all the same as the Fromes before him.
The final run on the sled acts largely as a symbol of Ethan's inability to control his own life. When one is driving a sled, he must allow a certain amount of power to go to gravity, weather conditions, and hope. However, the driver still maintains a substantial amount of control over his ride. Ethan abandons his ability to "navigate his sled," if you will, in this final run of the sled. When he makes the decision to simply coast along, he demonstrates that he can not escape himself or his conditions or his life in any way. It is next to impossible. Ethan's life is determined by other people, and he often fails to make any concrete decisions for himself. His marriage to Zeena, his potential death, instigated by Mattie, and his sullen and sorrowful outlook on life are all determined by external factors instead of by Ethan himself. The one old move he does make (the decision to commit suicide) is even made, essentially by Mattie.
Although Zeena is definitely going out of her way to seem unnecessarily kind towards Mattie and Ethan following the accident, I still feel as though this is a continuation of Zeena's personality. She comes off as extremely passive-aggressive: initially by using her illness to guilt others into giving her attention, then later by making it seem as though she is so strong and kind to nuture her husband and his lover back to health, despite her sickness. In truth, she is just as self-absorbed as the others are, yet she is able to give off the appearance of extreme benevolence in the face of horrific suffering.
Elaborating on Grace's mention of the pickle dish, it represents the marriage of Ethan and Zeena because when Mattie gets involved the jar, as well as the marriage, shatters. It is described as a very fragile and expensive thing, as marriages are very expensive not just to physically have but expensive on the soul, binding two and only two together. However, this is countered by the frailty of the piece itself, as in this story the vows of marriage hold little power over Ethan and are very easily broken.
Emily, very thorough examination of Zeena's motives with Mattie.
Gary, interesting emphasis on doctoring the sick.
Mary, many super points with my favorite being the one about Zeena's concern with appearances.
Yousra - good point to ponder that Zeena might want some consideration.
Grace - cat was a very important symbol but is Zeena the one to blame or is it the illicit relationship between Ethan and Mattie.
Diana, great analysis of red!
Ray - super analysis of the gravestone.
Lizzie - I liked your uses of the final sled run as a symbol.
Hunter - super correlation between marriage and the pickle dish.
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