Research Paper on:
Zeena's Symbolism in Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
this book, which deals with the extraordinarily unhappy life of one man - Ethan Frome - and what his attempts toward security had brought him. Within the book are constant  references to dark and cold New England winters - for example, the town in which Ethan lives is called "Starkville," and it is, indeed, quite stark and dreary. Wharton has  also used symbolism more subtly in her use of names of the major characters, Ethan, Mattie (or "Matilda") and Zeena (or "Zenobia"). This paper will examine how Wharton uses symbolism  and the name to truly define the character of the tall, bony and harsh Zeena, who is Ethans wife in the book.  First, a brief synopsis of the book is in order, to better set the mood and where the characters are. Ethan Frome was a lonely man living a lonely  life on a lonely farm community in New England, the aforementioned Starkville. Rural New England in Whartons day was depressing, especially during the winter. The workdays were long (sunset was  generally around 4:00 p.m. or so, with the sun not topping the horizon much before 8:00 a.m.). In the meantime, snow prevented neighbors from visiting with one another. The story  opens through the view of the narrator, a young man who ends up spending the night at Ethans house because of a chance blizzard. He learns about Ethan Frome who,  it seemed was not always old and crippled but who, once upon a time, actually went to college to study physics. He has to drop out within a year, however,  because an accident killed his father - he returns home to the family farm with little more chance to escape the solitary life of the farmer that he wants to