Beginning of Essay
, the main character in the Edith Wharton novel , is a man who lives in a world of silence. He lives in the New England town of Starkfield, Massachusetts, with his bitter wife and his wife’s cousin Mattie. Over time Ethan is a man who has become trapped in Stark ....

Middle of Essay
.... like Ethan has given into the rigors of the many winter. Ethan is a poor farmer who has to support a "sickly" wife who does nothing but complain about everything. Ethan married his wife of seven years, Zeena, who is a bit older than he, following the death of his mother, in an unsuccessful attempt to escape the silence, isolation, and the loneliness of the life of Starkfield. The setting for is winter. Edith Wharton , the author, chose winter because it symbolizes the emotional, physical isolation, cold, darkness and death that surround Ethan. Similarly, the name of the town Starkfield is symbolic of Ethan’s life. Stark depicts the many harsh winte ....