...An Ethics of Reading At the age of nine, Edith Wharton fell ill with typhoid. The local doctor told her parents nothing could be done and that their daughter would soon die. Only the ministrations of another physician, who happened to be passing through town and was prevailed upon to examine the girl, saved her life. Her fever fell, and the young Wharton began to recover. During her convalescence, she read voraciously. One of the books she was given contained a “super-natural” tale — a story which turned out to be, in Wharton’s own phrase, “perilous reading” (Wharton, p.275). In the original manuscript of her autobiography, Edith Wharton describes how reading this uncanny story occasioned a relapse, which brought her, once again, “on the point of death”: This one [book] brought on a serious relapse, and again my life was in danger and when I came to myself, it was to enter a world haunted by formless horrors. I had been a naturally fearless child; now I lived in a state of chronic fear. Fear of what? I cannot say — and even at the time, I was never able to formulate my terror. It was like some dark undefinable menace forever dogging my steps, lurking, threatening; (pp.275‑6).[1] According to Wharton, an act of reading plunged her body back into fatal illness. The young Edith Wharton did recover from the relapse, but its uncanny effects continued to haunt her well into adulthood. In “Women and Madness: the Critical Phallacy” (1975), Shoshana Felman tells another uncanny...
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...Threshold experiences in the novels My Antonia and The Age of Innocence In any a piece of literature setting is an essential pillar of narrative construction: it not only includes some factual information about time and place or provides the background in which the events take place, but also has the power to shape the habits and attitudes of their users, or characters. Both Willa Cather in My Antonia and Edith Wharton in The Age of Innocence create the particular narrative texture that implicates some dynamics, i.e. some shifts and changes – on the one hand, the setting of the novels continually changes, and this invariably entails the changing of the characters. Since the setting doesn’t remain static, each time it changes there should be some “turning point”, from which moment on the further development of events becomes completely different. But what exactly this turning point is, what are those “triggers” that help to create this dynamic picture, how can we trace the changes and the molding and development of characters’ personalities, the changes of their identities? The thing is that the authors of both above-mentioned novels create series of “threshold experiences” taking place at the most significant, climatic points in the lives of the protagonists, acting like triggers, indicating some transformations in the outer world of the characters that entail the changes in their inner world as well. These thresholds operate on all levels: separating the interior...
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...Ethan Frome By; Edith Wharton This story occurred in Starkfield, Massachusetts. In the cold snow in front of a train station. Most of the individuals who lived in this community, felt as if Ethan Frome was a very quiet and sad individual. Because every single time that you saw him he was keeping to himself never saying anything to anyone. The setting was in cold snow, snow reminds you of sadness, and sorrow. The young man saw Ethan Frome by the post office which is what made him curious of him. It was Harmon Gow who volunteered for the narrator to ask Ethan to become his driver. But to only found out that accepted the offer. The story gets more interesting. When the narrator first met Ethan, he was slouched over walking towards his house. But the narrator saw him when he was walking towards the post office. When the narrator was trying to get Ethan attention he asked him to be his driver. He said that he would pay him $0.50, Ethan agreed. So then on that’s when we learned about the story. Ethan was very young when he married his cousin Zenobia Frome. But she was always sickly, always having to see the doctor so the day that she did go to visit the doctor out of the region of where they lived. Ethan was just there with her cousin who was sent to help keep up the house. Because Zeena was very sickly, but in the meanwhile Ethan felt attraction to Mattie Silver. Mattie felt attracted to Ethan too but, she was still flirting on and off with Denis...
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...Cassandra Silva Mrs. Hargraves English 3A 28 November 2016 The Story Of Ethan From It all takes place in Starkfield, Massachusetts. There’s a post office there that Ethan Frome goes to a lot. There’s this woman that saw him go in and it caught her eye. She said “It wasn’t much his great height that marked him” It was something else. She wondered what was wrong with him because he seemed different. He looked very old like 52 years old. She asked what seemed to be wrong with him just because he seemed so different. They told her how he would come every winter and take care of people for a living. He was very secretive about his mail. After getting his mail he would put it in his pockets right away. Maybe he didn’t want anyone to see it or he was just in a hurry all the time. The letters would either say it’s from Mrs. Zenobia or Mrs. Zeena and the address would be some manufacturer of patent medicine. Ethan had been in Starkfield many winters, and as Harmon said “Most of the smart ones get away.” Ethan stayed because of his father mother and now his wife are all sick. Someone had to take care of all of them and he was the only one not sick so he stayed and helped them out. The narrator got sent up to a big job that was connected to the power-house at Corbury Junction. The only problem was she was stuck in from all of the snow. Denis Eady had offered to take her to the train so she can go to Corbury Flats. Then her horses felt sick and it spread to other stables. Harmon Gow suggested...
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...Thomas Foster wrote an extremely helpful book dealing with reading actively. His book provides many useful concepts for every reader to consider. How to Read Literature Like a Professor speaks heavily about symbols and ironies (pg #s), two subjects very prominent in Ethan Frome. Communion is also spoken of, as is weather. (pg #s) The thesis statement will go here when it is determined at a later time. Many meals were had throughout the course of Ethan Frome. Foster explains that meals are uninteresting and most authors dislike writing about them, so meals are always symbolic in some way. (Foster 8) Mattie and Ethan were left alone when Zeena had to make a trip out of town. They ate together that evening, and the events of the night caused a turning point in the story. The meal scene was very important as a whole, because it really cemented the feelings between Ethan and Mattie. This meal also symbolized a little slice of sex, a topic not easily discussed in Victorian literature. They were a bit awkward at first but slowly grew more comfortable with each other until… Oops! Zeena’s beloved and protected pickle dish gets broken! (Wharton 50) There are many symbols in Ethan Frome, and one of the most notable items is the pickle dish. The pickle dish is a picture of the trust that Zeena had to have in the two to leave them alone together, which she clearly had or she would never have left them alone for a long period of time. Of course, why would she worry about leaving her husband...
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...DRAW ME CLOSE TO You Alexis Zorba, a lui Nikos Kazantzaski- N Amy Macdonald – This is the life Ada Milea Michael Nyman - The Heart Asks Pleasure First Clint Mansell - Together We Will Live Forever Yiruma - River Flows in You Yann Tiersen – Comptine D'un Autre Ete Lara Fabian – Je T'Aime James Last – This Is My Song Pasarea Colibri – Mica Tiganiada B.O.B. & Hayley Williams – Airplanes Alexandru Andries – asa am crezut si noi Divna Ljubojevic Andrew Lloyd Webbe Bob Dylan – Together Through Life Dave Days - Olive You feat. Kimmi Smiles Robert Pattinson - "Let Me Sign Boney M : Aventura - All Up To You Feat. Akon y Wisin & Yandel Enrique Iglesias ft. Aventura - Lloro por ti 13. Evanescence - My Immortal (With Lyrics) BETTER VERSION Jena lee j aimerais tellement Love is all around I saw her starting here Selfish love I Will Survive Witney Houston ????????????? Stardust - Take That - rule the world Forever autun Vescan Vama - Cantec de Gasit Alessandro Safina – Luna Kimi Wo Nosete Wonderful world James Morrison - Love Is Hard From Coldplay - Clocks The Be Bryan Adams - Please Forgive Me stAlina Manole - Colinda Copacului (muzica folk) Sash! - Adelante Enya - Only Time James Blunt - Goodbye My Lover Leonard Cohen - A Thousand Kisses Deep Richard Marx- " Right here waiting" Dj Tiesto - A tear in the open K'S Choice - Everything For Free Cassie-Me and You Twenty 4seven Dreams will come alive Sylver - Angel on my...
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...The naturalism and realism movements of the 1900s were fast and furious, enveloping and influencing drama, art, literature, and even people themselves. They were big stepping stones in the development of imagery, theme, and symbolism within literature, producing changes that still linger in novels today. One author whose writings are a perfect example of the influences of naturalism is Edith Wharton. Her short stories, novels, and personal biographies were riddled with naturalistic traits. Wharton used symbolism in Ethan Frome to enhance the naturalistic themes of the novel. Naturalism was a strong movement in the 1900s which took the literary world by storm. Using the theory that nature is an unconquerable force, always acting against man, literature was filled with all variations of naturalistic motifs and symbols (Campbell Naturalism). Themes of predestination, astrological influence, and natural moralistic values were strong (Bellman 140). Scenery was often used to convey the mood of characters through their observational view of it (Moore). Naturalism says that humans are animals, so their connection with nature is deep and vital. Feelings and desires are distinctly linked to the animalistic traits of humans’ ancestors, proving that instinct is something set by nature within the body, and cannot be ignored. Common characteristics of a naturalistic novel are found in that the characters are always lower-class, the characters always live by passion and instinct, and that free...
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...Laboratory but Affettuoso Naturalism in literature, still popular and widely appreciated nowadays, is a crucial part of the evolution of American literature. In this essay, I’ll explain naturalism from my point of view by referring to some information I found and analyze a few clips of The Age of Innocence in depth to seek the naturalistic technique in it. Naturalism, a prominent literary movement in the mid-19th-century France, spread all its way to many countries’ literature circle and exerted profound effect on the development of the later literature. It is a completely different tune from literally realism while it provided warm-bed for the emergence of the later literal category, temporary literature in America. Though it didn’t last for a long time, plus no systematic formula for it was created, its influence and how popular it was with the readers and critics can be easily seen nowadays. As one of the most well-known naturalists, Zola, once said, “Naturalism, in literature…is the return to nature and to man, direct observation, correct anatomy, the acceptance and the depiction of that which is. The task is the same for the scientist as for the writer. Both have to abandon abstractions for realities, ready-made formulas for rigorous analysis. Hence no more abstract characters in our words, no more history of everyone, the web and woof of the daily life…” We could clearly see that naturalists tend to depict the society and people in the most objective way, trying to...
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...Throughout John Ford’s, The Searchers, Ford constantly demonstrates conflict surrounding Ethan with his personal reliance and ideas in comparison to those of society. Ethan is displayed as rugged, brave, but also barbarous as he seeks revenge against the Comanche who killed his family and kidnapped his niece. But though Ethan seems to contrast the typical countryman with his lack of love for society, he truly epitomizes the ideal American in his loyalty to family, bravery, and drive to reach his goals. Ford’s demonstration of Ethan as this image of American identity demonstrates that the realities of American ideals aren’t as perfect as they are made out to be. Though in the end of the film Ethan does in fact save Debbie against his previous...
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...The novel starts with the narrator describing who Ethan Frome is. The narrator is never acknowledged but he starts of by being in Starkfield, a small village during the winter. The narrator wants to learn more about a local man named Ethan Frome, and the unfortunate event that happened over twenty years earlier. Because the train the narrator takes to work stops functioning, Ethan offers him a ride. The narrator asks the locals questions about Ethan Frome and what happened during the incident. One night when Frome is giving the narrator a ride back, a horrible storm passes, leading Ethan to invite the narrator to stay in his home for the night. After this incident, the story switched from first person to third person and goes back in time, back to the year of the incident. At this time Ethan Frome, a young 28-year-old man, is watching the lovely 21-year-old Mattie Silver, Ethan’s wife’s cousin, through the windows of the church. Mattie does house work at the Frome’s home, and also cares for Zeena who is very ill. Ethan becomes jealous while watching Mattie and Denis Eady dance together. He even eavesdrops on their conversation, hearing Mattie refuse Denis’s offer of a ride home and begins to walk home on her own. Ethan catches up with Mattie, and they walk home together. Their relationship and feelings begin to grow but it never goes past a kiss or an embrace. Zeena becomes suspicious of Ethan and Mattie’s relationship. She planned to replace Mattie with a new and more capable...
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...In the Prologue of Ethan Frome, Edith Wharton sets the frame for the main story describing the setting of the book taking place in Starkfield, Massachusetts. Illustrating the themes of silence and isolation, and darkness and despair "the sluggish pulse of Starkfield". The vast and empty winters, cold, and many events follow up the harshness and despjair of winter. Thus, the most symbolic feature in relations to the characters in the book with "the deadness of the community". Winter describes the character of Zeena as well as the character of Ethan after the "smash up". The long, cold New England winters have a negative effect on the mental health of the characters of the community. Twenty-eight year old Ethan feels trapped in his hometown...
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...In the novel, Running on Empty by Don Aker, there are many conflicts that the protagonist, Ethan Palmer faces. An obstacle that he faces is when Ethan drove his father's Volvo and clipped the front fender onto the corner of the garage door because of a 20 dollar bet with Seth, one of Ethan’s friends. Afterwards, his dad forces him to pay for the damages of the car fender, pay for the repair of the garage door, and losing driving privileges to teach his son life lessons. In the novel, Ethan says the repair costs was almost five thousand dollars plus tax and his conflict is that he has the money for the repair, but “what Ethan hadn’t anticipated was having to empty his entire bank account to pay for those goddamn repairs”-pg 17. He was saving...
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...Who is Ethan Frome? In the story of Ethan Frome, we look carefully at three imperative individual characters and the life they lead together. The reader has the capacity see numerous purposes of perspectives, and see what has happened to each of the characters. One may inquire as to whether these three people truly lead the "All American" method for living, or on the off chance that they simply walked around life barley alive. Numerous individuals might believe that to be an American, you have to have been conceived in America. Some may accept that being a genuine American, is to simply live in America. The dictionary defines being an American as “a person born, raised, or living in the United States.” (Dictionary.com)One may accept that an American takes after what used to be viewed as the "American Dream". In 1931 James Tuslow Adams characterizes this as "life ought to be better and wealthier and more full for everybody, with circumstance for every." The American individual representation a person who takes after their own particular dreams, and follows what they need keeping in mind the end goal to survive and make a life for themselves in America. When we take a glance at Ethan Frome, we see a tired man. At the point when the storyteller first meets Mr.Frome, he is shocked to see that he was a "careless powerful look" (Archive.org). The storyteller depicts him as elderly looking. He appears to be extremely unenthused about the life that he is living. He is married to a sickly...
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...Sun Animal: Buffalo Being ordinary, calm but bold, the buffalo is a nondescript animal on the plain. Ethan Frome obviously was one of the most ordinary person in a small village. “Even then he was the most striking figure in Starkfield, though he was but the ruin of a man.” However, he became “memorable”, because of his bold and tragical life. Plant: Dandelion Floating on the wind, the dandelion’s seeds never know where they will stop at or grow at; it is just like Ethan Frome’s love toward Mattie. “It pleased Ethan to have surprised a pair of lovers on the spot where he and Mattie had stood with such a thirst for each other in their hearts; but he felt a pang at the thought that these two need not hide their happiness”. Ethan loved Mattie, and wanted to “escape” his life with her, but the reality and his own moral hit him. Consequently, he confused and lost in love; he do not know where to find the way out. Color: White Meaning nothing, white is plain. So is Ethan. “He's looked that way ever since he had his smash-up; and that's twenty-four years ago come next February”. Ethan had nothing. He is completely white, which gives readers a sense of plain, as a ordinary farmer in a small town. Mineral: Iron Being hard, metallic, but not shining, iron is a type of transitional metal. "Guess he's been in Starkfield too many winters. Most of the smart ones get away." Ethan lived in a unpopular village. He sturdily lived on, looked tough, but never shiny in this various world. He...
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...The Novella of Edith Wharton, Ethan Frome, is a tragedy. Ethan Frome suffered tragedy because of his character flaws, errors in his judgment, and forces beyond his control. Ethan Frome married a woman, Zeena, he was lonely and not truly in love with her. When her cousin, Maddie comes to live with them Ethan becomes infatuated with her. When Maddie has to leave, Ethan and Maddie decide to kill themselves so they never would have to leave one another. In the novella of Edith Wharton, Ethan Frome, Ethan is a unique character who suffers a downfall due to character flaws, and errors in judgment, and most important forces beyond human control to in which he gains wisdom. Ethan Frome is a unique character who suffers a downfall in the tragedy of Ethan Frome for several reasons. Ethan is unique because he stands out in society. Ethan was a very tall, big man, but, “It was not so much his great height that marked him…it was the careless powerful look he had, in spite of a lameness checking each step like the jerk of a chain” (3). Ethan, because of his downfall looks tired and old. “There was something bleak and unapproachable in his face, and he was so stiffened and grizzled that [the reader] took him for an old man and was surprised to hear that he was not more than fifty-two” (3). Ethan Frome is unique compared to the rest of society. Ethan truly suffered at the end of the novella. Ethan tried to kill himself with Maddie so they could be together forever and not have to be with Zeena...
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