An integral aspect of Edith Wharton’s novella, Ethan Frome, is the debilitating effects of

conflicting emotions. This is demonstrated as the titular character’s passionate love for Mattie

Silver battled his minute, underlying care for his ailing wife Zeena. This internal conflict plagues

him throughout the entire story, and it eventually leads to the infamous sled accident. The

physical manifestation of the injuries emphasizes the crippling effects of conflicting emotions

and the anguish in his heart. The ailments’ severity is stressed when the narrator marvels, “He

looks as if he is dead and in hell” (Wharton 4). His appearance as a dead man denotes that

emotional battles have exhausted his hope and excitement for life. His supernatural