In Ethan Frome (1911), Edith Wharton spins a Gothic tale of love and loss, creating a hero constrained by poverty and duty, yet consumed by yearnings for happiness. This story of the hopeless and hapless farmer, Ethan Frome, is set in snow-muffled, isolated Berkshires of western Massachusetts at the turn of the twentieth century.Despite the tragic plot and bleak setting, Wharton claimed that writing the book made her happy because, for the first time, she felt fully in command of her art. Readers over the decades have confirmed Wharton's own. belief in the quality of her story and style in this novel, for Ethan Frome remains an enduring American classic and the most widely read of her many celebrated works.......

EACH ENRICHED CLASSIC EDITION INCLUDES:

A concise introduction that gives readers important background information;

A chronology of the author"s life and work;

A timeline of significant events that provides the book"s historical context;

An outline of key themes and plot points to help readers form their own interpretations;

Detailed explanatory notes;

Critical analysis, including contemporary and modern perspectives on the work;

Discussion questions to promote lively classroom and book group interaction;

A list of recommended related books and films to broaden the reader"s experience.

INTRODUCTION

CHRONOLOGY OF EDITH WHARTON"S

LIFE AND WORK

HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF Ethan Frome

ETHAN FROME

NOTES

INTERPRETIVE NOTES

CRITICAL EXCERPTS

QUESTIONS FOR Discussion

SUGGESTIONS FOR THE INTERESTED READER