Ethan Frome Test Flashcards
Who takes care of the sick Frome?
Zeena
Who goes to the post office everyday?
Ethan
Who falls in love with a married man?
Mattie
Who is symbolic for the pickle dish?
Ethan
Who refuses to stay for dinner at the Fromes?
Jotham
Who sells her piano?
Mattie
Who shares his copy of “Popular Mechanics”?
Narrator
Who becomes fascinated with Frome?
Narrator
Who quit college for family reasons?
Ethan
Who refuses to abandon Zeena?
Ethan
Who took Zeena to the train station?
Jotham
Who tries to repair the pickle dish before Zeena returns?
Ethan
Who refuses to give Ethan an advance?
Andrew Hale
Who helps Mattie move her trunk?
Ethan
How is Chapter 10 Zeena’s chapter?
Everything is how Zeena wanted it to be. She is in control. Mattie is no longer a threat.
Explain how the story is framed.
The story is framed by an anonymous first-person narrator.
Who lies about getting paid in advance for work?
Ethan
Who was forced to stay overnight at the Frome Farm?
Mattie
Explain naturalism in the novel.
Nature is in control during the sled ride.
What is the symbolism of the cat and rocking chair?
Guilt
What is the symbolism of the red pickle dish?
Ethan
What is the symbolism of the sled ride?
Free will and fate.
What is the symbolism of the dilapidated kitchen?
Poverty
What is the symbolism of the cat and mouse?
Mattie and Ethan chasing after each other.
What is the significance of the novel’s setting?
Starkfield is rural.
Explain determinism in the novel.
Nature is a force that can either mature or destroy a man.
Give 2 examples of how Ethan is the pickle dish.
Zeena possesses Ethan. When Zeena verbally attacks Mattie, i’s hard to tell if she is talking about Ethan or the dish.
What is an extension of Starkfield?
Frome’s farm
What does the glue represent?
Ethan doesn’t have control over the environment.
How is the foreshadowing revealed in Chapter 9?
The reader already knew that Ethan had a terrible accident and lived through it.
Who has a romantic interest in Mattie?
Ethan
Who was left penniless by her father?
Mattie
Who is very ill and visits numerous doctors?
Zeena
Who wants Mattie to leave?
Zeena
List 5 of the 7 themes in the novel.
Lost Potential, Determinism/Naturalism, Repressed Passion, Isolation. and Poverty
Tell how each of the 3 main characters are trapped in poverty.
Ethan cannot leave the farm because he has no education due to his family’s poverty. Zeena is too ill to provide for herself and Ethan is not heartless enough to leaver her. Mattie is destitute and must rely on her cousin’s family for financial support.
How does Zeena foreshadow Mattie?
Zeena was once a bright young woman but she isn’t anymore due to the harsh life on the Frome Farm.
Give an example of the environment’s power over man from the novel.
Horse falls. Sleet makes work slow. Ethan is powerless to do anything about the weather.
Which character is associated with honor?
Ethan
What is the significance of Ethan’s relationship with Zeena?
Ethan owes Zeena.
