ETHAN FROME
Ethan Frome is the story of a man torn between his moral obligation to his sickly wife and his burning desire for her radiant cousin, Mattie Silver. Mattie had come to live in Starkfield with the Frome's to escape her pennyless life alone and to help Zeena fulfill the household duties while she was sick. She brought warmth that had been missing from the lonely farm since the beginning of Ethan's marriage, and soon enough he found himself in love with her. With his marriage and wife deteriorating, Mattie was his only hope to survive the endless winter- her laugh his new motivation in life. Zeena, suspitious and pitiful, felt the passion between the two and put Mattie out. After deciding not to live apart, Ethan and Mattie sled themselves headlong into a great Elm tree in a feeble attempt to end their lives. Ironically, the two survive and have to be taken care of by none other than Zeena herself. This is a depressing tale of abitious lust and immoral love, and what happens when fate gives you what you deserve.