Essay Test: Ethan Frome

Name:___________________________

Br. Rob Peach

ENG 320 Sections 2 and 4

30 March 2007

Essay Test, re: Ethan Frome

Short Answer: (15 points)

We’ve talked a lot about the meaning of names in the novel. Explain the significance and relationship of the following names—Ethan Frome, Zeena (Zenobia), and Mattie Silver—to the plot conflict and theme of the novel. In other words, compose a list of possible definitions for each name and then write why you think the descriptions are appropriate to what happens in the text.

Essay: (25 points)

We’ve talked quite a bit about the major motifs of Wharton’s Ethan Frome, namely those thematic issues of “effacement,” “obscurity,” “power,” and “identity.” Based on what you have in in the text, your notes, and what we’ve discussed in class, construct an essay in which you delve into three of the four aforesaid elements, exploring their meaning as well as their relevance to the text. For your concluding paragraph, please synthesize your chosen themes by explaining their inter-relationship.