Critical lens Frome

	George Bernard Shaw once said "Life contains but two tragedies. One is not to get your heart's desire; the other is to get it. This quote represents the omnipresence of unhappiness in a one's life, whether by obtaining that which you most desire, or failing to do so. With the aforementioned statement, I agree completely. This is exemplified in Edith Wharton's Ethan Frome both by Ethan and Mattie not being able to be together, and by their confession of love to each other.
	Ethan and Mattie confess their love to each other, but they realize that it can not be, so they instead attempt to kill themselves. This ironically however fails and allows them to spend the rest of their life together, but following Shaw's words, they spend their time in pain and suffering. This is foreshadowed however by earlier events, such as when they have dinner alone when Zeena; Ethan's wife was away, and they break her most prized possession; a red pickle dish. Though Ethan tries to repair the dish, he is unable to. This symbolizes the breaking of Ethan and Zeena's marriage. This breaking of the dish, and therefore Ethan's marriage caused Ethan and Mattie to worry about what would come in the future.
	Ethan and Zeena's marriage disallows Ethan to fulfill his desire to be with Mattie. Though parasitic, their marriage is maintained for three reasons. These reasons are that they are too poor to get a divorce and survive, Zeena is ill and thus gains Ethan's sympathy disallowing Ethan from abandoning her, and the final reason being that at the time the story is based in it is social taboo to get a divorce. At the end of the story, Ethan attempts suicide thereby abandoning Zeena indirectly. Ironically Zeena must care for Mattie at the end of the story, while in the beginning of the novella, it is the inverse.
	The novella by Edith Wharton Ethan Frome expresses the ever present suffering humans endure both in gaining what they want, or being unable to get what they want. This work is a fine example of the truth in the words of George Bernard Shaw.