Ethan Frome

My favorite example of imagery presented by Wharton in the novel occurs when she writes: "About a mile farther, on a road I had never traveled, we came to an orchard of starved apple trees writhing over a hillside among outcroppings of slate that nuzzled up through the snow like animals pushing their noses out to breathe." I chose this section because I not only really like the imagery presented, but I also enjoy the manner in which it effectively elicits emotion in order to provide a better understanding of one of the novella's underlying themes. The theme represented is certainly one of how the town of Starkfield has an inherent  tendency of stifling life, suffocating it in its literal winters and in its emotional oppressiveness. The cold environment leads to isolation in the winters and an intelligent individual would seek to escape the area at the earliest opportunity, as asserted by Harmon's statement, "Most of the smart ones get away." This concept of imagery eliciting emotion connects directly to, and aids in, understanding the real purpose of imagery. On its face, of course, imagery is simply the description of something observable in a manner that appeals to a reader's senses. Observation of masterful authors, and I'm assuming that Wharton is one of these, will reveal quickly that imagery is a tool capable of doing much more. As I mentioned before, imagery can also appeal to the emotions of the reader, and in so doing, make a connection to themes beyond observable phenomena. Edith Wharton uses the imagery of Starfield's winter as a larger allegory for general stunted potential, loneliness, and sadness. More significantly the winter is a metaphor for the modern state of the novella's namesake, Frome, who has been left as cold and desolate as the Starkfield winter's by yet untold circumstances in his emotional past. Clearly Wharton understand's the true might of imagery and, undoubtedly, more examples of this literary technique shall appear as the class delves deeper into the wintry past of Ethan Frome.