Ethan?s Flaws As A Tragic Hero
What is a tragic hero Most people would think this term simply means the protagonist of a story that ends in a tragic way. But this interpretation is not entirely true. In fact, a tragic hero is indeed the protagonist of a tragedy, but the more important part is that they always have one flaw that leads them to their unhappiness. The novel Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton can be considered a tragedy because the main character, Ethan, has one tragic flaw. The protagonist from the story is antisocial and this one flaw leads to an inability to express his feelings, loneliness, and a failed marriage.
Ethan Frome?s antisocial behavior makes it impossible to express his feelings. He is very unhappy with his marriage to Zeena but he never tells anyone how he feels. He simply goes on with his life like nothing is wrong. This not only hurts himself, but Zeena as well. He also cannot express his feelings for Mattie. One example of this is in chapter five, right after Zeena has left for Bettsbridge. The scene is where Mattie is cleaning the dishes and Ethan
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