An Ecological Interpretation Of The Grotesque Characters In Ethan Frome

Ethan Frome is a novella written by American woman writer Edith Wharton in 1911.It describes the country life in New England and the tragic destiny of Ethan Frome.With its unique writing technique and the focus on the lower class for the first time,this novella is different from Wharton's Old New York series.It is widely regarded as the best tragedy of Wharton.Though the structure,writing skills and characters of this novella have been studied by many scholars,the interpretation of the grotesque characters from the perspective of eco-criticism has rarely been done.Eco-criticism probes into the relationship between literature and nature.It aims to discover the ecological consciousness in literary works and the cultural source of ecological crisis.Ethan Frome narrates the tragic experience of three physical or mental grotesques,reflects social ecological and natural ecological change caused by economic development at transitional age,and the human ecological tragedy triggered by it.On the basis of previous research,this thesis explores the characters in Ethan Frome from the perspective of eco-criticism.According to American history,we can find the development of capitalist economy has tremendous influence on the ecology of nature,society and spirit during the early 20th century.Though Wharton didn't intend to describe the influence of capitalist economy,she reflected it through the narration of the grotesque characters in Ethan Frome,The advancement of material civilization,the lag of spiritual civilization and the damage of ecological environment create the grotesque characters in Ethan Frome.The novella demonstrates that human development is closely bound up with natural ecology.It provides an important reference for the current development in China.Based on the social background of Wharton and the novella,this thesis analyzes the social and natural causes of the grotesques from the eco-criticism perspective.It focuses on the ecological value of the novella and probes into the ecological relationship and problems in it.The thesis first briefly introduces the literary creation of Edith Wharton,the present research on Ethan Frome and the development of eco-criticism.Then it analyzes the physical and mental grotesque characters,discusses the causes of grotesques from three aspects:nature,society and spirit,and explores the ecological significance of the grotesque images.At last,it summarizes the ecological significance of the novella and points out its reference value for the current ecological problems in China.