Some novels although they may not be intended to be, may in fact read like a fairy tail. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton, is one of those novels. According to Elisabeth Ammons, Wharton seems to base this fictional fairy tale on the familiar American story of Snow White. Elizabeth Ammons clearly states the relation between the two as, ""The emphasis on sevens, the physical appearance of Mattie Silver, her persecutions, by which like Zeena, as well as Mattie's roll as housekeeper." (Ammons) The comparison between the two is clear in both the tales of Snow White and Ethan Frome, although the Author may not have meant to tie the two.
In order to discover the small events relating Snow White and Ethan Frome on would have to search meticulously, however, after doing so, one will recognize that the view points of Elizabeth Ammons are extraordinarily factual. This fairy tale like novel, based upon Warton's own life, was in fact used to recreate not only her life story, but also the social structure and landscape of rural New England. One of the most important events in Ethan Frome, which noticeably portrays that of Snow White, is when Zeena's cat interrupts the deep conversation between Mattie and Ethan. This event is shown in the quote, "The cat, who had been a puzzled observer of these unusual movements, jumped up into Zeena's chair, rolled itself into a ball, and lay watching them with narrowed eyes." (Wharton 78) This quote strongly ties into the actions of the witch's crow in Snow White, who to keep watch over her, persistently follows Snow White. When Ethan starts to aproach Mattie, Zeena's cat always seems to be there, causing them to suspect that he's watching there every move, much like the crow.
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Regardless of the key event with Zeena's cat, there are countless minor events which leave you to deem the views of Ammons and her idea of a fairytale related theme to be true.
