Question

Read the excerpt below from Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton and answer the question that follows.

They finished supper, and while Mattie cleared the table Ethan went to look at the cows and then took a last turn about the house. The earth lay dark under a muffled sky and the air was so still that now and then he heard a lump of snow come thumping down from a tree far off on the edge of the wood-lot.

When he returned to the kitchen Mattie had pushed up his chair to the stove and seated herself near the lamp with a bit of sewing. The scene was just as he had dreamed of it that morning. He sat down, drew his pipe from his pocket and stretched his feet to the glow. His hard days work in the keen air made him feel at once lazy and light of mood, and he had a confused sense of being in another world, where all was warmth and harmony and time could bring no change. The only drawback to his complete well-being was the fact that he could not see Mattie from where he sat; but he was too indolent to move and after a moment he said: œCome over here and sit by the stove.

Zeenas empty rocking-chair stood facing him. Mattie rose obediently, and seated herself in it. As her young brown head detached itself against the patch-work cushion that habitually framed his wifes gaunt countenance, Ethan had a momentary shock. It was almost as if the other face, the face of the superseded woman, had obliterated that of the intruder. After a moment Mattie seemed to be affected by the same sense of constraint. She changed her position, leaning forward to bend her head above her work, so that he saw only the foreshortened tip of her nose and the streak of red in her hair; then she slipped to her feet, saying œI cant see to sew, and went back to her chair by the lamp. Ethan made a pretext of getting up to replenish the stove, and when he returned to his seat he pushed it sideways that he might have a view of her profile and of the lamplight falling on her hands. The cat, who had been a puzzled observer of these unusual movements, jumped up into Zeenas chair, rolled itself into a ball, and lay watching them with narrowed eyes.

The inclusion of the cat in this passage most likely
A. represents natures presence in the room
B. adds to the domestic tranquility of the setting
C. adds tactile imagery
D. reflects the readers puzzled view of this scene as well
E. represents Zeenas continued presence in the room

Answer 1

The cat in the passage symbolizes Zeena's presence and possibly her authority, as it occupies her chair and observes Ethan and Mattie with puzzlement, reflecting the tension between them. Option E. represents Zeenas continued presence in the room is the correct answer.

Step-by-step explanation:

In the context of the passage from Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton, the inclusion of the cat most likely represents Zeenan's continued presence in the room. Mattie's substitution for Zeena in her rocking-chair, followed by the cat's action of taking the same chair and observing the scene, suggests a symbolic representation of Zeena's watchful presence and possibly her authority within the household.

Moreover, the cat's puzzled observation mirrors the characters' unease, acting as a silent observer to the undercurrents of tension between Ethan and Mattie.