Chapter IV Quiz — Ethan Frome

by Edith Wharton

Comprehension Quiz: Chapter IV

Why does Ethan ask Andrew Hale for an advance of fifty dollars?

• He needs to pay for Zeena’s medical treatment in Bettsbridge
• He told Zeena he would receive cash for the lumber delivery
• He wants to buy Mattie a gift while Zeena is away
• He owes a debt to Denis Eady’s father

What reason does Andrew Hale give for not paying Ethan early?

• He suspects Ethan is in financial trouble and wants him to admit it
• He is fixing up a house for Ned and Ruth’s upcoming marriage and money is tight
• He believes Ethan should wait the customary six months
• He has already overpaid Ethan on the previous delivery

According to the flashback in this chapter, why did Ethan marry Zeena?

• He was deeply in love with her intelligence and ambition
• His mother’s dying wish was for them to marry
• He was seized with dread of being left alone on the farm after his mother died
• Zeena was the only woman in Starkfield willing to live on an isolated farm

What inscription on the Frome family headstone catches Ethan’s attention?

• “Beloved father and husband who served his community”
• “Ethan Frome and Endurance his wife, who dwelled together in peace for fifty years”
• “Here lies a man who never left Starkfield”
• “May they rest in the silence they chose”

What does Mattie use to serve Ethan’s favorite pickles at supper?

• A plain earthenware bowl from the kitchen shelf
• A dish she bought specially from Shadd’s Falls
• Zeena’s red glass pickle-dish, a wedding present never meant to be used
• A tin plate left over from Ethan’s mother’s belongings

Did Denis Eady actually visit Mattie at the Frome farm while Ethan was away?

• Yes
• No

Did Ethan successfully get the fifty-dollar advance from Andrew Hale?

• Yes
• No

Did the cat sit in Zeena’s chair during supper?

• Yes
• No

Did Ethan tell Mattie the truth about what he did with the broken pickle-dish pieces?

• Yes
• No

What literary device does Wharton employ when Mattie opens the door in the same pose as Zeena?

• Foreshadowing
• Parallelism
• Hyperbole
• Allusion

What does "volubility" mean in the sentence: "After the mortal silence of his long imprisonment Zeena’s volubility was music in his ears"?

• Physical agility and quickness
• Fluent and eager talkativeness
• Musical ability or talent
• Emotional volatility

In context, what does "imprudence" mean: "He foresaw so clearly the consequences of this imprudence"?

• An act of great bravery
• A lack of care or foresight; a rash action
• A deliberate deception
• A generous but unwise gift

What symbolic function does the cat serve in this chapter?

• It represents Mattie’s playful nature and warmth
• It symbolizes Ethan’s suppressed desire to escape Starkfield
• It acts as a proxy for Zeena, disrupting Ethan and Mattie’s intimacy
• It represents the wildness of nature intruding on domestic life

What career did Ethan originally hope to pursue before his marriage?

• Farmer specializing in dairy production
• Lawyer in Bettsbridge
• Engineer in a large city
• Doctor like Zeena’s physicians

Comprehension Quiz