The pickle-dish, Zeena's favorite wedding present, is a symbol of Ethan and Zeena's marriage. For this reason, its destruction is particularly devastating to Zeena. The red color of the dish can be interpreted as symbolizing the passion that the couple no longer share.
The Red Glass Pickle-dish Quotes in Ethan Frome
The Ethan Frome quotes below all refer to the symbol of The Red Glass Pickle-dish. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 4
Quotes
Completely reassured, she shone on him through tear-hung lashes, and his soul swelled with pride as he saw how his tone had subdued her. She did not even ask what he had done. Except when he was steering a big log down the mountain to his mill he had never known such a thrilling sense of mastery.
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Chapter 7
Quotes
"If I'd 'a' listened to folks, you'd 'a' gone before now, and this wouldn't 'a' happened," she said; and gathering up the bits of broken glass she went out of the room as if she carried a dead body . . .
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The Red Glass Pickle-dish Symbol Timeline in Ethan Frome
The timeline below shows where the symbol The Red Glass Pickle-dish appears in Ethan Frome. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4
...her hair. The table is carefully laid for supper, with Ethan's favorite pickles in a red glass pickle -dish . The room is warm and bright, and Zeena's cat lies contentedly by the fire....
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...and Mattie's hands meet on the handle of the milk-jug the cat knocks over the pickle-dish, shattering it.
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Mattie is distraught. The pickle-dish was one of Zeena's most prized wedding gifts. In fact, Zeena prizes it so highly...
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Chapter 6
...to drive another load of logs to town and buy some glue to fix the pickle-dish while sending Jotham to fetch Zeena at the train station. However, one of the horses...
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...and has gone upstairs without saying a word. Ethan tells Mattie he will fix the pickle-dish later than night after Zeena has gone to bed.
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Chapter 7
When Zeena returns, she is furious and carrying the broken pickle-dish. Ethan tells her the cat knocked it over, to which Zeena replies that a cat...
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Chapter 8
At dawn, Mattie appears in the doorway wearing her red scarf . She is pale and says she has been awake all night, listening for him...
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