According to the Microsoft Word Encarta dictionary, juxtaposition is placing two or more things, side by side, to emphasize the contrasts and similarities between them. Edith Wharton deliberately places the characters of Mattie Silver and Zeena Frome together in the novel Ethan Frome to compare and contrast them. Although Mattie has only recently been in contact with Starkfield, Zeena has lived there for seven despondent years. Wharton's intent was to accustom the reader to seeing Zeena and Mattie in such a harsh confrontation, thus making the climatic ending extremely ironic. Throughout the novel, Wharton accentuates Zeena and Mattie's character traits, such as their physical appearance, which creates conflict in the women's interactions with Ethan and consequently each other, until, ironically, the two characters finally merge and they become one. don't judge a book by its cover,? you never get a second chance to make a first impression, most first impressions come from appearance. Edith Wharton harshly juxtaposes the appearances of Mattie and Zeena, to a degree so extreme that it almost seems biased. From the beginning of the novel, Zeena is portrayed as old and ?repulsive? (46) housewife. No substantive information is given, nor the causes of his tiredness and ?bloodless? (53) behavior. “Although she was only seven years older than her husband, she was already an old woman.” (53) In a stark comparison, Mattie is portrayed as a young and vibrant woman, but one with natural beauty. This drastic juxtaposition is black and white, with no gray areas, just the strong Mattie and the weak Zeena. However, the colors used to describe Mattie and Zeena are not black and white, each of them… in the center of the card… such a sweet and kind-hearted tie, it was for readers to feel sympathy for Ethan, who is busy for life with Zeena. Wharton made the ending, when Zeena and Mattie became one, ironic through the use of juxtaposition and creating characters with significant differences between them. Wharton, who possesses the skill of juxtaposition, has added depth and irony to the book, but by the time the reader realizes his underlying purpose, Ethan Frome and Mattie Silver no longer deserve the sympathy they have received throughout the book. Zeena, throughout the book, has been looked at too harshly, not realizing the reasons behind her ugliness and depression, and deserves the readers' sympathy. This book expresses many insightful accounts of Ethan Frome's life, but it is the ideas that Wharton fails to mention and the secrets she has kept from the reader that influence the perceptions of the characters..