Love, Revenge, and Passion

Since its publication, Wuthering Heights has intrigued its readers; a love story gone wrong, twisted by vengeance and heartbreak. Many important factors of the novel are displayed in the portion of the novel narrated by Ellen. The passage in Wuthering Heights in which Catherine Linton’s funeral is described is vital in explaining important relationships in the novel, particularly the relationship between Heathcliff and Edgar Linton.

In Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë, Heathcliff’s strong love for Catherine guides his transformation as a character. While Heathcliff enters the story as an innocent child, the abuse he receives at a young age and his heartbreak at Catherine’s choice to marry Edgar Linton bring about a change within him. Heathcliff’s adulthood is consequently marked by jealousy and greed due to his separation from Catherine, along with manipulation and a deep desire to seek revenge on Edgar. Although Heathcliff uses deceit and manipulation to his advantage throughout the novel, he is never entirely content in his current situation. As Heathcliff attempts to revenge Edgar Linton, he does not gain true fulfillment. Throughout Wuthering Heights, Brontë uses Heathcliff’s vengeful actions to convey the message that manipulative and revenge-seeking behaviors will not bring a person satisfaction.

When Heathcliff returns three years later, his love for Catherine motivates him to enact revenge upon all those who separated him from her. Since he last saw Catherine, he has “fought through a bitter life”; he “struggled only for [her]” (Brontë 71). Nelly observes a “half-civilized ferocity” in Heathcliff’s brows (Brontë 70); she views him as “an evil beast…waiting his time to spring and destroy” (Brontë 79). Heathcliff’s obsessive love for Catherine becomes a menacing threat. Heathcliff reproaches Catherine because she “treated [him]

During his early years Heathcliff didn’t deceive those as much, but towards his teenager years his adopted sister Catherine shows how deceitful she can be. Catherine is attacked by a dog and is required to stay at this family called the Lintons for five weeks. While she is there she meets a young man named Edgar and hides her “wild side” to impress Edgar. “Catherine

Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights display of cultural and physical features of an environment affecting one’s character and moral traits is showcased through the first Catherine’s development throughout the novel. Catherine is forced to “adopt a double character”, as she lives as a rebellious, passionate woman on the turbulent Wuthering Heights, while behaving politely and courtly on the elegant Thrushcross Grange(Bronte, 48). Each of these environments also contains a love interest of Catherine’s, each man parallel with the characteristics of their environments: Heathcliff, the passionate and destructive, residing in Wuthering Heights, while the civilized and gentle Edgar inhabits Thrushcross Grange. Catherine’s development in character due to her setting significantly contributes to the theme that pursuing passionate love is dangerous, such as the love shared by Heathcliff and Catherine.

Have you ever gotten to the end of a book and been clueless about how all of the problems that are out in the open will get resolved in the next few pages? Or worse, gotten to the end of a book, without any of the problems getting resolved at all? Are you unaware of how the characters ended up? Do all of the unanswered questions gnaw at you? Do you instantly begin to make up your own scenarios of how the story should have ended, just to tighten all of the loose knots? Similarly, the relationship of Catherine and Heathcliff from Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights, ends this way, abruptly and without resolutions to many of their problems. While they seem to share an idealistic relationship, it is not a sufficient one, as Catherine and Heathcliff

Catherine determines that it will be more practical to marry Edgar. She explains her reasoning to Nelly, and Heathcliff overhears part of the conversation. He is heartbroken and leaves Wuthering Heights. Catherine goes into a fit, demanding that everyone search for Heathcliff and bring him home. She is quite upset and angry (even beating her young nephew, Hareton).

When a person is wronged by another, one’s first instinct is to seek revenge with the intention to inflict harm upon those who have wronged them, but instead end up harming themselves in the process. Heathcliff’s main aim throughout the novel Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte was to seek revenge on those who have wronged him during his childhood. It presents the idea of the cycle of revenge through the literally elements of character, irony, and theme. In the novel Heathcliff passionately tries to seek revenge through anger and violence for the abuse which he experiences throughout his childhood.

The events in a child’s life mold who he or she will one day become; for Catherine this was the day she and Heathcliff snuck out to the Thurshcross Grange and she injured her ankle. During her early years, Catherine was free spirited and was unable to understand or relate to her father’s serious attitude. In attempt to provoke her father Catherine,

This passage illustrates not only the stark difference of demeanor between Nelly and Heathcliff, but the shift in Heathcliff’s conduct and mindset when Catherine was no longer around. The passage begins by Nelly describing how peaceful Catherine’s death was and how she hoped her afterlife would be just as peaceful. Immediately after, Heathcliff proclaims that Catherine should “wake in torment”; a stark difference to Nelly and Heathcliff’s attitude about her death. Nelly wishes her to be peaceful, but Heathcliff is so selfish that he wishes Catherine a tortured afterlife to comfort himself. The juxtaposition of the peaceful tone set by Nelly and the agony expressed by Heathcliff sets the stage for Heathcliff’s deranged manner that continues through the rest of the book.

Have you ever been in love, but was unable to be with that person because of things like social status or rules, family feuds, money issues or distance? If not, you have probably lived it out vicariously through literature. This theme has recurred in many different works like Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story, and The Great Gatsby. However, these are not the only literary works that showcase this theme. Written by Emily Bronte, Wuthering Heights is a prime example of how societal customs and reasoning can cause love to become a mere flaw in human nature. This is especially seen in both Catherine and her daughter, Cathy and their loved ones. In turn, the skewed perspectives of the characters caused tremendous turmoil in the rest of the character’s lives. Because of classism, love in Wuthering Heights is often clouded as seen throughout the Earnshaw family

Bronte, The author of the Wuthering Heights, expresses many themes and morals in her book. The one most important in the Wuthering Heights is the theme of love and cruelty. The main characters, Catherine and Heathcliff, show these actions time and time again. They occur because of the other, much like the yin and the yang. Love leads to cruelty and cruelty leads to love. In Wuthering Heights, there are two different types of love shown: platonic and passionate. Both of these types of love lead to cruelty to other characters. As Heathcliff states boldly within the first few chapters of the novel, love’s cruelty survives even beyond death. “Cathy, do come. Oh do – once more! Oh! My heart’s darling; hear me this time, Catherine, at last!”

Love is a strong attachment between two lovers and revenge is a strong conflict between two rivals. In the novel Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte uses setting to establish contrast, to intensify conflict, and to develop character. The people and events of Wuthering Heights share a dramatic conflict. Thus, Bronte focuses on the evil eye of Heathcliff's obsessive and perpetual love with Catherine, and his enduring revenge to those who forced him and Catherine apart. The author expresses the conflict of Wuthering Heights with great intensity. Hence, she portrays a combination of crucial issues of romance and money, hate and power, and lastly

Heathcliff overhears this conversation between Nelly and Catherine and leaves Wuthering Heights after hearing Catherine say that it would degrade her to marry him. Heathcliff tries to make himself more presentable to Catherine by moving up the social system. However, he does this by cheating and taking advantage of people. Heathcliff takes advantage of Hindley's state of alcoholism and takes over Wuthering Heights. Heathcliff also takes advantage of Edgar Linton's will my making young Catherine (the daughter of Catherine Earnshaw and Edgar Linton) marry Linton (the son of Heathcliff and Isabella Linton)

It is the opinion of this essay that the character of Heathcliff evolves a lot more than the character of Catherine. When we first meet Heathcliff, he was found on the streets of Liverpool by Catherine’s father who then adopts him into the family as one of his own. This would have been a dramatic change for Heathcliff. Then after experiencing this quality of life until the death of the father he is then cast into the role of a servant/labourer by Catherine’s brother who despises him. Finally, when Heathcliff hears part of the conversation between Catherine and Nelly, he hears Catherine plans to marry Edgar Linton as she could never marry Heathcliff. “It would degrade me to marry Heathcliff now”. (82) It is here Heathcliff leaves Wuthering Heights and returns three years later, a gentleman of means and of polite demeanour, not what you would expect from him. Here we can bring back the point that one’s environment dramatically affects one’s behaviour. Like Catherine, Heathcliff defies social norms expected of his gender. After he returns back from travelling having acquired great wealth and on the surface seems a changed man, he would be accepted into middle class society as he displays the characteristics expected of him. It is well described in the book to enforce the dramatic change in him for readers to understand how far he has come from