Narcissistic Personality Disorder, By Emily Bronte

The culture of set societal rules and conventions urges Catherine to be with Edgar, compelling her to be ‘the greatest woman of the neighbourhood’ due to them being relatively firm in their gentry’s status. This suggests the importance of her social status against the nature of her love for Heathcliff stating, ‘we would be beggars’, through employing the word ‘beggars’ the reader crafts the idea of her belief that she won’t survive without her status. Catherine admits ‘It would degrade me to marry Heathcliff now; so he shall never know how I love him’ Thus implying a swelling sense of her vanity and pride; enough to enjoy the position she gains from being married to Edgar despite her admiration for Heathcliff, being ‘more than (herself) than (she is)’and

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.

Heathcliff resents her scorn. He desires to regain her approval. He attempts to be “decent” and “good” for her sake (Brontë 40). However, his attempt to be decent fails miserably. He resents the attentions that Catherine gives to Edgar. Catherine would rather wear a “silly frock” and have dinner with “silly friends” than ramble about the moors with him (Brontë 50). Heathcliff keeps track of the evenings Catherine spends with Edgar and those that she spends with him. He desperately wants to be with Catherine. When Catherine announces to Nelly her engagement to Edgar, Heathcliff eavesdrops, but leaves the room when he “heard Catherine say it would degrade her to marry him” (Brontë 59). Catherine has spurned his love, choosing Edgar over him. Heathcliff cannot bear this rejection. The love he possesses for her transcends romantic and filial love (Mitchell 124). He feels that he is one with her (Mitchell 123).

As a consequence of Heathcliff's visit to the Grange, Edgar's sister Isabella falls in love with him, and her feelings seem to be sincere. In this one-sided love affair Heathcliff takes advantage of the innocent girl's infatuation to foster his obsession for revenge. (Isabella is her brother's heir). Catherine's reaction is very hard to interpret. It is natural that she is jealous, if she still feels the same for him as before, and that may be the reason why she dissuades Isabella from marrying Heathcliff. But the words she uses, telling her what an abominable creature Heathcliff is, are not the sort you expect to hear from someone talking of a sweetheart. Later on when her husband and Heathcliff are having a quarrel, she stops Edgar from hurting her friend . There is an excess of emotion, and her explanation to this behaviour is that she wants them both, Edgar and Heathcliff: "Well, if I cannot keep Heathcliff for my friend - if Edgar will be mean and jealous, I'll try to break their hearts by breaking my own" (109).Her love for Heathcliff has not cooled down, instead it seems to be a stronger obsession than ever considering the torments she goes through, when she becomes seriously ill.The last time Catherine and Heathcliff see each other is a very heart-rending meeting. Their love for each other is as strong as ever, and Heathcliff

Heathcliff is abused; his only source of love is his dearest Catherine, yet even that love cannot thrive in Heathcliff’s environment. The problem is not that his love is unrequited, but rather that Catherine believes she would fall to ruin if she were to be with Heathcliff “It would degrade me to marry Heathcliff now; so he shall never know how I love him---because he's more

He wants to get revenge on him for taking Cathy away from him, so he uses violence. This further shows that violence is largely used to take vengeance on others, especially by Heathcliff. As the characters aged, Heathcliff exacts revenge on Edgar for marrying Cathy by marrying and then abusing his sister Isabella. He believes that since he cannot directly punish Edgar for marrying Cathy and making her ill, he will punish Isabella instead, “He told me of Catherine’s illness, and accuses my brother of causing it, promising that I should be Edgar’s proxy in suffering, till he could get a hold of him.” (Bronte 143) Heathcliff admits that the only reason he married Isabella is to indirectly take revenge on Edgar through her as a proxy.

“We love with a love that was more than love” stated by a famous poet by the name of Edgar Allen Poe. True love can appear deeper than the surface. Repeatedly humans confide in their brain on who they are “infatuated” and make decisions based upon that. Emily Bronte depicts this well in her outstanding novel “Wuthering Heights.” In the story, two characters by the name of Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw are constantly yearning for each throughout the novel but under certain circumstances can be wed together. As an adopted child, Heathcliff comes into the family and attaches himself to Catherine. However, another character by the name of Edgar Linton, similarly loves Catherine but is the complete contrast of Heathcliff. Coming from a well-off family, Linton is almost a picture perfect of what society wants in a male being wealthy, respectful, and highly intelligent. On the other hand, Heathcliff is a poor, uncivilized, and simple-minded child. Bronte indicates in her narrative in a “what-if” situation based on the love between them both. Creating scenario, she creates a blurry line in between wrong and right choice for love. Nonetheless, “logical choice” is not always the correct choice nor is it a clear-cut choice. The author asks a question of “If it is a choice between the rational and true love, which do you chose?” Because of this, Bronte makes readers

In Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë, Catherine Earnshaw is in love with Heathcliff, a poor orphan who has become her foster brother. Their inseparable bond helps them survive the harshness and cruelty of their lives. However, wealthy Edgar Linton is in love with her as well, and Catherine must choose between them. Cathy sacrifices her future with Heathcliff so that she can marry Edgar Linton. This reveals that she is selfish enough to want a comfortable life at the expense of her "true love", but that she is also pragmatic and knows that having more money will help Heathcliff into a better social situation.

Catherine also talks at length about how marrying Edgar would be the best thing for her, and even though this action is presumably for wealth and power should love not transcend wealth and power? Tytler also conveys how Catherine and Heathcliff “regard each other as alter ego’s” (173). If they see each other as alter ego’s they can’t love each other. They use each other more as something to lean on to balance themselves. They see themselves as friends working together not as passionate lovers live some scholars believe.

Heathcliff and Catherine’s relationship shows how love and hate intertwine because they both love each other, but also betray each other many times and even marry other people. Bronte shows this concept when Heathcliff confesses his love to Catherine on her deathbed, and says, “'It is hard to forgive, and to look at those eyes, and feel those wasted hands,' he answered. 'Kiss me again; and don't let me see your

While Catherine’s intention for marrying Edgar may be to help her true love, Heathcliff does not perceive it this way. He feels that Catherine has betrayed her own affections for him. By marrying Edgar, Catherine has compromised her undying love for Heathcliff. Her words of love mean nothing to Heathcliff if she cannot express them in action. As a result of this, Heathcliff swears revenge against Edgar, the one who has stolen his precious Catherine from him.

Brontë’s Catherine loves the wild Heathcliff and desires defiance of rules and limitations. However, unlike Gretchen, Catherine conforms to social norms by marrying the dull Edgar Linton instead of Heathcliff. Isabella becomes passionate about diverging from societal norms and the ability to making her own decisions. With these desires in mind, she marries an abusive man – even when Catherine warns her about Heathcliff.

Mr. Heathcliff progresses through his own type of personal revolution which he supports the culture of his enemies, to use them primarily against the future. Noticing the contradictions Catherine states, “It would degrade me to marry Heathcliff, now; so he shall never know I love him; and that, not because he’s handsome, Nelly, but because he’s more myself than I am”(Bronte 70). Since Catherine’s brother, Hindley, has given Heathcliff the status of a servant, she cannot marry him. Here contradictions between both social classes, upper class has to be with the rich and lower class with the poor. Even though Catherine admits that she loves Heathcliff and finds him very handsome she still marries Edgar Linton, who has social position and money.

This leads to him running away from the heights entirely, leaving Catherine to marry Edgar. “He had listened till he heard Catherine say it would degrade her to marry him.” (81). Upon his return (two years later), Heathcliff marries Isabella to get back at Catherine, and her speech about how marrying him would degrade her. Isabella is also taken against her and her family’s will. Heathcliff kidnaps her and locks her away at the heights. In a letter written to Nelly, Isabella confirms that it was truly against her will for her leaving, and that she cannot return in the time of crisis in her brother’s life. “… an entreaty for kind remembrance and reconciliation, if her proceeding offended him: asserting that she could not help it then, and being done, no power to repeal it.” (140). In the act of kidnapping Isabella, Heathcliff’s intent is to hurt Catherine. Catherine would develop almost a jealous-like temper towards the whole situation, as Heathcliff knew it would. Even on Catherine’s deathbed, there is a constant push and pull (in almost a literal sense) of the cruelty that goes on between the two of them. Between the crying, the vexing, and the constant apologies, comes the brutal cruelty of the words Catherine speaks to Heathcliff. “I shall not pity you, not I. You have killed me – and thriven on it, I think.” (164)

While at Thrushcross Grange, she grows infatuated with Edgar, despite her love for Heathcliff. Edgar came from an upper class family as well and took care of her when she was in a dog accident. This leads to her acceptance of Edgar Linton’s marriage proposal despite her statements regarding her love for Heathcliff. Heathcliff overhears unfortunate passages of Catherine's discourse and disappears for a period during which he mysteriously makes his fortune and changes irrevocably from the person he was. Vengeance consumes him, and Heathcliff attempts to destroy the lives of those who wronged him, (as well as their children). Ultimately, Heathcliff’s bitterly executed vengeance is effaced by a love between Hareton and Cathy that mirrors Heathcliff’s own love for Catherine. Hareton is Catherine’s nephew and Cathy is Catherine’s daughter, which makes the two first cousins.