The Relationship Between Catherine And Heathcliff

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

Although she never knew her mother, Cathy shows traits from both her parents. From Catherine, she gains a more fiery spirit, strength, and the ability to control. From Edgar, she gains a weaker, calmer, and more acceptable conduct in society. Cathy becomes the mixture of this unlikely pair. On one hand, she is calm and weak, and on the other hand, she is excitable and strong. Her personality depends on the situation and circumstance. However, these traits do not mix. She cannot be both strong and weak at the same time; she cannot be both hot and cold at the same time. An instance of her demonstrating more Earnshaw-like characteristics is when she talks back to Heathcliff. She tells him that no one will ever love him, and he is unlovable. In her strength to yell at the much physically stronger Heathcliff and offend him, she shows him her own strength and power. This strength comes from the legacy of her mother, Catherine. Also, Cathy shows physical strength and power when she pushes Linton’s chair down when they are in a fight. “Cathy, beside herself, gave the chair a violent push, and caused him to fall against one arm” (239). This shows her power over other people in the novel as Catherine did when she was a child. Cathy’s Linton behavior is more present in her everyday actions. She is more refined and sophisticated, which is a characteristic of the Lintons. Because of these two sides

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.

However Catherine lured Heathcliff into a relationship, brain washed him into thinking that she truely loved him and was going to marry him one fine day. Instead she discarded their relationship and decided to marry Edgar Linton, a wealthy man. Catherine discarded her relationship with Heathcliff, for one main reason and that was because he was not a wealthy man. It was obvious that Catherine married Edgar so she could be the greatest woman of the neighbourhood and if she married Heathcliff it would degrade her and they would both end up as beggars . This a good example of how Heathcliff was a victim of class hatred.

Cathy and Hindley alter him into a vicious, lonely master: ‘“The tyrant grinds down his slaves and they don’t turn against him, they crush those beneath them”’. This shows that Heathcliff will not take revenge on Cathy directly, but will hurt those who are close to her. This is because Cathy married Edgar Linton and said that it would degrade her if Heathcliff was her husband. In addition, he will take

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).

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

Heathcliff cried vehemently, "I cannot live without my life! I cannot live without my soul!" Emily Brontë distorts many common elements in Wuthering Heights   to enhance the quality of her book. One of the distortions is Heathcliff's undying love for Catherine Earnshaw. Also, Brontë perverts the vindictive hatred that fills and runs Heathcliff's life after he loses Catherine. Finally, she prolongs death, making it even more distressing and insufferable.

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.

The novel Wuthering Heights and the poem “Remembrance”, both written by Emily Brontë, feature protagonists who must cope with the death of their lovers, and in many ways, the two characters are similarly affected by this. The actions and feelings of Heathcliff in the last chapter in Wuthering Heights, however, stand in sharp contrast to the last stanza of “Remembrance”. This contrast demonstrates the personal differences of the characters and how they were affected differently by their losses. Heathcliff, the protagonist of Wuthering Heights, and the speaker of “Remembrance” have different views on love (both before and after death). Consequently, while Heathcliff embraces death in the final chapter to be with his love, the speaker of “Remembrances” learns to stop dwelling in the past.

At one point in Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff locks Catherine and Nelly into a room for several days and even “seized her [Catherine] with the liberated hand, and, pulling her, on his knee, administered, with the other, a shower of terrific slaps on both sides of the head” (271). Heathcliff slaps Cathy after she refuses to say in the room with Nelly for the sole reason that Cathy is Catherine’s daughter, and Heathcliff takes out his anger at Catherine on her daughter, which shows how much fury he still has after all of these years. Heathcliff also tries to marry Cathy to Linton in order to take control of Wuthering Heights when Edgar dies. He says that Wuthering Heights would “go to me; but, to prevent disputes, I desire their union, and am resolved to bring it about” (215). The hope of preserving the memory of Catherine is what drives Heathcliff to force his son to marry Catherine. If Linton were to become heir of the property, it would ensure Heathcliff's ownership of Wuthering Heights, fulfilling his

During this chapter, Nelly is rocking Hareton on her knee when Catherine enters the scene wishing for Nelly to keep a secret. Before Nelly can agree, Catherine proceeds to tell her that Edgar Linton has asked Catherine to marry him. Nelly encourages Catherine to tell her why she wishes to marry Edgar Linton and denies each explanation, claiming that he may not always be handsome, young and rich in concern with what Catherine finds appealing. At the end of the two characters’ conversation, Catherine concludes that she has no business marrying Edgar Linton and it would degrade her to marry Heathcliff. At this moment, Nelly becomes sensible of Heathcliff’s presence and his departure due to Catherine’s unfinished feelings toward Heathcliff. However, Nelly chooses to ignore the slight motion and holds back, deciding not to tell Catherine of his presents, and resisting the urge to tell Heathcliff Catherine’s true feelings. The dramatic movement of this scene not only displays Nelly’s true feelings toward Catherine as a “wicked unprincipled girl,” but also aids the speculation that Nelly is jealous of Catherine’s position in life. Having been raised alongside Catherine under a different social class, Nelly only becomes Catherine’s servant when she turned of age. Her jealousy of Catherine’s position in life may be reflected in the

Cathy Linton, speaking above, displays the ability to love someone even when they do not deserve it. She draws her greatest strengths from love and kindles a fire of hatred towards Heathcliff because she has fallen for Linton.

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)

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