Throughout the novel Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë effectively utilizes weather and setting as methods of conveying insight to the reader of the personal feeling of the characters. While staying at Thrushcross Grange, Mr. Lockwood made a visit to meet Mr. Heathcliff for a second time, and the horrible snow storm that he encounters is the first piece of evidence that he should have perceived about Heathcliff's personality. The setting of the moors is one that makes them a very special place for Catherine and Heathcliff, and they are thus very symbolic of their friendship and spirts. The weather and setting are very effective tools used throughout the end of the novel as well, for when the weather becomes nice it is not only symbolic of the changing times, and the changing people, but also a new beginning. During his stay at Thrushcross Grange Mr. Lockwood made the perilous journey to Wuthering Heights only a few times. On the occasion of his second visit, "the snow began to drive thickly"(7) during his walk, and this horrible weather should have been foreshadowing to Lockwood about Heathcliff's, and the other member's of the household's true personalities. Upon arriving he was forced to bang continually upon the door before someone would take the care to let him in out of the cold. The dinner that Lockwood was permitted to have with the ‘family' was anything but hospitable. Lockwood was treated not unlike an ignorant and unworthy guest, and hence the visit was in no way enjoyable for him. Upon desiring to leave the destitute home, Lockwood finds the weather too intolerable for him to even consider venturing out on his own, and upon being attacked by one of the dogs, "he was pulled into the kitchen"(15) and allowed, however ungraciously, to stay the night at Wuthering Heights. Once his walk home commenced the following day, Lockwood found himself being escorted by Heathcliff himself. The path that is used as a means of connection between the two houses does well to exemplify the feeling contained within each. The path that is nearest to the Heights is long and winding, with "many pits, at least, were filled to a level; and entire ranges of mounds, the refuse of the quarries . . . blotted from the chart"(28). This description is a disheartening one, and causes the reader to associate this kind of representation with the Heights...
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...r, even before the characters are reintroduced into the dialogue. Upon once again meeting the character, it is quite apparent that times have changed for the better. Heathcliff has died, and with him he takes the foreboding atmosphere of the Heights with him. What is left behind is the carefree feeling that Brontë want the reader to associate with the love developing between Haerton Earnshaw and Cathy Linton. Within the last paragraph of the novel the reader becomes very aware of the end to the story, this is because of the use of setting to donate the feeling of an end to the reader and a "quiet slumber for the sleepers in that quiet earth"(315). Brontë very effectively uses the weather and the setting within Wuthering Heights to always allow the reader a little more insight into the minds of the characters. The setting and weather seem to mimic the feeling of the individuals that are within the novel. Brontë's use of this as a literary tool is very intriguing, and very helpful in aiding the reader in their grasping the complexity of the characters within the novel.
Bibliography
Work Cited Brontë, Emily: Wuthering Heights, Amsco School Publications, Inc., (c) 1970
Heathcliff is the center of conflicts in “wuthering heights”. His inner conflict is mainly due to jealousy, since he had been left by his love because of his social class. This social class conflict added bitterness to him and led to clashes with Edgar and Hindley, dedicating his life to vengeance in both physical and mental state; and influencing how the majority of characters interrelate, as depicted by Emily Bronte. Heathcliff was introduced into a whole new world at thrush cross grange. As an orphan, he neither had wealth nor status; he emerged from the darkness into the knot family system of the Earnshaw.
Wuthering Heights by Anne Flosnik starts Lockwood going to Wuthering Heights where he is at tenant visiting Heathcliff. While at Heathcliff`s there he encounters something, supernatural which makes him get curious. Lockwood goes back to Nelly a servant who grew up from Wuthering Heights and begs him to tell the history of Heathcliff. A Yorkshire Farmer named Earnshaw who has two children named Hindley and Catherine brings home an orphan named Heathcliff and over time Catherine starts to love Heathcliff but Hindley hates him because he has replaced Hindley in Earnshaw`s affection and because of that he does anything to humiliate Heathcliff. Meanwhile in Edgar and Isabella who live in Thrushcross Grange are opposites to Heathcliff and
McKibben and Hagan take different approaches to Wuthering Heights, but both approaches work together to form one unified concept. McKibben speaks of Wuthering Heights as a whole, while Hagan concentrates on only sympathies role in the novel. McKibben and Hagan both touch on the topic of Catherine and Heathcliff’s passionate nature. To this, McKibben recalls the scene in the book when Catherine is "in the throes of her self-induced illness" (p38). When asking for her husband, she is told by Nelly Dean that Edgar is "among his books," and she cries, "What in the name of all that feels has he to do with books when I am dying." McKibben shows that while Catherine is making a scene and crying, Edgar is in the library handling Catherine’s death in the only way he knows how, in a mild mannered approach. He lacks the passionate ways in which Catherine and Heathcliff handle ordeals. During this scene Catherine’s mind strays back to childhood and she comes to realize that "the Linton’s are alien to her and exemplify a completely foreign mode of perception" (p38). Catherine discovers that she would never belong in Edgar’s society. On her journey of self-discovery, she realized that she attempted the impossible, which was to live in a world in which she did not belong. This, in the end, lead to her death. Unlike her mother, when Cathy enters The Heights, "those images of unreal security found in her books and Thrushhold Grange are confiscated, thus leading her to scream, "I feel like death!" With the help of Hareton, Cathy learns not to place her love within a self created environment, but in a real life where she will be truly happy. The character’s then reappear as reconciled, and stability and peace once more return to The Heights.
“Wuthering Heights is a strange, inartistic story”(Atlas, WH p. 299). “Wuthering Heights is a strange sort of book” (Douglas, WH p.301). “This is a strange book” (Examiner, WH p.302). “His work [Wuthering Heights] is strangely original” (Britannia, WH p.305). These brief quotes show that early critics of Emily Bronte’s first edition of Wuthering Heights, found the novel baffling in its meaning - they each agreed separately, that no moral existed within the story therefore it was deemed to have no real literary value. The original critical reviews had very little in the way of praise for the unknown author or the novel. The critics begrudgingly acknowledged elements of Wuthering Heights that could be considered strengths – such as, “rugged power” and “unconscious strength” (Atlas, WH p.299), “purposeless power” (Douglas, WH p.301), “evidences of considerable power” (Examiner), “power and originality” (Britannia, WH p.305). Strange and Powerful are two recurring critical interpretations of the novel. The critics did not attempt to provide in depth analysis of the work, simply because they felt that the meaning or moral of the story was either entirely absent or seriously confused.
Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights can be considered a Gothic romance or an essay on the human relationship. The reader may regard the novel as a serious study of human problems such as love and hate, or revenge and jealousy. One may even consider the novel Bronte's personal interpretation of the universe. However, when all is said and done, Heathcliff and Catherine are the story. Their powerful presence permeates throughout the novel, as well as their complex personalities. Their climatic feelings towards each other and often selfish behavior often exaggerates or possibly encapsulates certain universal psychological truths humans are too afraid to express. Heathcliff and Catherine's stark backgrounds evolve respectively into dark personalities and mistaken life paths, but in the end their actions determine the course of their own relationships and lives. Their misfortunes, recklessness, willpower, and destructive passion are unable to penetrate the eternal love they share.
Wuthering Heights is a novel which deviates from the standard of Victorian literature. The novels of the Victorian Era were often works of social criticism. They generally had a moral purpose and promoted ideals of love and brotherhood. Wuthering Heights is more of a Victorian Gothic novel; it contains passion, violence, and supernatural elements (Mitchell 119). The world of Wuthering Heights seems to be a world without morals. In Wuthering Heights, Brontë does not idealize love; she presents it realistically, with all its faults and merits. She shows that love is a powerful force which can be destructive or redemptive. Heathcliff has an all-consuming passion for Catherine. When she chooses to marry Edgar, his spurned love turns into a destructive force, motivating him to enact revenge and wreak misery. The power of Heathcliff’s destructive love is conquered by the influence of another kind of love. Young Cathy’s love for Hareton is a redemptive force. It is her love that brings an end to the reign of Heathcliff.
Wuthering Heights, written by Emily Bronte, has 323 pages. The genre of Wuthering Heights is realistic fiction, and it is a romantic novel. The book is available in the school library, but it was bought at Barnes and Nobles. The author’s purpose of writing Wuthering Heights is to describe a twisted and dark romance story. Thus, the author conveys the theme of one of life’s absolute truths: love is pain. In addition, the mood of the book is melancholy and tumultuous. Lastly, the single most important incident of the book is when Heathcliff arrives to Edgar Linton’s residence in the Granges unannounced to see Catherine’s state of health. Heathcliff’s single visit overwhelmed Catherine to the point of death.
..., emotional power, figures of speech, and handling of dialect that make the characters of Wuthering Heights relate so closely with their surroundings. The contrast of these two houses adds much to the meaning of this novel, and without it, the story would not be the interesting, complex novel it is. The contrast between the houses is more than physical, rather these two houses represent the opposing forces which are embodied in their inhabitants. Having this contrast is what brings about the presentation of this story altogether. Bronte made Heathcliff and Wuthering Height as one. Both of these are cold, dark, and menacing, similar to a storm. Thrushcross Grange with the Lintons was more of a welcoming and peaceful dwelling. The personality of both is warm and draws itself to you by the warmth of the decor and richness of the surrounding landscape.
is alone and he had to stay in the farm because of the snow. He is
First, Wuthering Heights is a contribution to the theme of the novel because it sets the mood for the scenes taken place inside the house. The house is first introduced to the reader during a storm. The house stands alone and the land around it is described as dreary and foreboding, which creates a mood of isolation. “On the bleak Yorkshire moors” describes the Yorkshire moors physical appearance. The estate has little vegetation and is more weathered, which moors are, as they are jutting, bare rocks towards the ocean. Wuthering Heights is an old stone house with gothic architecture and bleak interior. The people that live in Wuthering Heights are bitter and act violent. The characters of the story act wild when they are at Wuthering Heights, compared to other places in the novel. The setting of the house enforces the actions of the Earnshaws’, and Heathcliff. The name of the estate even sets a theme of gloom in the novel. Lockwood says Wuthering is, “a significant provincial adjective, descriptive of the atmospheric tumult to which its station is exposed in stormy weather” (12).
It is a question that has baffled readers and critics alike through generations, a question that can be endlessly pondered upon and debated over, as to why Emily Bronte chose to name her first and only novel, after the house in which a sizable part of the action chronicled takes place, despite being armed with characters of such extra-ordinary strength and passion as Heathcliff or Catherine. But on close scrutiny, a reader can perhaps discern the reason behind her choice, the fact that Wuthering Heights is at once a motif, a setting and according to a few critics, even a ‘premonitory indication’ of the tempestuous nature of things soon to occur.
In Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, the Earnshaws, a middle class family, live at the estate, Wuthering Heights. When Mr. Earnshaw takes a trip to Liverpool, he returns with an orphan whom he christens “Heathcliff”. During their formative years, Catherine, Mr. Earnshaw’s daughter, plays with Heathcliff on the moors and becomes close with him. As a result, they form a special bond and Heathcliff and Catherine fall in love, unlike Hindley, Mr. Earnshaw’s son, who does not get along with Heathcliff. While Heathcliff benefits from his relationships, his connections are disadvantaged in terms of status, reputation, financial stability, and happiness.
Bronte's Use of Language and Setting in Wuthering Heights Between pages 15 and 18 there are identifiable ways in which 'Bronte' uses 'language and setting' to establish the characters and create a distinguishable atmosphere. In this essay, themes, genres and styles will be discussed to show how 'Bronte' establishes the characters; there will also be a discussion of the 'gothic' elements which Wuthering Heights contains. Many people would argue that the style of 'Wuthering Heights' is peculiar and complex, the power of Wuthering Heights owes much to its complex narrative structure and to the device of having two conventional people relate a very unconventional tale. Bronte importantly introduces the element of 'the supernatural' into chapter 3 which is an important technique as it grips the reader. Lockwood has come into contact with the ghost of Cathy, who died 18 years before, Some might argue that she is a product of Lockwood's imagination, and it is clear that Bronte has presented these facts in this way so that the reader can make up their own mind on the subject.
In the novel Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte strongly emphasizes the dynamic and increasingly complex relationship of Mr. Heathcliff and Catherine. Heathcliff, the abandoned gypsy boy is brought to Wuthering Height by Mr. Earnshaw to be raised with his family. After Mr. Earnshaw's death, he suffers harsh abuses from his "brother" Hindley and from Catherine, whom he dearly loves. This abuse will pave the way for revenge. The evolving and elaborate plans for revenge Mr. Heathcliff masterminds for those who he feels had hurt him and betray him is what makes Wuthering Heights a classic in English literature. The sudden change in feelings and emotions in Mr. Heathcliff are powerful scenes. Revenge becomes the only reason to live for him. Revenge is the main theme in Wuthering Heights because it highlights important events, personality flaws, and the path of destruction.
Bront creates a bleak mix of bad weather and a barren setting in the story that do not fit the romantic guidelines. This point is brought to attention early in the novel when Lockwood thinks that Wuthering Heights is, "So completely removed from the stir of society. A perfect misanthropist's heaven" (1). Here she is describing what characters think of the countryside: "Yesterday afternoon set in misty and cold. I had half a mind to spend it by my study fire instead of wading through heath and mud to Wuthering Heights" (14). Here again the country side is described, " there was no moon and everything beneath lay in misty darkness" (125). These descriptions are obviously not romantic.