In the novel Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, we are introduced to a wide array of characters who each suffer tremendously through their lives, leading them to inflict pain on others for some sort of a sense of relief. Their behavior raises the question of whether they are cruel by nature or as a result of their suffering. While difficult to distinguish if these characters are in fact heroes or villains, Hindley, the jealous son of Mr. Earnshaw who vies for his attention, Hareton, the son of an alcoholic left to grow up in Heathcliff’s grasp, and Heathcliff, an orphan who is never accepted, as John Hagan claims, “persuade us to forcibly pity victims and victimizers alike.” Hindley’s hatred for young Heathcliff is fueled …show more content…
Because both of his parents are incapable of raising him, Hareton is brought into this world with severe disadvantages. Isabella Linton says that he has "a look of Catherine [Earnshaw] in his eyes (281)." This of course, is another disadvantage to Hareton, as Heathcliff sees this, and makes it his duty to treat Hareton as Hindley had treated Heathcliff throughout his life. Hareton grows to be very similar to Heathcliff, as they both come off as bad tempered and uncivilized. When the novel begins and Mr. Lockwood is introduced to Hareton, he is gruff, and easily aggravated. Heathcliff attempts to usurp Hareton’s right to succession, and make his life miserable. Heathcliff doesn’t allow for Hareton to receive and education, leaving him illiterate, and not able to even speak properly. Because of how Hareton is raised, he treats those around him similar to how Heathcliff does. However, the reader pities the illiterate Hareton because of his being raised by such a tyrant as Heathcliff. He has no choice but to act like him in order to survive the torment. Hareton eventually falls in love with young Catherine, and “one loving and desiring to esteem, and the other loving and desiring to be esteemed – they contrived in the end to reach it (647).” Hareton acts like Heathcliff for much of the novel, but is taught by Catherine to read and …show more content…
Shortly after his being brought to Wuthering Heights, he is not accepted, nor ever will be accepted, into the Earnshaw clan. Hindley says to Heathcliff, “be damned you beggarly interloper! And wheedle my father out of all he has; only afterwards show him what you are, imp of Satan (79).” Time and time again, he is made fun of for his devilish, dark, and gypsy-like appearance. After Mr. Earnshaw’s death, Heathcliff loses his status of privilege in the Earnshaw household because Hindley takes over the estate. Through all of the misery and brutality Heathcliff is subjected to, the reader begins to pity the helpless orphan. If this were not enough, the woman that Heathcliff is in love with, so much so that he is able to endure Hindley’s mistreatment decides to marry someone else. He watches as she marries Edgar Linton, although she does love Heathcliff, while she claims that it would “degrade [her] to marry Heathcliff (163).” On her deathbed, Catherine tells Heathcliff that “[he has] killed [her] - and thrived on it (327).” All of this tragedy through Heathcliff’s life builds up, and eventually causes him to erupt into a tyrant. Since the death of his beloved Catherine, Heathcliff seeks revenge over everyone who ever doubted him or mistreated him. He also tries to attain power over everything associated with Catherine. This includes Thrushcross Grange, and young Catherine. He has no
Primarily, Heathcliff's hunger for revenge blindsides the character’s, Hindley, Catherine, Hareton, and young Catherine. Revenge is what Heathcliff wishes to
The relation between Hindley and Heathcliff plays a major role in Heathcliff’s social status. Hindley happens to despise Heathcliff because he was adopted by his father and received special treatment which Hindley longed to receive. Perhaps, this triggers Hindley jealousy and hatred towards and ...
Although, Mr. Earnshaw tried to make Heathcliff an equal part of the family, Heathcliff never truly fits in. Heathcliff is from a completely different social class than the rest of his “family”. This led to the hatred that Hindley felt towards Heathcliff. Hindley robs Heathcliff of his education, forces him to work as a servant at Wuthering Heights and frequently beats him. Throughout this all, Heathcliff never complains.
Among the social issues discussed in Wuthering Heights, one of the most prevalent is the treatment of women. This is especially highlighted with Heathcliff, who interacts with three women throughout story. Each woman sees a different man based on his motivation. Catherine sees a loving, beautiful person; Isabella sees an evil, spiteful creature; and Catherine sees an abuser. Heathcliff’s treatment of each woman is motivated by love, anger, and vengeance.
As he returns to Wuthering Heights, he is engulfed with this passion to revenge himself on all those who have abused him as a child. He ruins Hindley by encouraging his excessive drinking and gambling. His revenge is also directed towards Edgar Linton, whom he sees as having stolen Catherine from him. His sullen, vengeful, cruel and impatient characteristics still exist, which have been present since childhood, but have grown deeper. He is, in reality, a man torn between love and hate. Since his depths of his passions, he hates as deeply as he loves.
The complicated nature surrounding Heathcliff’s motives again adds an additional degree of ambiguity to his character. This motivation is primarily driven by Catherine’s marriage to Edgar and past rejection of Heathcliff, since he was a servant whom Hindley disapproved of. Prior to storming out of Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff overhears Catherine say, “It would degrade me to marry Heathcliff now…” (Brontë 87). The obstacles that ultimately prevent Heathcliff from marrying Catherine provide insight into Heathcliff’s desire to bring harm to Edgar and Hindley. The two men play prominent roles in the debacle, Edgar as the new husband and Hindley as the head figure who refused Heathcliff access to Catherine. Following this incident, Catherine says, “Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same…” (Brontë 87). Catherine’s sentiment indicates she truly would rather be with Heathcliff, but the actions of others have influenced her monumental decision to marry Edgar. Furthermore, Heathcliff is motivated to not only ruin Edgar’s livelihood, but also gain ownership of his estate, Thrushcross Grange. This becomes clear when Heathcliff attempts to use Isabella
Despicable and pitiable come to mind when one thinks of the terrible yet confusing, Heathcliff. Heathcliff is the main character in Emily Bronte’s classic novel Wuthering Heights, and the whole novel revolves around this intriguing man from the time he arrives to Wuthering Heights as a cruel and dark person. He is a man who shuns humanity because he has been hated. Heathcliff does not laugh, he grins. He does not speak, he snarls. Heathcliff forms a special bond with Catherine, and they spend more than enough time together. Catherine ended up spraying her ankle and was invited to stay until it healed, but Heathcliff was not invited and had to go back to Wuthering Heights alone. The huge turning point for Heathcliff is when
Heathcliff is a character who was abused in his childhood by Catherine’s brother, Hindley, because of his heritage as a “gypsy”, and Hindley was jealous of the love that Heathcliff got from Mr. Earnshaw, Hindley’s father. This is also selfishness upon Hindley’s part since he only wanted his father’s love for his sister and himself. So to reprimand Heathcl...
Heathcliff’s arrival at Wuthering Heights impacted him both positively and negatively. Catherine Earnshaw was highly welcoming of him, but her brother Hindley
The basic conflict of the novel that drives Heathcliff and Catherine apart is social. Written after the Industrial Revolution, Wuthering Heights is influenced by the rise of new fortunes and the middle class in England. Money becomes a new criterion to challenge the traditional criterias of class and family in judging a gentleman’s background. Just as Walpole who portrays the tyrannies of the father figure Manfred and the struggles of the Matilda who wants to marry the peasant Theodore, as depicted in the quote “(…) improbability that either father would consent to bestow his heiress on so poor a man, though nobly born”(p. 89), Brontë depicts a brutal bully Hindley who torments Heathcliff and separates Catherine from him. Heathcliff, a gypsy outcast picked u...
Hindley was instrumental in moulding Heathcliff into the destructive character he became. As we know, Heathcliff was recognised more for his love affair with Catherine, than his revenge in the later part of the novel.... ... middle of paper ... ...
Mr. Earnshaw believes that “the young man, [Hindley], should be sent to college”(45) as Hindley is not treating Heathcliff properly. This shows how Mr. Earnshaw is favoring Heathcliff to Hindley and is forcing Hindley to leave. Catherine becomes good friends with Heathcliff. One night, they spy on the Lintons, their neighbors, and are caught. Mrs. Linton is disgusted that “Miss Earnshaw [was] scouring the country with a gypsy”(53). Catherine is expected to behave like a proper lady, implying that she should not associate with those inferior in status to her because she is part of the middle class. Even though Catherine and Heathcliff have a strong friendship, he ruins her reputation in the eyes of the Mrs. Linton. While having connections proves to benefit Heathcliff status, they appear to be detrimental to his connection’s
At first, the children of Wuthering Heights (Hindley, Cathy, Nelly) all rejected him for his appearance as a gypsy- they thought of him as knavish, grimy, and uneducated. Despite this, Mr. Earnshaw treated with a certain respect by letting him live as with the Earnshaws while still being an outsider to the family. Yet the spectrum of hostility didn’t end with the children. Mrs. Earnshaw questions her husband’s insight, “asking how [Mr. Earnshaw] could fashion to bring that gipsy brat into the house” when he added another mouth for her to feed at the dinner table. (Chapter 4). Mr. Earnshaw’s attempt to integrate Heathcliff fails once Hindley takes over Wuthering Heights. Despite basically being middle class under Mr. Earnshaw, Hindley takes it on his own to oppress and torture him. Before this, Heathcliff was on a level playing field class wise compared to the Earnshaws. Heathcliff now finds himself as a servant, a laborer working the fields. By subjugating Heathcliff, Hindley drew the line in the sand. Hindley has effectively forced Heathcliff into a lower class, Hindley has colonized
His strong, merciless hate towards others is a result of the events that occurred in his childhood. “I’m trying to settle how I shall pay Hindley back.I don’t care how long I wait, if I could only do it at last. I hope he will not die before I do!” (69) Because of all the torturous things Hindley did to Heathcliff back when they were children, “Hindley had blamed our father for treating Heathcliff too liberally; and swears he will reduce him to the right place,” (30) he hopes Hindley will not die before him just so he can carry out his revenge-driven plan. He is shaped by what has happened in his life previously which then causes meticulous actions that signify his intense hate towards everyone at Wuthering Heights. Although it is essentially not his own fault, some argue that there is no excuse for Heathcliff to act vindictively. In contrast, though, the psychological problems that he experienced have hand-crafted Heathcliff into the person he is. “It expressed, plainer than words could do, the intensest anguish at having made himself the instrument of thwarting his own revenge.” (58) This only adds to the complete and serious hatred he has for everyone that even saving his nephew from falling from the balcony was a thwart to his own revenge. The audience can conclude based on the characterization of Heathcliff as malicious that he is only focused on
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.