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The role of social class in Wuthering Heights
The role of social class in Wuthering Heights
Theme of love in Wuthering Heights
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In Wuthering Heights, a novel by Emily Bronte, it talks about the outward conformity of deterioration of the body and the inward question of death to the human soul. Wuthering Heights deals with suffering brought upon the characters actions and deaths caused by a form of consumption. Death is a reoccurring topic through the novel, so it’s better understood when the symbolism of romance, social classes, and ghosts of the past are looked more in depth to explain this issue more clearly.
Love has been seen in one unusual way throughout Wuthering Heights. As previously mentioned, there is a love triangle that is created between Catherine, Edgar, and Heathcliff. Catherine and Heathcliff’s passion for one another is the center of Wuthering Heights,
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The story of social class in Wuthering Heights is no less paramount and essential to the novel. There are two high class families in the novel, The Lintons and the Earnshaws. Both families are of the aristocracy, and they make it apparent from their manners and action towards the people of the lower class. Both families, like many rich people today and of the late eighteenth and nineteenth century, believe that the only people good enough to associate with them or on a romantic level are those of noble birth. This becomes an issue in the novel when Heathcliff comes to live with Catherine and Hindley. While Catherine isn’t particularly fond of Heathcliff at first, she becomes emotionally attached to him, and he becomes a great source of happiness for her. This leads into a problematic issue and a love triangle between Catherine, Edgar, and Heathcliff. The feelings that Catherine faces lead into love and a difficult question she must conclude with. Should she hold true to family values and forget the romantic fondness with Heathcliff? Or follow in her true instinct of love and neglect the option of tradition? Although immediately after Catherine’s decision of doing what is “rational” and marries Edgar, she clarifies to Nelly, the housekeeper, that her reason for doing this is because, “It would degrade me to marry Heathcliff…” (81). These previous …show more content…
Catherine and Heathcliff have had an indisputable connection from the very beginning of the story. A special connection Catherine doesn’t want to admit to, but truly knows it’s there. From their exuberant adventures on the moors, to them making memories in the same household, and eventually Heathcliff’s desire for Catherine’s ghost to haunt him. It’s obvious they would’ve spent the rest of their waking moments together if it wasn’t for their difference in status. Otherwise, they could live the life they are supposed to live. Everything from how compatible and seemingly destined they are for each other, to the unfortunate turn of events that undoubtedly keep them apart. Their lifelong relationship plays a vital role in understanding this story and is expressed through the novel’s use of
Heathcliff's love for Catherine transcends the normal physical "true love" into spiritual love. He can withstand anything against him to be with her. After Hindley became the master of Wuthering Heights, he flogged Heathcliff like a slave. Although Heathcliff could have simply run away, his decision to endure the physical pains shows his unrelenting devotion to Catherine. Fortunately, Catherine feels as deeply for Heathcliff as he does for her, explaining to Nelly that "Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same…" Their love for each other is so passionate that they can not possibly live apart. At Catherine's death, Heathcliff hopes that she will not rest, but will haunt him until he dies. This absurdity contradicts the traditional norm that one should pray that the dead rest in peace. Near the end of the novel, we learn that Catherine has haunted Heathcliff, allowing him only fleeting glances of her. This shows that despite their physical separation, nothing can part them spiritually. When Heathcliff dies and unites with Catherine once again, the neighbors see them haunt the moors. We finally see the power of their love; Not only does this love transcend physical barriers, it transcends time as well...
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
Over a long period of time, an individual’s social status has always had a great impact on relationships between others. Relationships such as friendship, romance and even family relationships are greatly influenced by one’s social status. When people value social status to the utmost importance, it often acts as a barrier to further solidify relations with others. “Wuthering Heights” is a classic novel written by Emily Bronte which illustrates how social status gets in the way of relationships. This story (set in eighteen hundreds) displays the true nature of the people at that time because they excessive had pride. Since they had excessive pride, they often judged people based on their social class; hence changing their relationship between each other. In this novel social class was measured by observing an individual’s wealth, appearance and manners. Heathcliff happens to be the male lead character of this story that lacks social class due to his rebellious relationship with Hindley. Afterwards, Hindley degrades Heathcliff’s status this affects his connections with Catherine and Nelly. Since Heathcliff’s status diminishes, Catherine becomes reluctant to continue her affair with Heathcliff. Nelly also becomes wary of Heathcliff because his personality changes after restoring his own status. Thus, it is clearly seen that social class has an impact on the story by altering Heathcliff’s relationship between Hindley, Catherine and Nelly.
Catherine Earnshaw appears to be a woman who is free spirited. However, Catherine is also quite self-centered. She clearly states that her love for Edgar Linton does not match how much she loves Heathcliff. She is saying that she does love both, and she is unwilling to give one up for the other; she wants “Heathcliff for her friend”. Catherine admits that her love for Linton is “like the foliage in the woods”; however, her love for Heathcliff “resembles the eternal rocks beneath”. She loves Heathcliff and yet she gives him up and marries Linton instead, Catherine believes that if she marries Heathcliff it would degrade and humiliate her socially.
Heathcliff and Cathy have a sadistic relationship. They are only truly in love when they are hurting each other. As Catherine lay dying, she wants Heathcliff, her love, to join her in death. She pleads to him:
Catherine is trapped between her love of Heathcliff and her love for Edgar, setting the two men down a path of destruction, a whirlwind of anger and resentment that Catherine gets caught in the middle of. Catherine is drawn to Heathcliff because of his fiery personality, their raw attraction and one certainly gets the sense that they are drawn together on a deeper level, that perhaps they are soulmates. C. Day Lewis thought so, when he declared that Heathcliff and Catherine "represent the essential isolation of the soul...two halves of a single soul–forever sundered and struggling to unite." This certainly seems to be backed up in the novel when Catherine exclaims “Nelly, I am Heathcliff! He's always, always in my mind--not as a pleasure, any more than I am always a pleasure to myself, but as my own being...” This shows clearly the struggle Catherine feels as she is drawn spiritually to Heathcliff, but also to Edgar for very different reasons. Edgar attracts Catherine predominantly because he is of the right social class. Catherine finds him "handsome, and pleasant to be with," but her feelings for him seem petty when compared to the ones she harbours...
Using Wuthering Heights, identify the “spiritual reassessment or moral reconciliation” evident in the ending and explain its significance in the work as a whole.
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.
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.
(4) Wuthering Heights’s mood is melancholy and tumultuous. As a result, the book gives off a feeling of sorrow and chaos. For example, Catherine’s marriage with Edgar Linton made Heathcliff jealous and angry. In retaliation, Heathcliff married Edgar’s sister, Isabella, to provoke Catherine and Edgar. Heathcliff and Isabella’s marriage ignited a chaotic uproar with Edgar and Catherine because Linton disapproved of Heathcliff’s character, and Catherine loved Heathcliff in spite of being married to Edgar. Inside, Catherine wanted to selfishly keep Heathcliff to herself. Their relationships all had tragic endings because Catherine died giving birth to Edgar’s child. Isabella also died, leaving behind her young son. Heathcliff and Edgar resented each other because of misery they experienced together. The transition of the mood in the story is from chaotic to somber.
To sum up, Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights is a classic that portrays a love, even though confined by social classes, trespasses boundaries of life and death. The Gothic elements incorporated in this novel such as extreme landscape and weather, supernatural events and death brings about a mysterious and gloomy atmosphere suitable for a revenge plot with heightened emotions.
She falls in love with him as both grow up together. Yet she finds a different kind of love with Edgar Linton. Catherine decides to marry Edgar, who can satisfy her civilized side. When Heathcliff returns to her life, she is torn between marriage and ideal love. Catherine serves as a symbol of Bronte's Romanticism.
Early on Brontë describes Catherine and Heathcliff’s love “She was too fond of Heathcliff. The greatest punishment we could invent for her was to keep her separate from him: yet she got chided more than any of us on his account” (33). Love is a reoccurring theme and conflict throughout the novel. For Catherine and Heathcliff separation from each other was always the harshest punishment, their love was true, and they cared for each other as if they were family. However their love seems to thrive during times of drama and distress, which makes it questionable as to how their love would last under peaceful circumstances. Catherine and Heathcliff are soul mates that grew up together and do not have the social ability to get close to anyone other then each other. They do not have a romantic relationship because they are too young to experience love at a mature level. When Catherine is twelve she travels to Thrushcross Grange to become “proper”, while she is there she meets Edgar and at the age of fifteen the two become engaged. This is when Heathcliff runs away from Wuthering Heights, for he believes that Catherine and Edgar’s love is false. This accusation by Heathcliff is true, Catherine decides to marry Edgar based on the financial support he can...
Bloomfield, Dennis. "An Analysis Of The Causes And Effects Of Sickness And Death In Wuthering Heights." Bronte Studies 36.3 (2011): 289-298. Academic Search Complete. Web. 13 Feb. 2014.
but the strange thing when saying I am Heathcliff that means that even after marriage she still do have feeling for him and she never forget the love story of her life, they both acted like soul mates and the treated each other heavenly, the also grew up together and that bond was fed and grown by their childhood memories as they were living and growing up with each other in the same house wuthering heights. They really acted like 2 souls in one body and their love bond was very un-destroyable. But Catherine acted very selfish and she hurt herself and hurt everybody else to fulfill her desires toward the civilized and education life that she was willing to