In Romeo and Juliet there are the two feuding families, the Montague’s and the Capulet’s. Romeo being a Montague and Juliet a Capulet. The Capulet and Montague families held high power in Verona, the main setting of the film. Both families were very wealthy and had huge mansions as homes. The families despised each other. They were involved in many fights until the Prince had to lash threats at both families, threats that could lead to death, if they were to continue their belligerent.
Rival households feature in ‘Wuthering Heights’ and ‘Romeo and Juliet’. Although the Capulet’s and Montague’s are ‘two households, both alike in dignity’, (which suggest that although both families despised one another and were very dissimilar , they held a strong similarity in their pride and dignity, which made them very alike, despite all their physical differences), they are divided by an ‘ancient grudge’. The term ancient grudge is referred to as a dispute or disagreement between both families many years ago. This grudge has followed through each generation, poisoning the minds and beliefs of both families’ with negative thoughts and assumptions, blinding them like a mother’s hand above a child’s face in an inappropriate situation.
Likewise, Bronte’s ‘Wuthering heights’ is a perfect misanthropists heaven a complete contrast to the other household, Thrushcross grange. In the story, a strong contrast exists between storm and calm. Wuthering heights and Thrushcross grange portray this concept as they are complete opposites, where Wuthering heights represents storm and Thrushcross grange represents calm. The physical and mental characteristics of the people that live there are the driving forces for this hostility.
The name ‘Wuthering heights’ in itself conveys how this storm is illustrated. ‘Wuthering’ is defined as noisy or persistent blustery winds and ‘height’ referring to the hill on the top of which it resides. There are physical storms described in the book that “rattle over the heights in a full fury” (pg28) that have growling thunder, and great drops pg (248). The house is described to be a malicious place. The physical description of the house makes the reader conclude that ‘Wuthering heights’ is not a calm place.
Wuthering heights represents the storm, it is the home to fierce people. ‘Wuthering heights’ is a perfect misanthropist’s heaven (pg4). The best example of this is Heathcliff. Heathcliff is a disturbed man who spends most of his time trying to ruin and make the lives of other people miserable, in his urge of seeking revenge. He is one of the reasons for the deaths of Cathy, Hindly, Isabella and Linton (pg5)
Catherine, who’d ghost haunts Heathcliff until he dies, is another resident of Wuthering heights that is married to Edger but cannot get over her love for Heathcliff and dies.
Again, this portrays just how disturbed ‘Wuthering heights’ is. Hindly, the brother of Catherine also dies in the course of his attempt to kill his worst enemy, Heathcliff. All the characters illustrate the negative atmosphere that exists in the house at Wuthering heights.
On the other hand, Thrushcross grange is a complete comparison to Wuthering heights. It is a "beautiful and splendid place carpeted with crimson" (p. 48). A very calm, posh, orderly area. While reading or understanding Wuthering heights, the viewer/ reader may feel rather disturbed, where as when reading/watching Thrushcross grange, the difference is very refreshing. As Wuthering heights is set in a rather stormy environment, Thrushcross grange is located in a place that represents calm. The Grange is seen as a beautiful place for those who live in Wuthering Heights. Heathcliff describes Thrushcross Grange the first time he sees it as "a beautiful, splendid place", that it was "heaven" (p. 48). Unlike Wuthering Heights, Thrushcross Grange is described as a calm, peaceful place.
These two houses, which are the two main settings of the novel/film, are constantly compared. Radically different, these two families are not of equal status. From the beginning of the story the reader/viewer is presented with these two opposite places and slowly sees how the storm of Wuthering Heights takes over the calm of the Grange. The novel/film is based on this contrast between the two houses. The storm of Wuthering Heights, upon the return of Heathcliff from his time away, starts to take over. In the end, however, the calm of Thrushcross Grange prevails and good defeats evil.
In Shakespeare’s film/novel, Romeo and Juliet were young heads in the clouds type railing against a forbidden love. In Wuthering heights, Catherine was confused and angst ridden in comparison but both couples were young and fought against the barriers between themselves and the full fruition of their love.
The first encounters between the tragic couples a very dissimilar; however both contain huge amounts of conflict. Heathcliff and Romeo are both outsiders from the start. When Heathcliff first arrives at the Earnshaw house as an orphan, he is characterized as devilish and cruelly referred to as "it" in the Earnshaw household. His language is "gibberish" and his dark strangeness gives him the name "gipsy". The poor and harsh treatment that is lashed out at him is not much of an improvement on his "starving and houseless" childhood, and very quickly, he becomes a child inflicted with a lot of abuse and neglect. Also, on Heathcliff’s arrival, he is described by Nelly dean the maid, as someone who “from the beginning, bred bad blood”, her choice of words suggests that Heathcliff was like a deep stain to the Earnshaw family and also a threat, particularly to Hindly. Heathcliff stirred up bad feelings within the house, making him an unfamiliar, uncomfortable individual to be around. The ora surrounding Heathcliff portrayed a rather off-putting, negative vibe that urged most of the Earnshaw family to maintain a distinct distance from the young orphan.
Coming from Liverpool, a place I have researched and learnt is a place where many immigrants reside, Heathcliff was very likely to be of mixed race, possibly black or Arabic. Strangely, I am beginning to suspect that Heathcliff could very well be the illegitimate child of Mr Earnshaw. This could perhaps explain his strange insistence on making Heathcliff part of the family. I personally find this rather bizarre. To think a man of such high class and status would take in such a child so charitably and above all, give him the name of his late son.
Having met as children, Catherine is described as having ‘spat’ at Heathcliff when she first saw him. This again shows how negative the whole family were towards the boy, including Catherine, the woman who ends as Heathcliff’s soul mate. Over the years, the couple became inseparable, spending the majority of their days on the open moors. They became ‘thick’, which is a phrase that suggests they became completely inseparable. “Nelly he (Heathcliff) is more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” This quote conveys just how fixed the two lovers were. Nelly remarked that “The greatest punishment we could invent for her was to keep her separate from him” (chapter5). For Catherine and Heathcliff, love and punishment will always mix together. Their love is a sort of tormented love that would probably not do well under peaceful circumstances. They seem to thrive on drama. However, this quote reveals how attached the couple are to one another and that above all punishment the biggest punishment would be to separate them from one another.
Equally, when Romeo arrives at the Capulet ball, he is also an outsider as the Capulet’s and the Montague’s hate one another. Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin becomes aware of Romeo’s presence and becomes incensed after overhearing Romeo stating how beautiful Juliet is. This ignites his decision to attack Romeo. Throughout the film/novel, Tybalt repeatedly refers to Romeo as ‘villain’ which is an insult, hoping to provoke Romeo. Shortly after immediately falling in love, the couple become aware that they are from foe families and that their love was totally forbidden. Although their love is forbidden, their immediate love for one another stands untouched as Juliet reveals that she "My only love sprung from my only hate! Too early seen unknown, and known too late! Prodigious birth of love it is to me, that I must love a loathed enemy." “My only love sprung from my only hate explains how Juliet is aware of the hatred between her family and that of her new found lover. They have fallen in love, despite the fact their families are mortal enemies and will not permit them to be together. Her only love (Romeo) came from her only hate (Romeo's family). “Too early seen unknown suggests that Juliet had seen Romeo and had fallen for him before becoming aware of whom he was and the family he came from. “Known too late” suggests that there was no turning back and her love for Romeo was completely irreversible. Finally, “Prodigious birth of love it is to me
that I must love a loathed enemy” suggests that love is a monster for making her fall in love with her worst enemy.
Wuthering heights and Romeo and Juliet hold a number of similarities as well as differences. Both female protagonists feel uncertainty about their love. Juliet reveals her uncertainty regarding her and Romeo’s rapidly developed love “It is too unadvised, too sudden, too like the lightening which doth cease to be”. This highlighting the fact that Juliet feels their love is too crazy. They haven’t sat to think about the consequences of their sudden erasable fondness for one another. Juliet feels their love is too sudden, too much like lightning, which flashes and then disappears before you can say, “its lightning”.
On the other hand, Catherine’s love for Heathcliff and Linton is very diverse. “My love for Linton is like is like is like the foliage in the woods. Time will change it”. Catherine is aware that her heart is not with Edger but feels she needs to marry him to obtain social and financial status and also to free Heathcliff from the cruelty of her brother Hindly. Although Cathy had agreed to marry Edger, it is evident that her love for Heathcliff remained unchanged and unaltered as she goes on to explain how her love for Heathcliff “resembles the eternal rocks beneath- a source of little visible delight, but necessary”. This reveals that to Catherine, she and Heathcliff are one and the same; therefore marriage to Edgar does not mean leaving the man she really loves. That Heathcliff sees her marriage as a betrayal is what ultimately divides them.
Similarly, both Heathcliff and Romeo experience unrequited love. Romeo is short lived which causes him constant mood swings, misery and withdrawal. Where as in Heathcliff’s case, he remains distraught and suffers grave amounts of torment all the way through to his last breath.
When told of Catherine’s illness, he believes Edgar is to blame and lashes out in anger and distraught. His anger is due to his belief that she betrayed her heart. Whilst witnessing her last breath, Heathcliff condemns Catherine for breaking his heart, along with hers. “Why did you betray your own heart, Cathy? I have not one word of comfort, you deserve this, you have killed yourself “(chapter 15). This conveys the pain evolving from within the heart of Heathcliff as his only love, ‘his soul, and his life’ is slowly leaving him behind.
Finally, to summarize, I would like to reiterate; that, Wuthering heights by Emily Bronte and Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare both had what I call "unconditional and endless love". Caring for each other through the worst of storms. Leaning on the arms of love and never needing anymore. The love between Heathcliff and Cathy, and Romeo and Juliet is eternal, and even in death, they are still not apart. Which brings me to this; these two stories don't necessarily have a happy ending, nevertheless the couples are still together. Although their love was never made easy, they created a way to conquer and defeat all boundaries and go to any length, in order to be with one another. Even if that length meant death. Romeo and Juliet couldn't be together due to the generational conflict between the two royal kingdoms; moreover Cathy and Heathcliff were struck down by social class and pride.
This brings me to a second query. What is the greatest love story ever told? It’s probably one involving young people, a love triangle, and brief or forbidden romance. These are the common elements shared by these two pieces of literature which I can only describe to be nothing less than a masterpiece. These two writers prove that no one loves quite like the young. First love, in particular, is an overwhelmingly powerful feeling. In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the young lovers are teenagers and in Wuthering heights Cathy and Heathcliff develop a deep, lasting bond as children.
The argument seems to me that the power of young love is stronger than that of love at an older age, especially once life gets in the way. These stories seem to suggest that the intensity of first love is not likely to be duplicated.
Wuthering heights and Romeo and Juliet, along with all their differences, maintain the distinctive theory that young forbidden love can survive despite all ,odds. These two stories will forever remain the two greatest love stories of all time.