Wuthering Heights - Character Analysis
27/04/03
British Literature
Wuthering Heights - Character Analysis
In Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights, each character is a unique and plays an important role in tying the story together. All characters are related to one another in their own special way. They overlap and interconnect their faith and destinies to make an outstanding plot and theme and turn Emily Bronte's novel to be a true masterpiece of World Literature.
The most important character, which possesses the readers' attention throughout the whole story, is Heathcliff. His strong, charismatic, and bitter character combined with handsome appearance makes some sympathize with him, other to hate him, but certainly does not leave anyone indifferent.
Overall, Heathcliff's life could not be considered happy and salutary in any sense. From early childhood a status of a gypsy orphan did not grant him any trumps in life, yet placed him into a disadvantageous position. He was very fortunate that Mr. Earnshaw was kind hearted and brought him to Wuthering Heights where he joined the family. From the first days of his presence at the Heights he encountered a multitude of both bad and good emotions. From one side it was the emerging conflict with Hindley, on the other hand the developing love with Catherine.
After many years as Heathcliff was living at the Heights he grew up to be a passionate, somewhat uncivilized and uneducated young man, but with a strong will and a unique personage. As he grew up the childhood friendship with Catherine transformed into a sincere love that burned in their young hearts. He was so used and dedicated to her that his objective in life was to love her. This love and passion was the part and parcel of his life and motivated him to live.
At the same time the boyhood friction with Hindley came to be a great hatred. Being constantly abused and humiliated by him, Heathcliff swore to commit a devastating revenge one day. He could not further cope with the inhumane treatment, but he was yet helpless to do anything.
Heathcliff was born to suffer. And that hidden curse began to appear when a crack developed in his and Catherine's relationship. The crack turned to be a nuclear explosion when he was once destined to be in the kitchen and witness Catherine and Nelly's colloquy. He found out that the love of his life was planning on marrying a rich gentleman, Edgar Linton. This was certainly a great turning point and a complete metamorphosis in Heathcliff's life. He lost all faith in love honesty and hope.
He returned years later being a rich, educated and handsome man. His outer appearance and inner attributes where radically altered. He was not the young Heathcliff with everlasting spirit and love for Catherine. He certainly still loved her, but he drive and motives came from a different source, a source so overwhelming that it placed a shadow on love for Catherine that he still possessed. His main motivation was to revenge, revenge big time and with tremendous vengeance.
Step by step, he began his mission approaching each task methodically. He made Catherine feel tormenting guilt and literary drover her insane with his presence. He knew he suffered, and he wanted her to suffer as well. He used the fact that she still loved him to destroy her inner harmony, to kill her soul and sucked the life out of her like a giant leech, before she finally gone crazy and died while delivering a baby.
He then started to get back at Hindley, using the opportunity since his older "brother" had turned into a ...
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Step by step, he began his mission approaching each task methodically. He made Catherine feel tormenting guilt and literary drover her insane with his presence. He knew he suffered, and he wanted her to suffer as well. He used the fact that she still loved him to destroy her inner harmony, to kill her soul and sucked the life out of her like a giant leech, before she finally gone crazy and died while delivering a baby.
He then started to get back at Hindley, using the opportunity since his older "brother" had turned into a drunken. He acquired the Wuthering Heights and strengthened his position for further destruction. He now wanted to ruin the Linton family and began that by making Isabella to fall in love with him and later breaking her heart and driving her almost to insanity.
However that was far not enough for Heathcliff, who by this point became a real tyrant with strong desire for revenge. He needed to do something to Edgar, and the best way was to acquire strong influence over his daughter Cathy, in which he was vary successful.
Over his long life he causes and lives threw many deaths. He gains control and takes away everything. Materialistic, like the money and property as well as spiritual, like people's souls and happiness. Only after such a massive destruction he finally feels that he had achieved what he wanted to achieve in life. He finally felt satisfied and saw no more point in living, since his only goal was revenge, and he did it.
Catherine Earnshaw, a beautiful and fairly educated girl with big ambitions, yet suppressed by the environment and mentality of their days was Heathcliff's second half and true love, as well as an ultimate cause for Heathcliff's bitterness and desires to make everyone suffer.
She grew up with him at Wuthering Heights and as children became his soul mate and later a great lover. Her heart was completely his and she never new other love rather than Heathcliff. However, things start complicating when she meets Edgar Linton. Being very ambitious she saw Edgar as a good life companion, since unlike Heathcliff, he was well mannered, educated, rich and respected in society. She was pressured by the general mentality and decided that high status in society prevails over love. She tremendously loved Heathcliff, but she figured that Edgar would make a better husband. She married him, leaving an enormous and deadly wound in Heathcliff's heart altering both his and her lives.
Years passed, Heathcliff returns and Catherine's feelings suddenly reborn as she realizes the biggest mistake of her life. She is tremendously overwhelmed by guilt, but is unable to return anything back. Heathcliff knew that she still loved him, and used that to hurt her. She was tremendously hurt by the fact that Heathcliff married Isabella. She loved him, and yet hated him for being out of her reach, being with someone else. This realization drove her insane, killed her slowly and steadily until she truly perished.
When Catherine was young, she made a choice that might have not been her true desire, but a choice that was expected by society. She married a man she never loved and that way granted a place for a barrier between her and Heathcliff, which not only ruined their lives, but also ruined lives of many other people around them.
Hindley Earnshaw was Catherine's older brother and together with her and Heathcliff grew up at Wuthering Heights. He was a rather mean person with ugly appearance and bad soul. The day of his misfortune occurred when his father brought in young Heathcliff to the family. From the very moment of Heathcliff's appearance at the Heights Hindley feels discriminated and develops a strong hatred towards the gypsy boy and his life goal become to harm Heathcliff as much as possible.
As they grew older Hindley's hatred increased exponentially and he sought to find any opportunity to somehow harm Heathcliff both physically and mentally. The physically abuse did not have as of great impact on Heathcliff as the mental one. Hindley often humiliated him in front of Catherine, which made Heathcliff furious to the point where he just could not tolerate it anymore. He promised to himself that he would do whatever it takes to get back at Hindley.
When Hindley wife Zillah died leaving him with a son, Hindley's life begins degrading, as he gets involved in gambling and heavy drinking. He basically becomes mad at everyone and everything thinking that he was never loved. He feels more and more useless as he gets more and more alcohol dependent. He looses everything, including the Wuthering Heights and dies like an animal, which no one needs and cares about.
Edgar Linton is a handsome and rich young man who grows up at Thrushcross Grange. He is a pure gentleman with high moral values, etiquette, and dignity. He is also a well-educated lawyer, but lacks the strong spirit and passion that Heathcliff possesses.
He comes into picture after Catherine's premier time at the Grange. Since then he truly fell in love with her, a love that was yet less passionate than Heathcliff, but was still real and sincere. His main motivation was to make Catherine a happy woman and provide a happy life for her. They married, Heathcliff left and everything seemed to be happy and salutary for a while.
One day Heathcliff returned like a big curse falling on Edgar. He totally destroyed his and Catherine's relationship. Edgar tried to do everything to keep Heathcliff away from Catherine and the Grange, but was unsuccessful. He then finally realized that all these years Catherine loved Heathcliff, and not him. Regardless, he still continued to love Catherine and stayed by her side until she fell tremendously ill and passed away when giving birth.
Tremendously troubled by Catherine's death, Edgar now thought that Heathcliff would leave his family alone. Edgar's life now took a different route; he was older and was a father with a strong duty to protect his growing beautiful daughter Cathy. Edgar felt strong duty to protect his family from Heathcliff and thus sought to cut any connection with Heathcliff and Wuthering Heights.
However, Edgar was never a match for Heathcliff, and once he got very ill Heathcliff suddenly appeared acquiring influence over Cathy and obtaining the Grange and all the property of the Linton family. Edgar dies in desolation, terror, and complete inner destruction. Heathcliff destroyed him as well, and he was not the final victim.
Isabella is a beautiful girl with a kind and honest heart. Growing up at the Grange from early age, she never saw hardships and cruelty of life. Heathcliff uses her naïve nature makes her to deeply fall in love with him. This ignorant choice ended up to be the most tormenting in her life.
Soon after marrying Heathcliff she realizes that she was never loved by him, but rather served as a tool to revenge. She realized that Heathcliff simply used her to make both Catherine and Linton suffer. She continued living with the tyrant having a little hope that things will change. However, she is treated like a servant by everyone at Wuthering Heights and was completely disrespected. Gradually the great love that she had for Heathcliff changed into a greater, full-hearted hatred.
In the story Isabella was probably one of the most dynamic characters. From being an innocent angel she turned to be a woman callused by love and mistreatment. She found enough power and will to leave Wuthering Heights and live alone with her son Linton that was recently born. After several years of independent life she felt ill and died, leaving her son to his father, Heathcliff.
Hareton, Hindley's only son from Zillah, was one of the few who survived most of the story. He was a very uneducated and uncivilized boy who never received any attention and was never truly loved by anyone. He lived a simple life with no goals and aspirations. All he had seen in life is hard labor and surviving in the hateful and destructive environment of the Heights. He never develops his mind and social skills.
The only happy moments of his life began towards the end of the novel when he began enter acting with young Cathy. Her friendship allowed him to realize the true world of friendship and love. She makes him a different person, by helping him realize that life is much more than everyday labor, meals and sleep.
Young Cathy was Catherine and Edgar's daughter who did not have a simple life. She is very beautiful, smart and curious about life no matter how hard it was on her. From early age she grows up with her father at the Grange devoting all her love to him. She was very kind and innocent and seemed to be Edgar's only point of living.
She faced a rather troubling situation when was acquainted with her cousin Linton. She soon developed strong feelings toward him, but it was not true love. It was not the same love that Heathcliff and Catherine shared.
Once she got interacted with Heathcliff, the situation became more serious since he convinced her to marry Linton. She was at first very lost and did not know where to go for help. She needed to consult with her father who she totally trusted, but he could not help her much being sick and helpless, while Heathcliff was pressuring her. She finally gave in and married Linton who she liked, but never loved.
Over time she realized that she'd done a big mistake and was tremendously unhappy living with Linton and Heathcliff. Happiness came to her only at the very end of the novel when Heathcliff died and there was no one to terrorize and manipulate her.
Young Linton, Heathcliff true and only son from Isabella was a complete opposite from his father. He was fairly educated, but had a very weak character and was more serene, for what Heathcliff despised him. Heathcliff could not bare the fact that his only son was not a tough man, but rather was a sick and weak baby with no true understanding of life. From early age Linton knew no love, and Cathy was the only person who actually cared for him. He lived a miserable and short life. Heathcliff made Catherine to marry him, since he knew that Linton would soon die and he would get control over Thrushcross Grange.
Nelly is the character from whose point of view most of the story is told. She stays in the novel from the very first to the very last page. She loved old Catherine very much and was always concerned for her problems. She was always by her side whether she was at the Heights or the Grange. Being a housekeeper, she had no significant influence over things, but always tried to do everything to set peace and bring people together.
When young Cathy was born Nelly soon started loving her as if she was her own daughter and felt that it was her objective to raise Cathy properly and make her a real woman. She was a witness of her mother's sufferings and could not allow the same thing to occur to Cathy.
Mr. Lockwood, who was a wealthy traveler and rented a room at the Grange, never took a part in the story and was only a spectator. When Nelly started telling him the story of the two families, he soon got extremely interested and could not let her go until she told him everything. He even visited Wuthering Heights and met some of the people from the story.
The famous saying that from a true love to a great hatred is only a step, might sound illusionary, however, Bronte proves that to be very realistic. She shows how the treason of immense love might cause chaos, death and destruction. We see how the collision of the two extreme feelings of love and hate obliterate lives of the novel characters. When love is doomed, when faith is lost comes tremendous vengeance that overwhelms everything around, leaving no space for life.