Heathcliff is most noticeable for his transformation from being a victim into a victimizer. In the beginning of the novel, Heathcliff was brought home by Old Earnshaw to Wuthering Heights as an unwelcomed child who was already suffering from starvation. Hindley abuses the boy even more out of dislike for the boy by denying him of an education and forcing him to work like any other servants. It was not until Heathcliff’s runaway that he stopped suffering from Hindley’s abuses. As Heathcliff sworn he would get even with Hindley, upon his return from his runaway, he has carried out his diabolical plans to avenge his misery from the past. The Byronic hero’s vengeance demonstrates a powerful theme of revenge throughout novel.
Heathcliff avenges not only Hindley for his abuses, but also for the loss of Catherine and her betrayal of him for marrying Edgar Linton. As known to many, Heathcliff and Catherine’s love for each other is like the eternal rocks under the leaves in the woods as Catherine confessed herself (Bronte 59). The love between them is passionate and wild, whereas the love between her and Edgar is more reasonable. In contrast, the loves form a theme of passion versus reason, which can be seen throughout the novel.
Heathcliff’s passion for Catherine is expressed thoroughly through his gothic actions. In the story’s most gothic moments, Heathcliff tells Nelly about him asking the sexton to dig out Catherine’s grave, as he states, “I got the sexton, who was digging Linton’s grave, to remove the earth off her coffin lid, and I opened it. I thought, once, I would have stayed there, when I saw her face again—it is hers yet... when I’m laid there, and slide mine out too... (209). Bronte uses Heathcliff’s personality and actions to develop the plot in a very gothic fashion. As after the climax of the novel when Catherine died, Heathcliff begged her ghost to haunt him, as he states to Catherine’s dead body, “may you not rest as long as I am living! You said I killed you - haunt me - then! The murdered do haunt their murderers. I believe - I know that ghosts have wandered on earth. Be with me always, take any form, drive me mad!” (122). As impossible as it might seem for ghosts to exist and linger, later in the novel Catherine’s ghost did appear to haunt Heathcliff and Lockwood.
It is important to know that all of the supernatural encounters occur at Wuthering Heights only. Wuthering Heights is a gothic fashioned property described by both Lockwood “I paused to admire a quantity of grotesque carving lavished over the front, and especially about the principal door; above which, among a wilderness of crumbling griffins and shameless little boys, I detected the date ‘1500,’ and the name ‘Hareton Earnshaw.’” (5) and Nelly “You will, perhaps, think the building old and dark at first...”(261) being a dark and unwelcoming place possibly over hundreds of years old. The property stands alone on the wild moors of Yorkshire, plagued by bad weathers and haunted by ghost. Its inhabitants are wild and uncivilized. This dark setting of the property would fit very nicely into the gothic genre, Bronte uses the gothic property to contrast with Thurshcross Grange to help to create a theme of nature versus civilization.
As shown above, in her writing of the novel, Bronte often uses contrasting to present the reader with different themes, such as passion versus reason, nature versus civilization. Many of the contrast that she makes are contrasting gothic elements to something else partially or completely opposite. Bronte also develops her characters towards the gothic genre. As Heathcliff being the Byronic hero of the story, Isabella and Cathy are the imprisoned females. Heathcliff’s whole existence in the story revolves around his revenge and his love for Catherine. Being the main protagonist of the novel, Heathcliff’s gothic actions pushes the plot to a gothic fashion. In general Bronte uses gothic elements in her character and setting to create the gothic plot and themes.