Wuthering Heights

To usher in the month of February and the start of second semester, I have chosen to read a classic - Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights. I've heard many things regarding this particular title, mixed opinions from different individuals; some people loved it for the way in which the characters developed and interacted with one another, while some disliked it for the story's ever tragic nature. I have enjoyed the book quite so, and there are specific aspects of it which I love and others which I hate, but it's difficult to summarize it all without getting down to every component of the book. And that is how I shall cast criticism towards Wuthering Heights. But before I get started, a short summary of the book is in order.

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Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights

Summary

Wuthering Heights is set in Yorkshire, England during the mid 18th century to the early 19th century. The story is revolves around two households; the Lintons who live in Thrushcross Grange, and the Earnshaws who live in Wuthering Heights, and centers around the life of Heathcliff, a gypsy orphan who is taken in by the Earnshaw family. Heathcliff, being a foreign outsider, is given cold treatment by most of his new family members. This does not last as he eventually gets most of them to develop better dispositions toward him, especially young Catherine Earnshaw who dislikes him at first, but then develops affection for Heathcliff, who reciprocates her feelings.This is the cause of conflict between Heathcliff and the people who don't approve of their love, and the main driving force for Heathcliff's actions, who would do anything to be with Catherine, and defy those who try to stop him.

Writing Style

Emily Brontë wrote Wuthering Heights in the mid 19th century, which reflects her style of writing. She uses dated words uncommon to our modern vocabulary such as tarry, vex, countenance, and aversion. Despite this, I was able to infer the meaning of most of the words I didn't recognize by the context of their use. I'd say that the vocabulary she used does not cause hindrance to make readers turn away, but rather engages them to read for it's quite interesting to get perspective on how people spoke back then. 

One aspect that people might find confusing regarding her writing style is the way in which the characters narrate the story. The story starts off in the first-person perspective of Mr. Lockwood, a tenant at Thrushcross Grange, and then later switches to Ellen Dean's, a servant's, first-person perspective. Ellen recounts the story of the two households to Lockwood, which goes back about 50 years from Lockwood's arrival at the Grange. The majority of the story is narrated by Ellen, a fact that can be easily overlooked by some readers, and cause confusion as to which story is being told presently. I have found this to be something which can make the chronology of the story seem distorted, but it didn't cause too much confusion for me to dislike this method of narration. It's important to note that the reader's opinions of the characters might become a little biased since most of the information we get about them comes from Ellen, who has her own personal biases and convictions.

The only thing I really disliked about Brontë's writing style is the way in which she expressed a character named Joseph's thick Yorkshire accent. Whenever Joseph has dialogue Brontë spelt the words in a manner which, if read aloud, would sound as how Joseph might say it. This, sided with the fact that Joseph has bad grammar, has made it excruciatingly difficult to understand anything he ever says, although his input is nearly trivial, which, I suppose, mitigates the nearly incomprehensible manner in which Brontë wrote Joseph's dialogue.

One of many things I really liked about her writing is that she often uses imagery to depict the overall mood of a particular scene. The story displays a lot of pathetic fallacy throughout its duration, one example is a scene where Catherine is torn between Heathcliff and another character named Edgar, and from a cold night emerges a violent storm. I found that the way Brontë described scenes was sufficiently vivid, which I really liked since I do not enjoy reading long-winded descriptions of imagery and setting. I found her depiction of scenery in perfect balance between vividness and conciseness.

Is the book engaging?

Yes. To me the book was quite riveting. I've heard other people's responses regarding the book and some of them thought that it was boring, while others really loved it, as I have. The book's realism is debatable; while one could say that Heathcliff's acts of vengeance are justifiable, another might say that love alone cannot possibly cause the lack of empathy and cruelty evident in Heathcliff's actions. 

When I read how Heathcliff carries out his vengeance I started to believe that the story does not seem real, since I had seen some humanity in Heathcliff in the beginning, something which is absent in his actions, and refused to believe that he completely turns into an irredeemable monster. After the conclusion of the story, however, I started to see why such humanity in him was practically nonexistent before and found myself amazed at how Brontë can suspend Heathcliff's character between an anti-hero and an outright villain. 

Personal Biases

I have an affinity for romantic stories which is probably why I hold this book in such a high regard. It's a romance story which does not end in a manner I expected, and I really loved it in that aspect. I think it's unlikely for people who have an aversion towards romance or drama to find appreciation for this title since the story is nothing without either. Therefore it is critical that one consider whether romance, drama, tragedy, and love are things which they can enjoy since the story of Wuthering Heights revolve around these aspects. 

Emily Brontë's Influences

Brontë grew up living in the moorlands of Yorkshire, England, where the story of Wuthering Heights is set. The moors are often mentioned in the story, and is associated with good things such as when Catherine and Heathcliff play on the moors with childlike innocence when they are still young. It is believed that Brontë was shy and reclusive and that she loved the tranquility and solemnity that the moors had to offer, and is reflected by the way she often mentions the moors with regard to positive things in the book. 

An aspect that critics are puzzled and amazed by is the fact that Brontë grew up never having experienced anything close to the things that the characters in her book portray. She grew up in the quiet moors where she was isolated and hardly knew anybody outside of her family, which begs the question of how or where she got the inspiration and the idea to write the dramatic story of Wuthering Heights. People speculate that her idea for the story culminated by reading books she had access to as a child and later developed further as she grew older. Others also say that the story itself is not of romance, and that it is merely a story of tragedy.

The moors in which Brontë grew up is closely tied to the setting of Wuthering Heights

Real World Connections

The story suggests that love can drive one to extreme heights as Heathcliff is when he is torn away from Catherine. This theme that Heathcliff's love for Catherine warrants his wrath towards the characters that surround him is present throughout the book. Catherine genuinely loves Heathcliff but is blind to the fact that her actions merely cause him grief, which makes it a little unbelievable she evokes strong feelings from him. These two facts show how love can cause detriment when left unchecked and uncontrolled, an issue which the story raises. Loving blindly will only lead to nothing but misery, the story addresses this issue by having Heathcliff's blind love towards Catherine end in tragedy, concluding that love can only be relished if it is kept in check. 

Rating: 5/5

There's a reason for why this book became a classic. I tried to avoid giving spoilers but it is quite hard to explain my evaluations without giving details which could spoil important events. I really enjoyed the story given that it strayed from romance clichés and that the ending concluded in a manner that gave resolution and redemption to the characters who mattered to me. I would recommend this to mature readers as the writing style can be cumbersome to most people, and the story is not to be taken at face value since there are a lot of subtle details which can be easily overlooked and even cause confusion. If you're a fan of drama and romance, then this classic is one you must read.