Heathcliff is a man with dark eyes, and they say they the eyes are the pathways to the soul so his soul is black as well. He has a very sick sadistic personality and likes to see people broken down. He only ever shows one kind side, and that is when he is a child and he is completely in love with Catherine. In most romance novels, the dark brooding hero shows his kind side eventually, not Heathcliff. His malevolence proves so great and long-lasting that it cannot be explained even as a desire for revenge against Hindley, Catherine, etc. As he himself points out, his abuse of Isabella is purely sadistic, as he amuses himself by seeing how much abuse she can take and still come back for more. He is out to get anyone that has been apart of the separation between him and Catherine.
Edgar Linton
He is the foil to Heathcliff and the husband of Catherine. He is graceful, well mannered, and a true gentleman. He truly loves Catherine but is very meek. He is not able to stand up to Heathcliff and shuts down when he is picked on. Catherine is not fond of his meekness and wants a strong man like Heathcliff. He is so weak that Heathcliff eventually takes control of his household, wife, sister and mother.
Isabella Linton
She is the foil of Catherine and is very much like very brother, Edgar. She, in turn, ruins her life by marrying Heathcliff and staying with him even through all the abuse and tormenting. He never once returned the feelings for her and treats her like garbage and as a tool in his plot for revenge. Catherine represents wild nature in both her high lively spirits and her occasional cruelty, whereas Isabella represents culture and civilization, both in her refinement and her weakness.
Setting Description:
Wuthering Heights
Wuthering Heights is a very dark, beaten down place that is always being attacked by severe weather conditions. It is the main setting for the novel, and thorns and overgrowth surround everywhere that you walk. The house seems very aged and unwelcoming and no one in their right mind wants to pay a visit there.
Thrushcross Grange
In the way that Wuthering Heights represented its occupants, the Grange also represents its occupants, which are the Lintons. It looks beautiful on the outside, but it has some flaws on the inside. Just as the people on the inside do, they are very superficial and obsessed with social status and won't let a common person on the grounds unless they are the help. It is surrounded by walls, which, if behind for long enough, one can become oblivious to reality. It is a place of boundaries and restrictions, whereas Heights was a place of freedom.
The Moors
A place of happiness for both Catherine and Heathcliff where they would both go and be themselves and not have to worry about the pressures of the world. That is where they spent the most time together and this land represents their love and that is what they tie their love to.
Problem:
The problem in 'Wuthering Heights' is that the main character Heathcliff is filled with darkness and revenge and a hate for everyone. He also has a major drive for the people who have brought him further away from Catherine. Once he looses her he turns all his aggression towards his wife, which is in turn Catherine's husband's sister, and Catherine's Husband.
Major Events:
The Earnshaws adopt Heathcliff, and at first the snobby family rejects him because he is of way lesser class. Then Catherine warms up to him and they become best friends. Hindley, Catherine's brother, became jealous. Felt as if Heathcliff took his place and started to loath him. Started to bully Heathcliff, this started Heathcliff's bitterness and depression
The father dies, Hindley returns home, treats Heathcliff, who is only twelve, like his own servant and not part of the family. Meanwhile, the friendship between Catherine and Heathcliff began to deepen. She taught him her lessons, and they would run away to the moors all day despite the punishment that would come after.
Catherine was caught snooping by her neighbors with Heathcliff, and she was taken in and he was thrown out. She stayed with them for 5 weeks and when she came home, she was a very proper lady. This made Hindley happy, but it made Heathcliff very sad. She wanted more and more to socialize with the Lintons and that had a major effect on her friendship with Heathcliff.
Linton fell in love with Catherine, and when his father died, he proposed to Catherine and she said yes to gain the fortune and social status that came with being a Linton.
Heathcliff became heartbroken and left. Catherine and Edgar lived happily for a year until Heathcliff returned. Heathcliff married Isabella, and that drove Catherine into a mental breakdown, which almost killed her.
Heathcliff started to abuse Isabella to get revenge on Edgar. He had a passionate reunion with Catherine, in which they forgave each other as much as possible for their mutual betrayals. Catherine fainted, Edgar came back, and Heathcliff left. Catherine died that night after giving birth to a daughter. Edgar was terribly grieved and Heathcliff wildly so he begged Catherine's ghost to haunt him.
Edger died after he raised his daughter, but Heathcliff forced her to marry his son/her cousin. Edgar is buried next to Catherine's grave. Heathcliff eventually becomes so crazy with the thought of Catherine's ghost that he goes mad and stops taking care of himself and dies in his sleep one night. He is buried on the other side of Catherine.
The Solution:
In my honest opinion, the solution in this story is not good at all. It is a depressing novel with an even more depressing ending. It was interesting to see how the characters degraded over time because honestly none of them ever grew as people but turned evil and crazy with revenge and bitterness. It will leave you sad and a little bit heartbroken because there is truly no resolve at the end of this book.
Citations
1. Bronte, Emily. Wuthering Heights. Word Press Limited, Cambridge, UK. 2008.
