Nechifor Ilinca XB

Wuthering Heights
-a normative critique-

Introduction
Wuthering Heights concerns the interactions of two families, the Earnshaws and Lintons,
over three generations. The novel is set in the desolate moors of Yorkshire and covers the
years from 1771 to 1803. The Earnshaws and Lintons are in harmony with their environment,
but their lives are disrupted by an outsider and catalyst of change, the orphan Heathcliff.
Heathcliff is, first of all, an emblem of the social problems of a nation entering the age of
industrial expansion and urban growth. Although Brontë sets the action of the novel entirely
within the locale familiar to her, she reminds the reader continually of the contrast between
that world and the larger world outside.
Character analysis
Heathcliff falls under the category of the “violent” and somewhat even sociopathic character,
most of his struggle coming from him being a person of color. Given the fact that the novel
was written in the mid eighteen hundred, Emily Brontë’s vision of individuals with a
different skin color wasn’t quite balanced with the idea of equality, but we can definitely say
she did her best for the time being. On another note, Heathcliff is also portrayed as passionate
and quite heartfelt, even if most of the time, his love came off as violent, which could be
possibly because of the way Heathcliff was treated in the past, when the others made him feel
as if he didn’t even deserve to be loved due to the social inequalities of the time being.
Catherine is the adventurous and childish female figure, (described by the narrator as
Heathcliff’s soulmate / twin flame / the love of his life) is the one who causes the main
conflict of the novel. As I conveyed in the paragraph above, socially speaking, Heathcliff was
seen in an almost dehumanized light due to his ethnicity, him being Romani, and because of
that, Catherine had a lot of doubts about marrying him. Even though she was deeply in love
with him (which obviously was reciprocated by Heathcliff), she instead, chose marrying his
opponent, Edgar, in order to fulfill her social ambition of becoming a superior lady of the
house. As badly and selfish as that sounds, Catherine just took the safest choice, the action
taking place at the beginning of the 17th century, women didn’t have the opportunity to
sustain themselves or be financially independent, due to the normalized misogyny and the
wide spread idea of “what a women should do”, and where a women’s place in society really
was.
Edgar is the average rich and empowered man. Arrogant, cowardly and blinded by his
emotions, in almost perfect contrast with his opponent, Heathcliff, the only thing that they
share being their love for Catherine. I personally think that this character was used to
symbolize the power of money and social injustice can have over already empowered from
birth individuals, and how we can get strayed away from the people we love or things we
love to run towards the dream of living a decent life as a minority, in this case, Heathcliff and
Catherine being the minorities. This also leads me to believe that Wuthering Heights is not
only a romance novel, but also a social commentary on the social issues which were
happening and the author found unfair.
Nechifor Ilinca XB

The environment
By definition, “Wuthering means “blustery and turbulent, and often describes the fierce,
noisy winds that blow across English moors.” In the novel, the manor is described as
“grotesque, with strong, narrow windows… deeply set in the wall, and the corners defended
with large, jutting stones. It is an isolated, bleak and dark place. The building itself is also a
used as a device for characterizing the people in the novel, in particular, Heathcliff. The word
” heath” itself is a synonym for the word “moor”, which is probably not a coincidence. Even
his physical appearance resembles Wuthering Heights: “brows lowering, the eyes deep set
and singular… black eyes withdrawn so suspiciously under their brow. Other associated
characters include the drunken and brutish Hindley and the rigid and hateful Joseph.
Wuthering Heights is also not an easy place to get to, quite confusing due to the nature
around it and the absence of signs, which might be a symbol for the way Catherine doesn’t
know what road or path to take, the one towards Heathcliff or the one toward Heathcliff, the
one towards the love of her life, or the one towards survival and occupying a higher position.
Conversely, Thrushcross Grange (with “thrush” referring to a small songbird) is a warm,
light, and sophisticated place. “Unlike Wuthering Heights, it is elegant and comfortable… a
splendid place carpeted with crimson, and crimson covered chairs and tables, and a pure
white ceiling bordered by gold.” Thrushcross Grange is closely tied with upper-class
Victorian society and its associated ideals. Just as Wuthering Heights is paired with
Heathcliff, the Grange is paired with Edgar Linton. He handles his matters with grace and is
appalled by any unmannered acts. When Catherine stays with the Lintons at Thrushcross for
several weeks, she transforms into their picture of a proper “lady.” Despite her passionate
love for Heathcliff, she is lured by the social standing that Edgar and Thrushcross Grange
represent. Catherine inhabits both spaces and their respective characteristics.