So far, I am quite enjoying my time reading Wuthering Heights. It's beautiful, intellectual, and emotional. All those wonderful things that girls love! Emily Bronte is a brilliant author. She brings forth emotions in me that I am finding difficult to put into words. She also raises intricate questions that I don't suppose I'll ever know the answers to. Am I supposed to feel bad for Heathcliff, or am I supposed to see him as a bad influence on Cathy? Do I think that Edgar Linton is a better match for Cathy? It is no doubt that he is a better influence, but does she really, truly love him? If she does not truly love him, then isn't she wasting both Edgar's and her time? These, and so many more, are the questions I will attempt to answer with further reading and analyzing.
Now, I'm just going to point out a couple passages that I have really enjoyed and that have some notion as to the meaning of the story.
Lockwood says, "A sensible man ought to find sufficient company in himself" (Bronte 45). For one reason or another, I found this statement quite odd. The more I read into the story, the more I realized that Lockwood may not have actually believed that. Why else would he constantly pester Nelly to be in his company and tell him the story? Though he may have thought that he wanted to be by himself, he soon finds that solidarity just becomes loneliness. Perhaps that is what Heathcliff (in Nelly's story, before Cathy married Edgar) came to find. He may have abandoned Cathy to find company in himself, but he realized that it was not what he wanted at all.
Another line that stood out to me was when Nelly said, "and it ended when circumstances caused each to feel that the one's interest was not the chief consideration in the other's thoughts" (Bronte 96). This was foreshadowing (quite blatantly, however) of what was about to happen between Edgar and Catherine. They were living such a quaint and content life together, and there was only one thing that could truly turn them against each other-- Heathcliff. It was interesting to see how obvious the course of the story became. I found that quite tactical on Bronte's part.
Savannah,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you pointed out that passage on page 45. As I reread it, it now seems sarcastic. Lockwood says on page 29, Heathcliff "evidently wished no repetition of my intrusion . . . It is astonishing how sociable I feel myself compared with him." Yet he returns to Wuthering Heights, not only intruding but provoking the dogs into an attack which causes Heathcliff to put him up for the night. (He even repeats himself on page 45 saying, "you need not dread a repetition of my intrusion.")That's enough to try any host's patience! But more to your point, Lockwood does speak out of both sides of his mouth. He either lives vicariously through the lives of his temporary neighbors or is somewhat a voyeur. In any case, he hardly finds himself "sufficient company."
I had marked page 96 also, ". . . they were really in possession of deep and growing happiness." Had I read this novel as an adolescent, I would have romanticized about Cathy and Heathcliff. However, as a more pragmatic adult (surely not just jaded!), I lament that Cathy and Edgar were not able to live out their lives together. What kind of marriage do you think Cathy and Heathcliff would have shared? Can a relationship sustain that much passion?
Savannah,
ReplyDeleteI too am not sure that I can express the emotions the novel instills in me. However, I can point out that the Gothic elements combined with the sentimentality evoke more than a simple romantic longing for a love like Cathy and Heathcliff's. I also have been pondering over whether or not Heathcliff and Cathy would have worked (@ Deborah), but since I am young and naive I have to believe that passion plays a huge role in the sustainability of a relationship. I'll amend my comment later but that's all for now! :)