Edith Cowan University

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Theses : Honours Theses

2010

Wuthering Heights and the influence of literary

value
Michelle Fusco
Edith Cowan University

Recommended Citation
Fusco, M. (2010). Wuthering Heights and the influence of literary value. Retrieved from https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses_hons/1349

This Thesis is posted at Research Online.

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Wuthering Heights and the influence of literary value

Michelle Fusco

Bachelor of Arts (Honours)

Faculty of Education and Arts

26/11/2010
 USE OF THESIS

The Use of Thesis statement is not included in this version of the thesis.
 Abstract

This thesis will explore the way in which responses to Wutheting Heights have changed over

time due to the influence of changing standards of literary value. Although Emily Bronte's

Wutheting Heights is considered a work of classic literature, it has received a range of both

positive and negative responses since it was published in 1847, influenced by the literary

standards of realist, gothic and modernist literature. When Wuthering Heights was written

and published, the popular genre of the time was realist fiction, while the gothic genre had

experienced both a rise and decline by the 1920s. Wutheting Heights was rejected by the first

group of reviewers because it combined elements of both realist and gothic writing.

Reviewers conducted a moral and didactic reading that opposed the gothic behaviour of

the characters and rejected the ambiguous aspects of the novel. At the turn of the 20th

century, however, the rise of the modernist movement allowed Wutheting Heights to be re-

examined by critics who read the book through a modernist frame and found aspects of

the story to privilege, earning the novel a more positive valuation. These reviewers were

interested in finding psychological reasons to explain the behaviour of the characters, and

rejected the realist point of view presented by Nelly and Lockwood, the novel's narrators.

Based on this analysis, the shifting popularity of literary movements has brought about the

initial rejection and later privileging of Bronte's novel. My claim will be supported by

analysing the critical responses to Wutheting Heights from different time periods that reflect

the dominant attitudes to literature and opinions of Wutheting Heights. In exploring the

responses to Wutheting Heights, I aim to show how it is possible for the same text to have a

constantly changing value, due to the transformation of standards and trends in literature.

iii
I certify that this thesis does not, to the best of my knowledge and belief:

(i) incorporate without acknowledgement any material previously submitted for a degree or

diploma in any institution of higher education;

(ii) contain any material previously published or written by another person except where

due reference is made in the text; or

(iii) contain any defamatory material.

I grant permission for the library at Edith Cowan University to make duplicate copies of

my thesis as required.

Signed

Dated _\.:.__'5_/-~-~........c:.Q_C)__\_\_ _

iv
 Acknowledgements

The writing of this thesis would not have been possible without the help and support of a

few important people.

Most importantly, I would like to acknowledge the hard work, help and guidance of Travis

Kelleher and Susan Ash, both of whom acted as supervisors over the last year. Thank you

to Susan, who helped develop my initial ideas and the first stages of writing, and

encouraged my interest in Wutheting Heights. Thank you to Travis, who worked incredibly

hard to take on my thesis mid-year and help get it completed, and for the quick feedback

and encouragement I always received. To both of you, I am extremely grateful.

To Mum, Danielle and Gabbi, thank you for putting up with me in such close proximity

and allowing me to put my head down and work for the last year. Thank you for giving me

the time, space and support I needed; it wouldn't have been possible without you. I love

you all.

To my friends, who reminded me how important it is to spend time away from the

computer. Thank you!

To Rachael Young. Your friendship and advice were sorely missed this year. I hope I made

you proud. Miss you and love you always.

To my wonderful boyfriend Jeremy, for listening even when it made no sense to him, for

helping find library books and for encouraging me to keep going, or to take a break when I

needed one. I love you.

v
 Table of Contents

Introduction: ................................................................................................................................ 1

Chapter One: The Gothic Genre and responses to Wuthering Heights: .................. 6

The Gothic Genre: ........................................................................................................ 6

Gothic elements in Wuthering Heights: ............................................................. 13

Critical rejections of the gothic in Wuthering Heights: ................................. 19

Chapter Two: Modernism framing of Wuthering Heights: ........................................ 32

The modernist genre: ................................................................................................ 32

Modernist elements in Wuthering Heights: ...................................................... 36

Modernist revaluation of Wuthering Heights: .................................................. 44

Conclusion: ................................................................................................................................ 52

vi
 Introduction

Wuthering Heights has undergone continuous analysis since its publication in 1847, receiving

both harsh criticism and vigorous praise from reviewers and literary critics. Changing

beliefs about the purpose and value of literature have been the cause of these shifting

attitudes towards the novel. My thesis will argue that responses to Wutheting Heights have

developed from the way in which literary standards and trends have changed and evolved

over time. I will argue that the shift from rejection to acceptance of Emily Bronte's novel

has resulted from the literary movements of realism, gothicism and modernism. I will argue

that these different literary frameworks facilitated different responses to Wuthering Heights,

and I will demonstrate this by looking at these movements' defining qualities and influence

or presence in Wuthering Heights. I will then look at the reviews and critical analyses written

in response to the novel in each period, to understand what value was given to Wuthering

Heights at the time. The reviews are important in showing the shift in response as they

represent the popular attitudes towards Wuthering Heights, and are a valuable source in

understanding what elements of Wutheting Heights reviewers and critics objected to or

approved of.

The changing responses to Wuthering Heights as a text also had consequences for the

Heathcliff-Catherine couple at the centre of the story. The couple suffered initial rejection

from reviewers, who did not like the unconventional nature of the relationship. The

obsession, irrationality and excesses of the love story were elements the early reviewers

found to be distasteful. These aspects of the romance did not fit within the framework of a

rational love story. However, later critics attempted to find explanations for the

unconventional romantic relationship. Critics in the 1900s investigated the behaviour of

Catherine and Heathcliff and often tried to find motives for why the couple acted in such
1
an irrational way. Instead of simply rejecting the couple, later critics wanted to explore the

thought processes behind the behaviour of the pair.

The first chapter will investigate the conflict between the genres of realism and gothicism.

In this chapter, I will look at how the conflict affected the construction of Wuthering Heights

and the initial reviews made in response to the text. Emily Bronte's writing combined

elements of both realist and gothic genres. As well as this, the conflict between gothic and

realist writing also formed the framework through which the novel was judged. At the time,

the popularity of realist fiction and the unpopularity of gothic fiction caused the initial

reviewers of Wttthering Heights to reject the story and give negative reviews. The reviewers

took issue with the way Wuthering Heights had not followed realist writing standards, and

criticised the gothic elements that compromised the realism of the novel. Because of this

subversion of writing trends, Wutheting Heights was seen to be repellent and unacceptable.

This response demonstrates that Wuthering Heights was compared to and judged against

realist writing standards. The time in which Wuthering Heights was written and published

emphasised reason, truthfulness (Warwick & Willis, 2008, p. 160) and morality (ibid., p. 29)

as the most important quality for its stories and characters. Gothic writing was based on

subverting realist modes as well as highlighting the limitations of realist writing, which

often downplayed the emotional needs and mental processes of characters in favour of a

focus on external features and appearances. I will demonstrate how Emily Bronte had been

interested in and inspired by the older gothic and romantic works that reviewers saw as

outdated and immoral. Though it was an unpopular genre by the time Wuthering Heights was

published, the influence of the gothic genre is evident throughout Wuthering Heights in its

plot, characters and themes. However, the novel also had realist influences in the

presentation of the Yorkshire landscape, rules of society, a focus on how families

2
accumulated wealth and the status of women and servants, as well as life on the moors, in

apparent isolation from the rest of the world. Through the above, Bronte demonstrated a

conflict between realism and gothicism, which was also evident through blurring

boundaries between heroes and villains and setting up a conflict between reason and

emotion. I will show how the novel fits into a gothic mould because of its obvious

rejections of religion, morality and social conventions that were highly regarded at the time.

As will be shown in the following chapters, Wuthering Height! subversion of the popularity

of realist writing in 1847 had negative consequences for its reception by early critics. The

gothic influences, which subverted popular writing standards, meant that Emily Bronte's

novel was criticised and rejected by the vast majority of reviewers. Other early reviewers

also attempted to force Wuthering Heights into a realist framework, which was unsuccessful

because Wuthering Heights did not comply with realist writing standards. The novel's gothic

qualities tied in with a wider approach to writing that involved exploration and analysis of

psychology and abnormality, rather than didacticism and moralising (Botting, 1996, p. 3).

However, the unpopularity of this approach meant that reviewers saw Wuthering Heights as

unsuitable, and were worried about the detrimental effects resulting from readers being

exposed to depictions of immoral behaviour. As a result, the focus of the first chapter is

concerned with how the initial rejection of Wuthering Heights stemmed from its

transgression of genre expectations.

In the 1900s, the negative responses to Wuthering Heights were ending. As I will argue in the

second chapter, the shift was predominantly due to the changing literary scene, in particular

the development of the modernist movement. Though very different from the gothic

movement in terms of style, modernism contained similar themes and ideas. Most

importantly, modernism was also based on a rebellion against the limitations of realist
3
writing. Like gothic writing, modernists rebelled against characteristics of realist fiction

such as omniscient narration, believing that these methods did not adequately encapsulate

reality. In contrast, modernists placed an emphasis on internal human processes, through

studies of psychology, fragmentation and stream-of-consciousness (Childs, 2007, p. 3). I

will argue that Wuthering Heights can be read in a way that brings it close to some of the

standards of modernist writing. Emily Bronte's approach to psychology and consciousness

were constructed in a way that supported modernist beliefs and rejected the realist

approach to depicting reality. My second chapter argues that as the modernist movement

became more popular, critics who favoured the ideas of modernism re-valued Wuthe~ing

Heights. Their endorsement of modernism meant that their response to Wuthering Heights

was based on finding ways to make sense of the story through psychological exploration.

In doing this, reviewers attempted to explain the novel's transgressions of typical, normal

writing standards. I will show that critics after 1900 were more accepting of the story

because of their interest in character's psychology and motivations, and as such offered

explanations to try and make sense of the construction of characters, rather than simply

reject it for its lack of obedience to popular genre conventions. The modernist movement

allowed Wuthering Heights to enjoy growing popularity, which helped to elevate the novel to

the status of a classic text. In tum, critics viewed the Catherine-Heathcliff relationship as a

more acceptable depiction of romantic love, because their behaviour could be understood

to represent the chaos of real life, and the product of certain psychologies. Based on this

reading, I will argue that Wuthering Heights was re-valued due to its modernist qualities and

the shift in genre trends.

In making this argument, I am relying on ideas relating to the relationship between art and

ideology, and by supporting the idea of the relativity of literary value. As Alick West

4
argues, "A work of literature ... embodies a particular social attitude; in certain social

conditions this attitude can be advantageously advanced by certain social classes, and the

work is said to have value. When these conditions change, it loses its value" ryJest, 1996, p.

103-106). Although I am not conducting a Marxist reading by looking at historical context,

I am relying on a Marxist foundation to pursue my argument. I agree with West's claim that

value is not inherent, but is instead informed by "social attitudes" - the dominant ideology

shared by people. These social attitudes, according to West, determine the value of

literature. Terry Eagleton defined the term 'ideology' as "the ways in which what we say

and believe connects with the power-structure and power-relations of the society we live

in." (1983, p. 14). Therefore, ideology is the group of dominant ideas that shape how

people perceive the world, and dictate which beliefs are valued over others. Eagleton

argues that literature is a form of perception, and because of this, literature has "a relation

to that dominant way of seeing the world" (1976, p. 6). This means that the production of

literature is shaped by social attitudes. In turn, responses to literature are also influenced by

the dominant social attitudes shared by people, which indicate what ideas are valued.

My thesis demonstrates that Wuthering Heights and the reviews in response to it have been

shaped by certain social attitudes. As attitudes toward the standards of literary value have

changed, the value of texts such as Wuthering Heights has in turn experienced a shift.

Although because of its subversion of standards of literary value Wuthering Heights was

initially rejected, its parallels to later standards allowed it to become favourable.

5
 Chapter One: The Gothic Genre and responses to Wuthering Heights

This chapter will explore the influence of the gothic genre in Wutheting Heights, and the

consequences it had on the novel's reception. The chapter will follow the initial rise of

gothic fiction with The Castle ifOtranto, and the following decline, indicated by the trend of

parodying gothicism. I will look at how Emily Bronte was influenced by the gothic genre,

and how aspects of the genre were present in her novel. Finally, I will explore the

consequences of the presence of gothicism in Wuthering Heights. I will show how the gothic

elements in Wutheting Heights caused reviewers to produce a negative response to the novel.

Reviewers objected to the novel's subversion of the popularity of realist fiction at the time

through the use of gothic elements.

The gothic genre

Developed in the eighteenth and through the nineteenth centuries, Fred Botting describes

gothic fiction as "a hybrid form, incorporating and transforming other literary forms as

well as developing and changing its own conventions in relation to newer modes of

writing" (Botting, 1996, p. 14). During the 18th and 19th centuries, important changes were

beginning to occur around the world that influenced the formation of gothic writing.

Countries were shifting towards industrialisation and urbanisation, and scientists were

making new and frequent discoveries. There had also been much political unrest with

occurrences of abdications in England and revolution in France (Heiland, 2004, p. 3).

These changes had consequences for the makeup of domestic life, religion, value systems

and gender roles (Botting, 1996, p. 3), and these changes brought about a feeling of anxiety

and uncertainty. The massive changes taking place in the structuring of society meant that
6
ideas of transgression and disintegration were at the forefront of public consciousness

(Davison, 2009, p. 47). Gothic literature presented a world in which constant threats,

insecurity and uncertainty were a part of everyday existence for its characters (Heiland,

2004, p. 3). Because of this, gothic writing was a literary encapsulation of the negative

emotions felt in response to change.

During the production of gothic writing, the popular movement in the writing of novels

was realism. The realist genre aimed to put a mirror up to society, writing about people and

events that were thought to be true to life. Realism involved descriptions of exterior

elements, such as buildings, clothing, objects and settings, to create what was seen as a

portrait of real life. Character construction was based on their surroundings, and character

behaviour was used to establish a "larger interrogation of human values and motivations"

(Warwick & Willis, 2008, p. 160). In doing this, authors investigated morality and set an

example of good or bad behaviour to readers through characters. Realism was

distinguishable for its didactic role, in which guidelines were set for living and messages

were presented to readers concerning proper behaviour (ibid.). The Enlightenment was an

ideological influence on the creation of realist fiction, seen as the opportunity for man to

"come of age" and encourage the advancement of knowledge (Porter, 2001, p. 1), to try

and make sense of the world and deal with issues that they found problematic. The term

empiricism described the way knowledge was gained through the senses, resulting in the

shaping of ideas. Empiricists tried to objectively study the world, like the writers of realist

novels (Porter, 2001, p. 18). In defining this age by its knowledge and civilisation,

references to the past were seen to be irrational and ignorant. The importance of reason

and rationality was reflected in the writing of realists, and references to the past and

depictions of irrational ideas or behaviour were rejected (Botting, 1996, p. 22). Gothic

7
writers sought to subvert rationality through setting their work in a superstitious medieval

period that differed from the realistic, modem world.

As established in Fred Botting's definition, gothic writing had similarities to other genres of

the time, but also developed its own unique characteristics. In his article "Gothic versus

Romantic: a revaluation of the gothic novel", Robert Hume described gothic and romantic

genres as sharing "some themes and characteristics" (1969, p. 288). However, the major

difference between the two related to the feelings of uncertainty that gothic writing was

produced in. Romantic writing tried to reconcile conflict created in the story through "the

creation of a higher order" (Hume, 1969, p. 290). Unlike romanticism, gothic writing

usually did not provide explanations or answers for the events it was describing, allowing

the story to end without a clear sense of resolution or certainty ~bid.). There were also

basic standard images present in gothic writing. These included castles and ruins, storms

and unruly landscapes, and a social system based on strong religious ideals or feudalism.

Gothicism often referred to the supernatural through events that could not be explained

through empiricism (Ellis, 2000, p. 21), as a clear way of "removing the narrative from the

realm of the everyday" (Hume, 1969, p. 284). There were also standard gothic characters: a

heroine, her lover, and a dangerous older man who threatened to imprison or murder the

couple. Most often, these elements were symbolic representations of the themes of

discord, uncertainty and anxiety (Sedgwick, 1986, p. 8).

The basis of gothic writing was transgression, including social and sexual transgressions

such as incest and adultery (Heiland, 2004, p. 3). Gothic writing frequently described and

examined events and ideas that were seen as uncivilised and repulsive, depicting

"usurpation, intrigues, betrayal and murder" (Botting, 1996, p. 6) as well as "criminal

behaviour, violent executions of selfish ambition ... and licentious enactments of carnal
8
desire" (ibid.). These depictions of immorality transgressed the behaviour that religious

institutions expected people to follow. The ambivalent tone of gothic writing was also

transgressive, which differed from the certainty and clarity of realist, didactic novels.

Botting also asserts that gothic writing was ambivalent in the mixed emotions it worked to

evoke in readers: gothic writers aimed to cause terror, but also excitement and intrigue

(1996, p, 9).

Unlike realist writing that focused on external elements to construct characters and stories,

gothic works tended to emphasise the psychologies of its characters. According to Hume,

gothic writing developed out of a growing curiosity in what he described as "psychological

interest" (1969, p. 283), and an interest in "interior mental processes" (ibid.). Gothic

writing emphasised the thought processes of its characters and their emotions, and in doing

this, encouraged a greater understanding of the actions of characters in the story. Instead of

didacticism, gothic writers explored varied, sometimes disturbing, psychological

perspectives. Gothic novels often contained characters that embodied excessive emotion,

acting irrationally due to their unbridled feelings and desires (Hume, 1969, p. 285).

Character construction in gothic texts investigated the way human psychology encouraged

transgressive behaviour, involving instances of danger, uncertainty and disintegration. It

also emphasised a subversion of standards of society and morality, highly regarded ideals of

the 18th and 19th centuries. (Botting, 1996, p. 3). As I will show, these defining gothic

qualities are evident in Emily Bronte's approach to representing the psychology of her

characters in Wuthering Heights, particularly Heathcliff and Catherine.

For a time, gothic writing did enjoy endorsement in its own right and became a familiar and

popular genre, though it continued to be part of a minority (Botting, 1996, p. 21). Horace

Walpole's The Castle rifOtranto, published in 1764, is considered by most literary critics to be
9
the introduction of the gothic genre to the literary scene (Ellis, 2000, p. 27). Walpole

described his writing as "an attempt to blend the two kinds of romance, the ancient

[ancient] and the modern" (cited in Ellis, 2000, p. 20). By mixing elements from medieval

romances and realist novels, Walpole wanted to "overcome the perceived limitations of

both" (Botting, 1996, p. 48). Walpole wanted to find common ground between a desire for

realistic representation, and a genre made up of improbable situations. In doing this,

~ '

Walpole pushed and subverted the popular tastes and aesthetic standards of the time

(ibid.). The Castle ojOtranto was written under the premise of being a supposed historical

document, establishing the gothic trait of creating a story within a story. The preface of the

story alleged that it was a translation of "a medieval Italian story printed in 1529 and

written at the time of the Crusades" (Botting, 1996, p. 49). The story used antiquated

language, gothic script and references to past societal customs to make the reader believe

that this story was an authentic tale from the dark ages. (ibid.). Walpole also relied on the

setting of the castle, which contained "underground vaults, ill-fitting doors with rusty

hinges, easily extinguished lamps and a trap-door" (Birkhead, 1921, p. 33). All these

elements were made to appear potentially dangerous and terrifying, but were often later

shown to be trivial and harmless (Birkhead, 1921, p. 33).

The Castle oJOtranto also showed an interest in character psychology and behaviour. The

story contained mysterious, supernatural occurrences, such as a sighing portrait, which

encouraged superstitious, irrational and emotional responses from the characters (Botting,

1996, p. 51). The main character, Manfred, who needs to retain his place as prince by

producing an heir, decides to pursue and marry his dead son's fiancee. His ambition, driven

by desire and greed, becomes murderous. Manfred's actions demonstrate his lack of moral

boundaries and his irrational thought processes, which eventuates into a tragic mistake. The

10
Castle rif'Otranto is significant because it describes and explores the psychological outcomes

of an unstable, changing environment, which are often negative and illogical (Smith, 2007,

p. 18). Walpole's second preface to Otranto, written in 1765, made the claim that the stoty's

purpose was to make the characters "think, speak and act, as it might be supposed mere

men and women would do in extraordinary positions" (Smith, 2007, p. 19). Based on this

explanation, Walpole wanted people to read his stories as allegories of '"real' psychological

situations and political circumstances" (ibid.). The questionable morality in the story and

the inclusion of the supernatural and superstition are elements that were also evident in

Wutheting Heights, and demonstrated the influence of gothic literature on Emily Bronte's

writing.

Franz Potter believes that most critics agreed that gothic writing began to lose reader

appeal around 1820 (Potter, 2005, pp. 1-2). Edith Birkhead insightfully pointed out that

"the novel of terror has been destroyed not by its enemies but by its too ardent devotees"

(Birkhead, 1921, p. 124). After the publication of The Castle rif'Otranto and similar novels

suchas The MJsteries rif'Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe, writers took part in creating mass-

produced gothic tales. These tales relied heavily on simplistic images of ghosts and casdes,

and aimed to shock and horrify readers easily and as often as possible (Birkhead, 1921, p.

160). At this point, the genre became, to use Birkhead's term, "disreputable" (ibid.),

because of those who "looked upon fiction as a lucrative trade, not as an art'' (ibid.). Critics

grew weary of what they viewed as "an unending torrent of popular trashy novels"

(Botting. 1996, p. 21/22), and were unanimous in their rejection of these stories between

1790 and 1810 (ibid.). As a result, the gothic novels were no longer effective in creating the

desired response of terror and excitement from readers. In relation to the context of gothic

writing, Botting claimed that gothic novels' "capacity to embody and extemalise fears and

11
anxieties was in decline" (Botting, 1996, p.10). Furthermore, rejections of gothic writing

also stemmed from the transgressions and oppositions the gothic genre was defined by,

opposing the standards of "cultivation and civilised behaviour" (Botting, 1996, p. 22).

Fearing that this writing might cause people to take on immoral and radical behaviour,

reviewers rejected the work.

As part of this bacldash against gothic writing, the genre was criticised and parodied

(Johnson, 1817/2008, p. ix). One of the most famous critiques of gothic fiction was Jane

Austen's novel, Northanger Abbry. Charlotte Bronte was critical of Austen's realist-style

novels, describing them as being like "a carefully fenced, highly cultivated garden ... but no

glance of a bright, vivid physiognomy" (Southam, 1996, p. 126). Charlotte also complained

that Austen "ruffles her reader by nothing vehement, disturbs him by nothing profound"

(Southam, 1996, p. 128). Given that Charlotte and Emily had similar writing influences, and

had a very close relationship, it is probable that Emily had similar opinions on realist

writing. NorthangerAbbrywas published in 1818, though it had been written at the end of

the 1700s (Todd, 2006, p. 36). It told the story of a seventeen-year-old girl, Catherine

Morland, an avid reader of gothic novels. In reading these books, Catherine develops an

overactive imagination, leading her to come to unlikely and dramatic conclusions about the

people around her. Catherine "expects the extreme and menacing and finds only the

ordinary and innocuous" (Johnson, 1817/2008, p. xi). The plot makes fun of the tension,

high drama and horror of the gothic genre. Although novels like NorthangerAbbryhad

included some of the light-hearted aspects of gothic fiction, the trend of parody indicated

the decline in popularity of gothicism. This decline had major consequences for the way in

which reviewers received Wuthering Heights, and the initial unpopularity the novel suffered.

12
 Gothic elements in Wuthering Heights

Although Wutheting Heights had been preceded by both a rise and decline in the gothic

genre, there were obvious influences and evidence of gothic elements in the story. This

stetntned from the reading habits of Emily Bronte and her attraction to the gothic and

romantic genres (Miller, 2002, p. 195). Wutheting Heights engaged with some of the basic

gothic ideas such as expansive landscapes and dark and stormy weather. Emily Bronte

constructed Wutheting Heights as a story within a story, considered a gothic convention

because of its representation of the "intrusive relationship between past and present"

(Sedgwick, 1986, p. 99). The moors, though not explicitly present in Wutheting Heights,

provided a psychological landscape for the untamed passions of the characters and their

yearning for freedom. Catherine tells Nelly of a dream in which she is flung from heaven to

"the middle of the heath on top ofWuthering Heights" where she wakes "sobbing for joy"

(Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 81). Many years later, her daughter, also named Catherine, finds the

moors to be a source of adventure, asking Nelly when she can "walk to the top of those

hills ..." (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 190). Bronte also constructed the character of Joseph to

represent religion and morality, in order to subvert and reject these beliefs. Nelly describes

Joseph as "the wearisomest, self-righteous pharisee that ever ransacked a Bible to rake the

promises onto himself, and fling the curses on his neighbours" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 42).

Joseph's character is an oppressive force throughout the story, as Catherine, in her

childhood, describes hitn bullying her and Heathcliff, telling them to "think uh yer sowls!"

(Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 21). His construction as an oppressor because of his religious

dedication is a subversion of the highly regarded place of morality at the time.

Though references to the supernatural were limited, there were scenes in which

supernatural forces, or belief in the supernatural, were present. A particularly terrifying

13
scene in the novel involves Catherine's ghost haunting the narrator, Lockwood. In

retaliation, Lockwood "pulled its wrist onto the broken pane, and rubbed it to and fro till

the blood ran down and soaked the bed-clothes" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 25), a violent,

cruel response to his irrational fear. The superstitious belief in ghosts is mentioned again at

the end of the story as Nelly tells Lockwood that the figures of "Heathcliff and a woman"

(Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 336) have been seen by a local boy. This account lets the reader

know that although Heathcliff and Catherine are now both dead, they still haunt the

memories, both literally and figuratively, of those remaining. It also ties in with the gothic

tendency toward irrationality that allows a belief in the supernatural.

There are suggestions that the basis of Catherine and Heathcliffs relationship at the centre

of the story is an incestuous bond, a sexual and moral transgression popular in gothic

writing. Heathcliffs mysterious introduction into the Earnshaw home, and his and

Catherine's childhood together as brother and sister, has caused some literary critics, like

Eric Solomon, to deduce that they cannot engage in a proper, normal relationship because

they are blood relatives (Solomon, 1959, p. 83). However, the novel refrains from including

a moral judgement on this aspect of the novel, which diminishes the didactic nature of the

story.

The presence of ambiguity affects all the main characters of Wutheting Heights. Although on

the surface Emily Bronte is using gothic conventions to construct her characters, she

complicates them and gives them more complexity by making their role ambiguous,

another gothic convention. Donna Heiland points out that Wuthe1ing Heights follows a

gothic plot by placing the heroine, Catherine, between "a morally dubious figure" (Heiland,

2004, p. 117), Heathcliff, and "the physically fair, morally good figure of Edgar" (Heiland,

2004, p. 118). In spite of the three characters fitting these roles, Catherine is not
14
"threatened by one man and saved by the other" (ibid.) as most gothic heroines are. Edgar

and Heathcliff each contain good and evil traits. Edgar Linton can be seen as the "good"

man of the pair, who is described as having a "soft-featured face" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p.

67) and being "almost too graceful" (ibid.). Edgar represents wealth and status, and

Catherine believes that marrying him will make her "the greatest woman of the

neighbourhood" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 78). However, Edgar is not entirely good. He is

prejudiced against Heathcliff throughout the novel because of his low status, rudely

exclaiming that Heathcliff's hair is "like a colt's mane over his eyes!" (Bronte, 1847/1995,

p. 59), and upon Heathcliff's return, calling him "the gipsy- the plough-boy" (Bronte,

1847/1995, p. 95). Heathcliff also accuses Edgar of making Catherine "cruel and false"

(Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 162), and that Catherine's "poor fancy" for Linton was the cause of

their separation (ibid.). As will be discussed later, Heathcliff is predominantly seen as the

evil character, being bitter, angry, violent and vengeful. However, these traits can be argued

to stem from. his ability to feel pain and hurt, and that Heathcliff is not without positive

emotions. Only when Catherine betrays her own heart (Bronte, 1847/199 5, p. 162) does

Heathcliff lose his potential for love. This construction of the two male leads subverts what

would normally have been very clear boundaries between characters. The construction of

Edgar and Heathcliff ties in with the gothic method of exploring complex psychology.

Emily Bronte's exploration into the psychologies of Edgar and Heathcliff is used to explain

their behaviour, as well as illustrating that their complex thoughts and actions cannot be

explained solely by their outward appearances. This demonstrated to readers that external

qualities were inadequate in dictating the goodness or evil of a character.

Bronte's greatest innovation, which was problematic for critics, is her construction of

Heathcliff, the villain-hero of the story. This villain-hero character "combines the roles of

15
gothic villain and Romantic outcast in his antisocial demeanour, fierce temper, mercenary

and unlawful plottings, and his quest for vengeance" (Botting, 1996, p. 129). Heathcliff

contains all these qualities. He does not live peacefully alongside any of the other characters

in the story, causing harm and disruption wherever he goes. Heathcliffs character was also

an embodiment of the irrational, primitive emotions that opposed Enlightenment and

ideals of rationality and reason. He has a tendency for violence, at one point brutalising his

wife Isabella, when Bronte describes hpw Heathcliff "snatched a dinner knife from the

table, and flung it" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 182-3) at his wife. There are frequent references

to Heathcliff cursing, and his "prayer" to Catherine after her death is disturbing, crying,

"may you not rest as long as I am living... Be with me always - take any form - drive me

mad!" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 169). Most famously, Heathcliff has an overwhelming desire

to "payHindley back'' (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 61) which motivates his return to Wuthering

Heights, telling Catherine that he will not "suffer unrevenged" after she reacts negatively to

his advances on Isabella. (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 112). This desire for revenge is a major

motive for Heathcliffs actions and drives much of the story's plot. These qualities allow

Heathcliff to be seen as a villain by the characters within the story and the critics who

reviewed it.

Heathcliffs character, as a subversion of a typical villain, was made distinctive by Emily

Bronte's approach to humanising him through his emotions and thought processes. For all

his nega.tive qualities and questionable actions, he is driven by feelings of pain, suffering,

and love. Heathcliff acts violendy towards Hindley, as Isabella described how Heathcliff

"kicked and trampled ... and dashed" Hindley's head repeatedly (Bronte, 1847/1995, p.

179). This violence is usually in response to the oppression Heathcliff has suffered, and the

servant status Hindley has forced him in. His anger towards the Lintons derives from his

16
realisation that their lifestyle and their friendship with Catherine are causing her to change

and become less interested in him. His plans of revenge stem predominantly from his love

for Catherine, telling her that his plan to return and seek revenge is "just to have one

glimpse" of her again (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 97). Catherine's behaviour toward Heathcliff

makes his behaviour reactionary. Her loving welcome to the returning Heathcliff makes

him forget his plans of suicide (ibid.), but her refusal to leave Edgar causes Heathcliff to

pursue Isabella. On one level, Heathcliff acts as a typical gothic villain, but in exploring the

reasons and motivations for his villainy, Emily Bronte makes his character more

ambiguous. Joyce Carol Oates argues that Heathcliff is "defiantly not a hero" (Oates, 1982,

p. 443), and that he is disdainful when Isabella views him as a "hero of romance" (ibid.).

This argument shows that the reader should not see Heathcliff as simply a hero or villain.

As will be seen in the early reviews of Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff's complex character and

the humanisation given to him by Bronte made it difficult for critics to apply a realist

reading around him and the story as a whole. The importance of morality to reviewers, and

the expectation of a moral lesson within the story, meant that they struggled to accept the

gothic ambivalence of Wuthering Heights. By presenting Heathcliff in this complex and

humanised way, Emily Bronte was examining his psychology, rather than presenting him as

a representative of good or bad behaviour, as didactic novels often did.

Wutheri~g Heights also fits into the gothic framework by setting up a tension between the

outside world and the inner natures of Catherine and Heathcliff. The repressive, rational

nature of the world and the intense, uncontrollable feelings of the couple represent the

tension between the realist and gothic elements of the novel. The role of Nelly as narrator

makes her a representative of rationality, viewing Catherine and Heathcliff as emotional,

disordered and unnatural. Nelly has strong religious and moral standards that she often

17
makes cleat to the couple, telling Catherine that she wishes she would speak rationally and

that she does not understand Catherine's indecision and excessive emotions (Bronte,

1847/1995, pp. 79-80), demonstrating the gap between Nelly's rationality and the

irrationality of Catherine and Heathcliff.

Catherine and Heathcliff enforce gothic irrationality through their actions, which are

impulsive and driven solely by emotion, something seen frequently through the dialogue

between the characters. Upon learning that Heathcliff is making romantic advances toward

Isabella Linton, Catherine tells him to leave Isabella alone, unless he is "tired of being

received here, and wish Linton to draw the bolts" against him (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 111).

In response, Heathcliff tells her that she has treated him "infernally", and says, "if you

think I can be consoled by sweet words you are an idiot" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 112).

Often, the impulsive decisions of the two characters for example, Catherine's agreement to

accept Edgar's proposal, and Heathcliffs decision to leave after discovering this lead to the

tragedy and destruction created in the story. Their actions cause their separation, which

drives them to inflict misery on those around them and on each other. This obsessive,

destructive relationship is viewed by the other characters, particularly Nelly, as difficult to

understand and impossible to relate to. She watches the dramatic final meeting between the

pair "in great perplexity" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 162). To Catherine and Heathcliff,

rationality, reason and domesticity repress their true natures, causing their value systems to

become skewed and leading them to make decisions that have negative consequences for

both of them. As a result, Bronte's exploration of social norms and conventional morality

expose their potential to be seen as negative influences on behaviour, and not always

harmonious or constructive.

18
As Edith Birkhead described in her book of 1921, The Tale ifTerrot~ instead of simply using

standard gothic tactics to increase the tension of Wuthering Heights, the story exposes and

explores "the terrors of actual life" (Birkhead, 1921, p. 190). To Birkhead, the terrors of

actual life result from combining gothic and realist writing, thus showing how terror can

exist in reality. Thi; approach of combining gothic and realist writing also brings out the

ambivalence of Wuthering Heights, another gothic element. Emily Bronte does very little to

enforce a moral framework that the characters must follow or subvert. Her characters

display a variety of irrational behaviours and transgressive psychological outlooks, which

Bronte does not always show as questionable or abhorrent. Nelly, as narrator, represents

the rational, reasonable viewpoint through which the behaviour of certain characters,

particularly that of Catherine and Heathcliff, seem objectionable. However, Bronte chooses

not to simply reject the characters, and instead attempts to account for their behaviour, and

gives them attributes that humanise them and give them complexity. By creating

ambivalence, the story declines to send a moral message to readers, subverting the didactic

nature of many realist novels of the time. Wutheting Heights relies on gothic elements such as

ambivalence to avoid directing reader responses, and in doing this, Bronte's novel to some

extent rejects the standards of realist writing.

Critical Rejections of the Gothic in Wuthering Heights

The reviews of Wuthering Heights at the time of publication reflected the expectations

reviewers had concerning genre and the role of the writer. Early reviews highlighted the

fact that reviewers saw the gothic influences in Wuthering Heights as a cause for criticism.

Many early reviews also attempted to force Wuthering Heights into a realist frame. Because of

19
these approaches by reviewers, Wuthering Heights was largely rejected because of its gothic

elements and its undermining of realist writing methods.

One of the first reviews of Wutheting Heights was published in the Spectator in December

1847. It claimed that Wuthering Heights was an unsuccessful work because "the incidents are
~

too coarse and disagreeable to be attractive ... " (Spectatot~ 1847/1970, p. 39) These

"incidents" are the gothic elements of the story, which subverted the refinement and

reason of realist novels and the realist potential of Wuthering Heights. The idea of the reader

as refined, and someone who would "disagree" with the gothic elements of the novel,

reveals the perceived unfavourableness of the story's morals, and demonstrated the

reviewer's attempt to apply a didactic reading to Wuthering Heights. The reviewer also

examined the characters, claiming that the villainy in the story cannot be justified by "the

elaborate pains taken in depicting it" (ibid.). This comment implies that the gothic

approach, to examine the human condition and psychology without necessarily referring to

social codes or morality, was incorrect and did not fit in with realist modes. This approach

to writing, which opposed standard realism, became a cause for concern to critics (Miller,

2001, p. 193). The realist and moral standards required Wuthering Heights to depict morally

worthy characters in relatable, reasonable situations, rather than the highly emotional

characters of Wuthering Heights caught in extraordinary circumstances.

The next review, from the Athenaeum in the same month and year, had very similar

complaints to the Spectator review. The reviewer struggled to endorse the novel "in spite of

much power and cleverness; in spite of its truth to life ..." (Athenaeum, 1847/1970, p. 39)

because of the reviewer's claim that Wuthering Heights was "a disagreeable story" (ibid.).

Although Wutheting Heights adhered to some of the realist and moral expectations, especially

in its portrayal of "remote nooks and corners of England" ~bid.), the story's transgressions
20
could not be overlooked. The main gothic influence the Athenaeum reviewer objected to

was the construction of Heathcliff. The reviewer attempted to reconcile Heathcliff's

character with being based on real life people "where human beings, like the trees, grow

gnarled and dwarfed and distorted... " (ibid.) Despite this, the reviewer c9mplained that

Heathcliff's gothic character was given too prominent a place in Wuthering Heights, to the

extent that "there is hardly a scene untainted by his presence" (ibid.). This demonstrated

the reviewer's objection to Heathcliff's dual role as a hero and a villain, and the time spent

on psychologically exploring this morally questionable figure.

This preoccupation with Heathcliff continued into the next year of reviews. A reviewer for

The Examiner in 1848 could not make sense of W uthering Heights, calling the story "wild,

confused, disjointed and improbable" (Examinet~ 1848/1974, p. 220) for the mix of genres

it presented. The lack of realism and believability in the story made it subversive and

difficult for the reviewer to endorse. The reviewer's main problem with Wuthering Heights

again lay with the characters, whom he called "savages" (ibid.), struggling with the

emotional excesses and lack of moral guidelines present in the novel. However, the

reviewer's issue with characters rested mainly with Heathcliff. The reviewer rejected

Heathcliff's conflicting states of hatred and love, writing:

The hardness, selfishness and cruelty of Heathcliff are in our

opinion inconsistent with the romantic love that he is stated to have

felt for Catherine Earnshaw... He has no gratitude, no affection, no

liking for anything human except for one person, and that liking is

thoroughly selfish and ferocious. (Examiner, 1848/1974, p. 221)

21
Again, Heathcliff's character, borrowing from both gothic and romantic genres with his

excessive emotion and violence, did not fall easily into a single category. His gothic

tendencies to violence and hatred, and lack of positive emotions did not coincide with the

expected qualities of a hero. As a result of this, the reviewer could not approve of his

behaviour.

In 1848, a reviewer in Douglas Jerrold's Weekly Newspaper was also preoccupied with the

"brutal ~ruelty and semi-savage love" (Douglas Jerrold's Weekfy Newspaper, 1848/1970, p. 44)

present in Wutheting Heights. Attempting to look at the novel from a realist perspective, the

reviewer concluded that it was difficult to deduce a moral message, and that the reviewer

had only seen "mere glimpses of hidden morals and secondary meanings" (ibid.). The

reviewer attempted to account for the complexities of good and evil in the story by stating:

The reader is shocked, disgusted, almost sickened by details of

cruelty, inhumanity and the most diabolical hate and vengeance, and

anon come passages of powerful testimony to the supreme power

of love - even over demons in the human form. (ibid.)

This reading, though not as negative as other reviews of the time, was still attempting to

apply realist standards to Wutheting Heights by seeking out the didactic framework of the

story and the presence of moral messages. Although the review emphasises the positive

element of the love story to try and balance the negative elements, the reviewer is still

distracted by the immoral behaviour overall, believing it was these elements on which the

reader based their response.

An article in the Britannia in the same year agreed that Emily Bronte's depiction of tragic

love sent a message to readers about "the brutalizing influence of unchecked passion"

22
(Britannia, 1848/1974, p. 225). This attempt to find the didactic elements of the story

caused reviewers to be unappreciative of Wutheting Heights as an exploration of human

psychology, and to force it into a realist and didactic framework As such, the novel's

content did not adhere to a realist standard for the reviewer. This is particularly evident in

the reviewer's response to the characters, who consistently complained that Wuthering

Heights would have been a far better romance if Heathcliff alone had been a being of

stormy passions, instead of all the other characters being nearly as violent and destructive

as himself" (Britannia, 1848/1974, p. 224). This opinion rejects the gothic excess of

emotion in the novel and is not in favour of the lack of moral messages presented. Because

the reviewers expected the novel to fit in with realist standards, which it did not, they

rejected the novel.

The negative reviews of Wuthering Heights continued with an article in the Atlas, again in

1848. The article opens with the claim that the gothic atmosphere found in Wutheting

Heights "casts a gloom over the mind" (Atlas, 1848/1974, p. 231). The reviewer disliked the

negative emotions and the darker side of human nature that the gothic influences brought

out. This reviewer is also concerned with the construction of the characters. The characters

are criticised for representing "the worst forms of humanity" (ibid.). Just as the reviewer

complained about the dark atmosphere of the story overall, they also despised the nature of

the characters, writing that not one of them was likeable. The reviewer describes them as

deformed, suggesting that their lack of adherence with the reviewer's standards meant there

was something wrong and abnormal about them. The reviewer also rejected the love story

between Heathcliff and Catherine as an attempt to humanise Heathcliff and earn him

sympathy. Because the reviewer felt that Heathcliff's gothic nature could not be justified,

the love story failed "of the intended effect" (Atlas, 1848/1974, p. 232). The reviewer was

23
also critical of Catherine, claiming that her gothic nature, driven by excessive emotion, was

"wayward" and "pitiful" (ibid.). Up to 1850, reviews of Wtttheting Heights remained

continually negative. These responses caused Charlotte Bronte to feel the need to defend

her now-dead sister's work.

In 1850, Charlotte Bronte republished Wutheting Heights. This republication included a

Biographical Notice, that revealed that the Bell authors were female, as well as an Editor's

Preface, both written by Charlotte. Charlotte presented Wutheting Heights as an

unappreciated masterpiece that had suffered unfair criticism, writing, "The immature but

very real powers revealed were scarcely recognised; its import and nature were

misunderstood ..." (Bronte, 1850/1995, p. xlvi). Her main goal was to discredit the first

group of reviewers, who had rejected the novel, and encourage readers to re-examine

Wutheting Heights in a positive light. In spite of her aims, Charlotte Bronte's analysis of

Wutheting Heights revealed her own reservations about the story. She agreed that the story

was "in a great measure unintelligible, and- where intelligible -repulsive" (Bronte,

1850/1970, p. 63), implying that she too saw the novel to be full of literary transgressions,

making the book unlikeable. Nonetheless, Charlotte attempted to highlight the less

transgressive and more realist aspects of the novel to justify its worth. She shifted attention

away from Heathcliff and Catherine and focused on Nelly Dean and Edgar Linton to argue

that there were acceptable presentations of morality in the story. However, when she did

acknowledge Heathcliff and Catherine, their gothic construction was rejected. She found

Catherine's emotions to be "perverted" (Bronte, 1850/1970, p. 66) and Heathcliffs love

"fierce and inhuman" (ibid.). As a result, Charlotte Bronte agreed with the critics she tried

to oppose, and continued a rejection of the gothic elements of Wutheting Heights. Although

24
she believed her opinion offered a "clear glimpse" (Bronte, 1850/1995, p. 1) of the novel,

essentially she had the same values concerning morality and genre as other reviewers.

After Charlotte Bronte's republication, reviewers attempted to give a more detailed analysis

of Wuthering Heights. Some reviewers continued to emphasise and reject the gothic elements

of the story, while others avoided discussing these elements, and began to romanticise and

sentimentalise Catherine and Heathcliff's relationship. Both varieties of reviews, however,

continued to adhere to realist guidelines and remained wary and unfavourable towards the

perceived gothic influences of the novel.

In his 1850 article, G.H. Lewes was critical of Charlotte Bronte's attempt to discredit

reviewers, especially as her review had itself contained similar criticisms of the novel. He

admitted that often Wuthering Heights was repulsive, and the characters of the story were

"bred up amidst violence, revolt, and moral apathy" (Lewes, 1850/1974, p. 292). This

comment demonstrated the expectation that Wutheting Heights would adhere to popular

didactic and moral ideals, and an attempt by Lewes to find the presence of a moral message

in the novel. Because of this expectation, Lewes' reading of Wuthering Heights was made up

of a rejection of the gothic elements, claiming, "the visions of madmen are not more

savage, or more remote from ordinary life" (ibid.). In spite of this analysis, Lewes looked

more closely at the development of characters to argue that Catherine and Heathcliff are

simply products of their unfortru:late upbringing, arguing "such brutes we should all be ...

were our lives as insubordinate to law, were our affections and sympathies as little

cultivated" (ibid.). Although Lewes took a different approach to the review by looking for

an explanation for the gothic elements, he also applied a realist, didactic reading to the

story. Lewes created a moral message out of the construction of Emily Bronte's characters

in order to make sense of the story.

25
In that same year, Sidney Dobell was also conflicted in his reading of Wutheting Heights,

trying to find aspects within the novel to endorse while at the same time showing

trepidation about the gothic influences. Dobell attempted to look for positive aspects

within the story, pointing to the construction of Catherine's character, describing her as

"fearfully natural" (Dobell, 1850/1970, p. 60) and calling her love for both Heathcliff and

Edgar an "involuntary art" (ibid.). Dobell apparently believes that Catherine's character

could be considered real because she behaves in response to natural, involuntary feelings.

However, further comments suggest that Dobell still found the gothic elements of the

story to be problematic. These issues predominantly lay with the construction of

Heathcliff, who continued to be an obstacle to the reviewers' endorsement of Wuthering

Heights. Dobell commented that he hoped the questionable elements of the novel were due

to it being Emily Bronte's first effort, and that next time "she will not, again, employ her

wonderful pencil on a picture so destitute of moral beauty and human worth" (Dobell,

1850/1970, p. 61). This response to the very gothic characteristics of Wuthering Heights

show that it was consistently difficult for reviewers to analyse Wutheting Heights without

applying a realist and rational framework to it.

Also in 1851, the Eclectic Review opened with the claim that W uthering Heights was one of the

"most repellent books we ever read" (Eclectic review, 1851/1970, p. 70). The review tried to

find aspects of Wuthering Heights that they found agreeable, which was limited to favouring

the descriptions of scenery. Once again, the reviewer struggled to find positive comments

to make when examining the characters. Unlike Lewes who was fascinated by Heathcliff,

this reviewer called Heathcliff "a perfect monster" (ibid.), and that both Catherines "are

equally exaggerations ... and absurdly unnatural in the leading incidents of their life" (ibid.).

These character descriptions again show that the novel's portrayal of excessive emotion

26
and violence could not be justified by the reviewers. Because of this, the plot was seen to

be "devoid of truthfulness" (ibid.), demonstrating that realism continued to be an

expectation placed on writers and writing. This review made clear that Wutheting Heights was

still not favoured, and that the gothic elements continued to cause rejection of the story.

The remaining group of reviewers were more open to the presence of gothic ideals in the

events and characters of Wutheting Heights, agreeing that it gave the story complexity.

However, in spite of this openness, reviewers were still wary of the influence of gothic

writing. John Skelton, writing in 1857, represented a changing attitude to Heathcliff that

took into account his negative and positive qualities. Although Skelton calls Heathcliff

"ferocious, vindictive, wolfish" (Skelton, 1857/1970, p. 73), he also argues that "we

understand the chain of fire that binds Cathy to him" (ibid.) and that in comparison to

Edgar, he is more appealing. This analysis of Heathcliff suggests that Heathcliff's gothic

qualities earn him a uniqueness of character and attractiveness to the reader. This also

appears to be the case with Catherine, whom Skelton believed echoed "Shakespearian

madness" (1857 /1970, p. 74) where other reviewers saw an excessive, subversive heroine.

Skelton ends his article with the comment that Emily Bronte "may describe abnormal

characters, but, whatever they are, she describes them with startling genuineness" (ibid.).

This final analysis demonstrates that while Skelton is wary of the content of Wuthering

Heights, he appreciates Emily Bronte's powerful writing.

Emile Montegut, also writing in 1857, had similar views on Wuthering Heights as John

Skelton. Montegut recognised the mix of fascination and passion created in the reader by

the gothic features of the novel. He argues that although the characters are guilty of

perversities, creating fear in the reader "because the terror which they inspire is above all a

moral one" (Montegut, 1857/1970, p. 79) with their "ferocious passions and impulses"
27
(ibid.). Like previous reviewers, Montegut attempted to explore the didactic nature of the

novel. He believed that the perversities Emily Bronte described in Wutheting Heights "are

avowable, because they are of the kind which we all carry within us" (ibid.). He also argues

that the reader is drawn to the characters as Bronte "defies us not to admire them" (ibid.).

Montegut highlighted Heathcliff and Catherine, calling them "the story of an irresistible

and perverse passion" (Montegut, 1857/1974, p. 377), showing his intrigue with the moral

complexities and questionable nature of the story. He attempted to understand how the

characters were a result of Emily Bronte's approach to psychological exploration. However,

he still looked at the story in terms of morality and immorality, and wanted to find the

message for readers.

Inthe same year, W.C. Roscoe also showed reservation towards endorsing Wutheting

Heights. Roscoe continued the trend of reviewers by acknowledging and investigating the

presence of gothic elements in the novel, and showing concern for their inclusion. Roscoe

felt horror at the presence of gothic excess and violence. He described the novel as

containing "frightful excesses of degrading vices, snarling hypocrisy, an almost idiotic

imbecility of mind and body, combined with a cruel and utterly selfish nature" (Roscoe,

1857/1970, p. 75). He argued that the inclusion of these elements in the story made it

impossible not to "excite abhorrence" in the reader (ibid.). However, Roscoe believed that

it was possible to admire Wuthering Heights, though "not without horror" (Roscoe,

1857/1970, p. 76). This demonstrates that Roscoe believed that horror was an unavoidable

response to reading Wutheting Heights. He agreed with Charlotte Bronte that Emily's

characters are inexplicable and worrisome, and must have been produced with naivete

~bid.). Therefore, in a similar way to the critics previously mentioned, Roscoe showed a

conflicting attitude to Wutheting Heights, still horrified and concerned with the gothic

28
elements in the novel, but willing to acknowledge its power and positive elements. Roscoe

was impressed with the imagination that went into the creation of the characters of the

novel, but complained that they are created "within a very narrow range" (ibid.). This

comment suggests that Roscoe did not approve of the excess and drama of the characters.

Roscoe attempted to read the Catherine-Heathcliff relationship in a didactic fashion,

arguing that the Heathcliff-Catherine couple showed "how fierce, how inhuman a passion,

personal attachment to another may become" (Roscoe, 1970, p. 77). This final comment

again reveals the persistence of reviewers to look for a clear message of morality in the

novel.

After the 1850's, analysis of Wuthering Heights declined as the novel remained outside of the

literary mainstream, while Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre remained popular (Miller, 2001, p.

201). Lucasta Miller claims that Charlotte Bronte's attempt to defend Wuthering Heights

contributed to the idea that the novel was an "unacknowledged masterpiece" (ibid.) as well

as "its failure to find an appreciative audience" (ibid.).This idea was perpetuated further by

the decline in interest from reviewers. Some of the remaining reviews of the 1800s echoed

the conflict of opinions expressed by Charlotte Bronte. Like Charlotte, they wanted to put

Wuthering Heights in a more positive light, but continued to struggle as they attempted to

explain or justify the gothic aspects of the novel.

Although the 1873 Gala:;g review claimed the negative aspects of Wuthering Heights had

"procured for it so decided a prejudice that it has been only once or twice candidly

criticised and fairly judged... " (Gala:;g, 1873/1970, p. 85), the Gala:;g itself criticised the

novel. The reviewer believed that the faults of Wuthering Heights "are too prominent to

admit of either glozing or concealment'' (ibid.). Like other reviews, many of the complaints

from the Gala:;g were critical of the construction of characters. Heathcliff was described by
29
the reviewer as "warped by adverse circumstances" (ibid.) and Catherine was seen to be

"fierce faithless and foolish" (ibid.). The reviewer believed Wuthering Heights demonstrated

Emily Bronte's "power of making the unreal vividly real to the reader" (Gala~, 1873/1970,

p. 85-86), showing that the reviewer still expected the novel to follow realist standards.

Because of this response, the reviewer expressed yet another rejection of Wutheting Heights.

In 1877, T. Wemyss Reid again echoed the structure of Charlotte Bronte's argument,

labelling Wuthering Heights a powerful story, but agreeing that "as a novel it is repulsive and

almost ghastly" (Reid, 1877/1970, p. 87). Reid, like Charlotte, presented Emily Bronte's life

as inexperienced and isolated. Because of this, Reid sees Wuthering Heights as a "juvenile

work" (ibid.). This stems from his belief that Emily Bronte was in "absolute ignorance"

(ibid.) concerning "the great movements of human nature" (ibid.). He describes Heathcliff

as "the greatest villain in fiction" (Reid, 1877/1970, p. 88). However, Reid relies on the

human elements of Heathcliff's character to argue that the reader accepts him "as a real

being, not a merely grotesque monster" (ibid.). Reid even makes comparison with the very

gothic works of Ann Radcliffe, saying that Heathcliff's haunting by Catherine's ghost is

truly more terrifying than Radcliffe's "paraphernalia of rococo horrors" (ibid.). This

analysis shows that Reid still did not fully endorse Wuthering Heights, but his identification of

realist elements, and comparison to other gothic novels, made Wuthering Heights much more

tolerable.

The shift in response shown in Reid's article demonstrates that reviewers were gradually

beginning to notice the mix of genres Emily Bronte was working with. However, Emily

Bronte's failure to comply with dominant literary tastes of the time meant that it did not

receive favourable reriews and was given a low value at the time of its publication. Because

of the subversion of realism, and the incorporation of gothic features, Wutheting Heights was
30
rejected by reviewers. Only until literary trends changed could Wuthering Heights undergo a

revaluation.

31
 Chapter Two: Modernism framing of Wuthering Heights

In this chapter, I will show how the opinion of reviewers towards Wuthering Heights was

changed by the rise of the modernist movement. I will establish the defining ideas of the

modemist movement, including the major changes in thought at the time and the

techniques used by modernist writers to present their principles. The chapter will then

demonstrate how Wuthering Heights was able to fit into a modernist framework, and which

aspects of the story were privileged during the modernist period. I will then show how

reading Wuthering Heights through a modernist framework enabled reviewers to revalue the

novel and give it a more positive response, by exploring the psychology of the novel's

characters. This chapter shows how the shift in literary trends allowed Wuthering Heights to

experience a change in value.

The modernist genre

The modernist movement took shape in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Just as realist

fiction had set up the 19th century world as a time of rationality and civilisation in relation

to a barbaric past, modernists viewed their world as chaotic, in comparison to the reason

and calm of previous times (Childs, 2008, p. 17). For modernists, realist writing was

inadequate in representing the new realities faced as a result of modernity (Lewis, 2007, p.

2). The goal of modernists was to "modify if not overtum existing modes and subjects of

representation" (Childs, 2008, p. 4) in order to create new work. In doing this, modernists

wanted to reflect the world as they saw it, and create work that was more real and authentic

than popular realist writing. Modernist writing was comprised of experimentation with new

writing techniques, as well as new themes and focuses that had not been previously
32
explored (Lewis, 2007, p. 3). The modernist movement in writing predominantly involved

an interest in the human mind, consciousness and individual perceptions of reality, in order

to show the world as chaotic and unclear (Childs, 2008, p. 3).

The historical context of the modernist movement was made up of a series of new ideas in

transforming societies (Lewis, 2007, p. 11). The most powerful historical event that shaped

the modernist movement was the First World War. Just as industrialisation and

urbanisation had caused disruption and anxiety, reflected in gothic work, the war caused

uncertainty and disillusionment amongst people (Childs, 2008, p. 21). Meanwhile, the rise

of technology, decline of religion and morality, and the growth of new ways of looking at

the world added to an atmosphere of chaos. Modernist writers sought to encapsulate these

feelings and respond to the instabilities created by modernity. This focus on emotion and

chaos were modernist elements found in Wuthering Heights.

Karl Marx and Friedrich Nietzsche offered new ways of thinking, overturning well-

established, popular belief systems. Marxism was based on "an alienation from capitalism"

(Childs, 2008, p. 65), and the isolation that was felt in response to the shift "from countty

to city, land to factoty, individual to mass production" (Childs, 2008, p. 39). The

philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche expressed disillusionment with modernity, which

suppressed the "creative, aesthetic, Dionysian spirit" (Childs, 2008, p. 65), causing people

to lose touch with their emotions. Nietzsche's claim that "God is dead" signified "the loss

of faith in the divine" (Sedgwick, 2009, p. 106) that occurs when "God has ceased to have

explanatoty value due to the achievements of modem science" (ibid.). This meant that the

knowledge of man determined life, instead of a divine figure, again emphasising the power

of consciousness. Modernist writing reflected the growing focus on the individual and the

effects of change on their thought processes.

33
Similarly, the work of Charles Darwin and Sigmund Freud represented the growing interest

in human behaviour and the mind, rejecting religious-based understandings of humans.

Darwin's findings on evolution argued that humans were constantly evolving and

progressing, rejecting the approach to human existence based on religion, which was

founded on the belief of a divine creator (Childs, 2008, p. 47). It implied that "humans

were not so easily distinguished from other animals as the eighteenth century proponents

of the Enlightenment had assumed" (Lewis, 2007, p. 19). Freud's discovery of the

unconscious gave support to the idea that people were not always aware of the motivations

for their actions, and that their behaviour could be driven by repressed desires (Childs,

2008, p. 60). Human beings felt isolated not only from their environments, but also from

themselves, as their consciousness acted as a barrier to realising the truth behind their

desires (Levenson, 1999, p. 9). According to Peter Childs, because "so many writers and

thinkers were keen to explore their own and their characters' psychological recesses" (2008,

p. 61), modernist literature shared important qualities with psychoanalysis.

Modernists were finding that realist methods were insufficient in encapsulating the harsh

reality of life after the First World War, especially after the discoveries and claims put

forward by Marx, Darwin, Nietzsche and Freud. Although the modernist movement

acknowledged the events that created chaos and disorder, they were more concerned with

the effect they had on the human mind. Realist writing had often ignored or rejected the

importance of human responses and individual perspectives. Modernist writing explored

human behaviour and psychology, looking at how uncertainty and a changing world had

consequences on individuals.

Virginia Woolf and James Joyce used a series of techniques to convey modernist ideas to

readers. Woolf and Joyce are known as "high modernists", a distinctive writing mode of
34
the modernist period (Whitworth, 2007, p. 274). High modernism contained the ideal that

writers had a desire for total insight, trying to fully encapsulate the experience of life from

within the mind. However, high modernists understood that this aim was impossible,

because writing could not achieve a true representation of reality (Lewis, 2007, p. 120).

High modernism was defined by the belief that because humans were not able to achieve a

complete understanding of the world, knowledge was fragmentary (ibid.). The way in which

Woolf and Joyce approached their writing style and form represented their thematic

concerns. Modernists based their writing on individual perception, using techniques that

included changing perspectives and narration, and interior monologues which conveyed

this idea to readers.

For Woolf, Edwardian novelists were disappointing because they did not encapsulate what

she felt to be an account of true life. Their idea of reality was inauthentic to her. She

wanted novelists to move away from an obsession with external material details, believing

that this approach to writing did not adequately encapsulate the experience of life

(Goldman, 2006, p.104). Woolfs use of the interior monologue showed her preoccupation

with the human mind and its perception of the world. The interior monologue highlighted

the importance of the thoughts of characters, and their individual psychologies (Childs,

2008, p. 171). This style of writing was more realist because it was more than "a narration

of mere facts" (Roe & Sellers, 2000, p. SO). The shift from external to internal focus meant

that individual psychology was more realist because it showed life "as it is experienced"

(ibid.). The inclusion of multiple characters' consciousness also emphasised the idea of the

mind operating individually in each person (Childs, 2008, p. 171). The world presented by

modernists, therefore, was more real because it was based on the perception of the

individual characters that exist in it.

35
like many modernists, Joyce heavily focused on the meaning and importance of the

individual, rather than society. This was a rejection of realist writing, because modernist

writers felt that third person and omniscient narration gave a misleading impression of

objectivity (Childs, 2008, p. 42). More relevant to Joyce as a modernist was individual

consciousness. This was particularly evident in Joyce's use of stream of consciousness, a

technique he made famous. The idea of a stream of consciousness derived from William

James' understanding that "the mind proceeds like a river or stream" (Childs, 2008, p. 170)

and that thought is fluid, associative, and unstructured ~bid.). This technique again shows a

concern with individual consciousness by emphasising the importance of perception in

order to give an account of reality, as well as establishing the fragmented nature of

consciousness.

The ideas that were highly regarded by modernists, including exploration of consciousness

and psychology, chaos and disorders, and the subversion of realist writing, were elements

evident in Wutheting Heights. I will show the way reviewers in this period recognised these

elements and focused on them in their critical responses. First, however, I will provide a

reading of Wutheting Heights that demonstrates these features in the novel.

Modernist elements in Wuthering Heights

Although Wutheting Heights did not contain the linguistic or stylistic trademarks of

modernist writing, elements emerged from the novel that had previously been overlooked

without the framework of modernism. The modernist interpretation of Wutheting Heights

was able to invalidate the importance and reliability of the characters of Nelly and

Lockwood as rational, reasonable narrators. It also enabled the psychologies of the

36
protagonists of the story, specifically Heathcliff and Catherine, to be irrational and

abnormal without the previously assumed moral frame. This encouraged a reading of

Wutheting Heights based on finding explanations for the characters' behaviour.

Critics have seen Nelly and Lockwood's roles as narrators in the story as offsetting the

irrational, abnormal behaviour of the Heathcliff-Catherine couple. However, Nelly and

Lockwood are flawed narrators because of their lack of emotion and unreliability. The story

of the Earnshaw and Linton families is one of drama, heightened emotion and tragedy.

However, when Nelly recounts these events "the emotional range displayed ... is extremely

limited" (I<rupat, 1970, p. 274). Nelly seems to have not been greatly affected by the gravity

of the events she has witnessed. Lockwood, meanwhile, is simply "an admirer of Nelly's

style" (I<rupat, 1970, p. 274) and shows a "narrowness of emotional range" (ibid.),

demonstrating no change in attitude or understanding from what he has heard from Nelly.

Based on this limited emotion, it can be argued that Nelly and Lockwood are unreliable

narrators. Their recounting of events demonstrates that they do not understand how the

Heathcliff-Catherine couple are operating. There is no alternative story offered by the other

characters, leaving Nelly and Lockwood's point of view the only one the reader is given.

Nelly's calm, rational recounting of events and Lockwood's full approval of her storytelling

makes it difficult for the reader to attempt an alternative reading, or to understand why

Catherine and Heathcliff behave the way they do. This untrustworthy narration causes the

reader to consider the motivations for these characters, an interest that fits in with

modernist concerns.

Aside from their flaws as narrators, Nelly and Lockwood are also flawed as characters.

Their role of authority in telling the story allows readers to become aware of their faults.

Nelly's ability to tell Lockwood the events she has witnessed comes from her taking part in
37
and affecting the events that have taken place. Nelly's presence at crucial moments,

particularly in Catherine's confession scene when Nelly does not tell Catherine that

Heathcliff is listening, is fundamental in creating the action, which has the major

consequence of separating the couple and causing the story's tragedy (Bronte, 1847/1995,

p. 81). James Halfley is critical of how Nelly presents herself in her narrative to Lockwood.

To Halfley, Nelly makes sure to:

present herself in the genteel and upright role she fancies; she blames

herself for what has happened only at times when she can be sure of his

[Lockwood's] sympathizing with her; in the crucial instances she is silent,

and we must watch, rather than hear, the role she plays; or in other

instances, she manoeuvres herself out of the way by coy references to her

youth, her excitement (Halfley, 1958, p. 204)

Nelly is too involved in the events she is recalling, and as such as the ability to control how

Lockwood and the reader perceive them. Lockwood, like Nelly, is also flawed because of

his belief that he is superior to the events and characters he is hearing of. This attitude

distances Lockwood emotionally from the events of the story and as a result, leaves him

"unfit to speak properly" of them (Krupat, 1970, p. 279). Because Nelly and Lockwood's

role as narrator is compromised by her unreliability and her role in the action of the story,

her moral stance on the Heathcliff-Catherine relationship is undermined.

In subverting a realist reading of this behaviour by subverting Nelly and Lockwood's

authority and reliability as narrators, Bronte does not offer the reader a clear explanation

for Catherine and Heathcliff's actions, nor does she include a moral stance by which to

38
judge them. As a result, the reader questions and considers the motivations for the actions

of Catherine and Heathcliff, a response privileged by modernists.

In Wutheting Heights, Emily Bronte presents many of her characters in heightened

psychological states, a technique that is present in the work of many modernist writers.

Heathcliff is in a constant state of psychological torment throughout the novel, and shows

little to no positive emotion throughout the course of his entire life. Instead, he displays a

series of violent and cruel actions that represent his abnormal psychology. The characters

who witness these behaviours, particularly Nelly, struggle to make sense of them.

Heathcliffs victimisation as a child causes him to manifest abnormal behaviours in order to

survive and overcome oppression at the hands of Hindley, and prejudice from Edgar

Linton, who calls him "a runaway servant" (Bronte, 1847/1995 p. 96). Even in his younger

years, Heathcliff relies on violence in order to defend himself against those he perceives to

be enemies. When Edgar teases him, Heathcliff responds by grabbing hot liquid and

throwing it "full against the speaker's face and neck" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 59). This

tendency for violence is a theme that continues throughout Heathcliffs life, and most

often, the characters that encounter him do not understand his behaviour or know how to

act in response.

Most of Heathcliffs heightened emotions stem from his feelings for Catherine. Emily

Bronte suggests that their love is comprised of some very negative elements such as

obsession, cruelty, derangement and manipulation. His passion and loyalty to her cause him

to immediately run away when he learns Catherine believes they will "be beggars" (Bronte,

1847/1995, p. 82) and it will "degrade" her if they were to marry (Bronte, 1847/1995, p.

81). In spite oflrnowing that Heathcliff has heard her say these things, Catherine later

demands to know how she has treated Heathcliff "infernally" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 112),
39
seemingly unaware of how her behaviour has caused Heathcliff to act the way he does.

This shows that even Catherine, who believes she is the closest to Heathcliff, does not

wonder about his motives. Heathcliff's desire to reunite with Catherine makes him threaten

her marriage to Edgar by insisting on seeing Catherine when she is ill. He does this even

though he is forbidden from entering Thrushcross Grange and despite the fact that it may

put Catherine at greater risk of dying. When Nelly comes close to make sure that Catherine

has not died after embracing Heathcliff, he "gnashed... and foamed like a mad dog"

(Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 162). In response, Nelly feels she is not "in the company of a

creature of my own species" (ibid.), and cannot fathom the excess of feeling Catherine and

Heathcliff are expressing.

Heathcliff's negativity and psychological disturbance increases after Catherine's death, as

memories of her push him further into insanity. For Heathcliff, the world is an "abyss"

(Bronte, 1847/199 5, p. 169) if Catherine is not present. Heathcliff laments to Nelly towards

the end of the story that "the entire world is a dreadful collection of memoranda that she

did exist, and that I have lost her!" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 324). The most prominent

example of Heathcliff's increased insanity is the conversation between Heathcliff and Nelly

immediately after Catherine's death. When Nelly tells Heathcliff of her hopes that

Catherine will be in heaven, Heathcliff cries "May she wake in torment! ... Where is she?

Not there- not in heaven ..." (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 169). This response to Catherine's

death exemplifies the combination of intense love and loathing he feels. Even at the end of

their relationship, the reader is still unsure of Heathcliff's feelings towards Catherine. This

uncertainty is also felt by Nelly, who emphasizes the fact that she is shocked by his

behaviour. As Heathcliff hits his head against a tree, Nelly says, "it hardly moved my

compassion - it appalled me ... - he was beyond my skill to quiet or console" (Bronte,

40
1847/1995, p. 169). This inability to make sense of his behaviour causes the reader to think

more about why Heathcliff reacts to his environment in such a violent, excessive way.

Heathcliff represents an unconventional belief that he and Catherine can only be united in

death, which takes a literal form when Heathcliff arranges Catherine's coffin to fulfill his

dream of "dissolving with her, and being more happy still!" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 289).

Again, Nelly does not understand why Heathcliff is doing this, and tells him that he was

"very wicked" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 289), later telling Lockwood that she "didn't like to

hear him tall>:'' (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 291). The decision to comply with Heathcliffs

wishes for his burial is carried out "to the scandal of the whole neighbourhood" (Bronte,

1847/1995, p. 336). This shows that Heathcliffs behaviour, especially during his grieving,

is never clearly explained, and as such, is often misunderstood by those around him.

Catherine presents her own type of heightened psychology based on a combination of

naivete and selfishness, again leaving the reader unsure of her motives, and unable to place

a moral judgement on her actions. In childhood, Catherine has a tendency for heightened

emotions and violence. She is described as "mischievous and wayward" (Bronte,

1847/1995, p. 38), initially responding to Heathcliffs introduction to the house by

"grinning and spitting" at him (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 37). Soon, though, Catherine

becomes incredibly emotionally attached to Heathcliff, causing Nelly to believe she is "too

fond" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 42) of him, and that the best way to punish Catherine as a

child was to "keep her separate" from Heathcliff (ibid.). Although there is already evidence

that Catherine has a capability for extreme emotions, her psychology becomes even more

irrational as she grows older. When entering adulthood, Catherine becomes more erratic

and very contradictory in her speech and actions. In her confession scene to Nelly,

Catherine demonstrates vanity and concern for Heathcliff when explaining why she will

41
accept Edgar Linton's proposal of marriage. As quoted earlier, Catherine is drawn by the

promise of wealth and status in becoming a Linton, but also argues that her plan to marry

Edgar is also based on her hope that she "can aid Heathcliff to rise" out of his low social

status as a stable boy (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 82). Nelly responds to this by telling Catherine

that it is "the worst motive you've given yet" (ibid.), causing the reader to question how

genuine or truthful this admission is. In spite of her plan to become a Linton, Catherine

demonstrates that she will never truly be able to abandon Heathcliff, most famously

illustrated when she tells Nelly, "I am Heathcliff' (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 82). This claim

encapsulates the identity crisis, intense passion and obsession that Catherine herself feels

for Heathcliff, and her inability to completely adapt to the Lintons' way of life. To

Catherine, marrying Edgar poses no problem in her relationship with Heathcliff. Even

though Nelly is concerned that when Catherine marries Edgar, Heathcliff will lose "friend,

and love, and all!" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 81), Catherine responds by saying, "quite

deserted! We separated! ... who is to separate us, pray?" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 82).

Heathcliffs decision to run away, however, and his dialogue with Catherine after his return

shows that he does not agree with her beliefs or motives. The conflict of lifestyles causes

confusion and uncertainty in Catherine, and as this confusion grows, so does Catherine's

tendency to act hysterically and erratically. Although Catherine supposedly forms "a deep

and growing happiness" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 93) with Edgar after they marry, this

changes drastically once Heathcliff returns. Catherine is again infatuated with Heathcliff,

but her "expressions of pleasure in receiving him" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 100) change

suddenly when she realises that Heathcliff is romantically interested in Isabella. Catherine

tells Isabella that Heathcliff is "an unreclaimed creature, without refinement" (Bronte,

42
1847/1995, p. 102) and that he is "a fierce, pitiless, wolfish man" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p.

103), harsh and cruel accusations that oppose her claim to love Heathcliff.

Catherine's heightened psychology manifests itself into physical illness, showing how

powerful her emotions have become. Although the first illness debilitates her and gives

Catherine "an alteration in her constitution" (ibid.), her second illness eventually kills her.

During this time, Catherine speaks of her overwhelming need to be part of Heathcliffs life

again, and that the memories of a happier childhood leave her wishing she "was a girl again,

half savage and hardy, and free ... " (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 125). Her contradictions are

made obvious again when she meets for the last time with Heathcliff. She accuses

Heathcliff and Edgar of breaking her heart, and tells Heathcliff, "you have killed me - and

thriven on it, I think" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 160). She says to him "why shouldn't you

suffer - I do! Will you forget me - will you be happy when I am in the earth?" (ibid.).

However, she then begs him to come back to her as he wallrs away, and embraces him.

Again, the combination of love and hate is present when Catherine tells Heathcliff "I wish

I could hold you ... 'till we were both dead!" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 160). Catherine

believes, and convinces Heathcliff, that death is the only way they can be together without

the obstacles of money, status or oppression. To Nelly, however, Catherine's speeches at

the end of her life are "ravings" (Bronte, 1847/1995, p. 164) and that "she does not lmow

what she says" (ibid.). The way in which her psychological damage causes her illness and

eventual death shows that the strength of her emotions, though often disregarded or

misunderstood, are usually presented in an way which prompts the reader to contemplate

Catherine's beliefs and motivations.

A number of reasons can explain the action of Heathcliff and Catherine in the story

because of their psychological states. Some explanations that have been put forward by
43
critics include a drive for economic wealth, the couple's unconventional upbringing and

exposure to cruelty and violence, and the different, conflicting perceptions of truth each

character holds. However, no one reason is offered by Emily Bronte to explain why

Heathcliff and Catherine act in such an irrational, often hysterical manner. These

explanations are simply interpretations by critics who wanted to understand the reasons

behind the character's erratic behaviour.

Modernist revaluation of Wuthering Heights

By 1900, responses to Wuthering Heights had changed significandy. Towards the end of the

1800s, the Bronte sisters had developed a cult status among readers (Miller, 2002, p. 101).

In 1893, the Bronte Society formed, increasing the profile of the sisters and their work. The

creation of the Bronte Society demonstrated how the shock caused by Ellis, Acton and

Currer Bell's true identity as females had subsided. The public found the sisters to be

fascinating, and encouraged a rise of biographical studies of the Brontes (Miller, 2002, pp.

216-217). Within these biographical studies of the Brontes, scholars became interested in

what they had read and what had influenced their works. This interest highlighted the way

in which the passing of time made transgressions and interactions between genre no longer

so shocking or objectionable. Critics tended to examine these features without the

prejudices and expectations of the initial critics who had applied a purely realist reading to

their analyses of Wuthering Heights. The twentieth-century critics were able to discredit the

initial reviews, and accepted Wuthering Heights into the literary mainstream.

Critical responses in the twentieth century began with an article by Mrs Humphry Ward,

written as an introduction to the 1900 edition of Wuthering Heights. Ward's article was

44
important in drawing a distinction between early reviews and the new group of critics

revaluing the novel. Ward described how Wutheting Heights had been "Read in haste, and

with a prior sense of repulsion, which dropped a veil between book and reader, and was in

truth only the result of an all but universal tenor of opinion amongst our elders" (Ward,

1900/1970, p. 103).

Though this comment echoed Charlotte Bronte's complaints about earlier reviews, Mrs

Ward based her argument around the growing interest in literary influences, and less on the

requirements of realist, didactic writing. Ward investigated and emphasised the influence of

German literature and the Romantic Movement on Wuthering Heights, which explained the

"love of violent speech and action, the preference for the hideous in character and the

abnormal in situation" (Ward, 1900/1970, p. 106). This highlighting of genre justified the

darker elements of the story and acknowledged the novel as a mixture of genres, as well as

showed Ward's interest in the psychology of the characters. Ward also rejected Nelly's role

as narrator in the story, claiming that Nelly's character "does the most treacherous, cruel

and indefensible things, simply that the story may move" (1900/1970, p. 109). In reducing

Nelly's authority, Ward is able to find other reasons for the characters' actions in the story.

Ward identified the difficulty of readers to relate to Heathcliff as deriving from his inability

to adhere to the reader's moral structure- evident in the reviews of the nineteenth-century.

Ward highlighted scenes that humanised Heathcliff, such as Catherine and Heathcliffs

childhood together, Catherine's rejection of Heathcliff for Edgar, and Heathcliffs revenge

on Hindley. Ward believed Heathcliff disintegrates because Catherine haunts him for

murdering "her happiness and youth" (Ward, 1900/1970, p. 114), and that he is driven by

the belief that he will be reunited with her upon his death. In emphasising these parts of

the story, Ward concentrates on the complexity of the characters of Wutheting Heights, and
45
reveals possible explanations for Heathcliffs thought processes and behaviour. Ward

claimed Catherine's actions and words bore litde relation to true life, but described some

events in the book as having "extraordinary poetry" (190011970, p. 112), such as when

Catherine becomes ill. By understanding Wutheting Heights in terms of its literary approach,

rather than examining it as adhering or subverting certain writing standards, she did not

judge the quality of the story on its morality or message. Her article set the standard of

twentieth-century criticism of Wutheting Heights by discarding the need for a moral message

in writing. Ward's comments point to a growing interest in character psychology and

behaviour that allowed her to endorse the story and find ways to account for it.

Lascelles Abercrombie, writing in 1924, called Wutheting Heights "one of the greatest not

merely of English but of European novels" (Abercrombie, 192411970, p. 119). He, like

Mrs Humphrey Ward, looked at literary influences and similar authors including

Dostoyevsky, Byron and Conrad, to explain the dark themes of the story (Abercrombie,

1924I 1970, p. 119). Abercrombie believed Heathcliff represented the extremes of brutality

and passion, typical of the gothic hero. He argued that in reading about these extremes of

feeling and their interaction, the reader is able to understand "how a man may turn into a

fiend" (192411970, p. 120). This tied in with the major modernist focus on the human

mind and behaviour, as well as aiming to understand the exploration of psychology that

Emily Bronte was offering the reader. Abercrombie established the idea that Heathcliffs

hate and love are not separate entities, and justified Heathcliffs violent behaviour by

arguing the "agonies of that ghostly passion" is his main motive (Abercrombie, 1924I 1970,

p. 120). For Abercrombie, Emily Bronte's main purpose and greatest achievement is her

representation of love. The love in the story "consumes alike sentiment and sensuality, to

which the mortal things in life are mere irrelevance, which belongs to the inward essence ... "

46
(1924/1970, p. 121). Abercrombie's stance on exploring the characters of the novel show

his belief that the "inward essence", the character's psychology, are more real than the

externalities, which are irrelevant. Abercrombie's reading argued that the Heathcliff-

Catherine couple showed the way pure love becomes twisted and destructive, again

asserting the idea that Wttthering Heights was based on the consequences of repression. This

article shows a strong interest in making sense of the characters and understanding the

motivations for their actions.

Virginia Woolf applied her modernist outlook to a reading of Wtttheting Heights in her article

published in 1925. Woolflooked for the modernist elements in the novel, saying that Emily

Bronte had not been urged to create by "her own suffering or her own injuries" (Woolf,

1925/1970, p. 122), but rather, Emily had "looked out upon a world cleft into gigantic

disorder and felt within her power to untie it in a book" (ibid.). The "suggestion of power

underlying the apparitions of human nature" (ibid.) gives the novel greatness, because it

shows the depth and complexity of character and their strength of feeling. Woolfs use of

the term "apparitions" would suggest that Woolf believed explorations of humanity could

not provide a definitive representation of human nature in fiction. However, the qualities

attributed to characters gave writers the opportunity to explore different psychologies and

make sense of them individually. In doing this, the writing in Wttthering Heights supported

Woolfs modernist appreciation for the more realistic, genuine representation of human

nature because it offered exploration and understanding of consciousness. This article,

though brief, represents a major shift in genre trends and responses to writing. Woolf, as a

modernist, found value and positive aspects in the gothic elements of Wtttheting Heights,

unlike the early critics who favoured realism.

47
E.M. Forster's 1927 analysis, "Prophecy", argued that Wutheting Heights is comprised of

litde beyond the Heathcliff-Catherine relationship, and his article represents a growing

interest in the unconventional love story they presented. Forster believed the couple are

unique because their emotions operate in a different way to other characters, writing

"instead of inhabiting the characters, they surround them like thunder clouds, and generate

the explosions that fill the novel..." (Forster, 1927/1970, p. 133). This description implies

that the gothic, exaggerated, passionate emotions of the characters make their relationship

distinctive, and demonstrated Forster's interest in the consciousness of the characters. This

response to what was originally seen as abnormal and repulsive shows that now the unique

features of the story can be seen as attractive. Forster writes that upon finishing the novel,

"One cannot afterwards remember anything in it but Heathcliff and the elder Catherine"

(ibid.). Forster, in his interest in the deranged, abnormal, dangerous love story,

sentimentalised the Catherine-Heathcliff couple by emphasising the passion and avoiding

examination of the more cruel and hurtful actions of the pair. In doing this, Forster

showed that reviewers were no longer so interested in the moral implications of the

relationship the couple presented, and were less interested in the moral or didactic issues

the novel presented.

Twentieth-century critics were more open to an endorsement of the Heathcliff-Catherine

couple and were able to put forward a plethora of new readings. New themes and

interpretations applied to the critical dialogue of Wuthering Heights attempted to make sense

of the subversive, gothic elements of the story and explain the unconventional behaviour

of the Heathcliff-Catherine couple, rather than simply reject it outright.

In 1934, David Cecil wrote that he believed Wuthering Heights was constructed as moving

from harmony, through destruction, to resolution. His article worked to explain the
48
psychology of all the characters in the stoty in order to account for their behaviour. Cecil

placed the characters into two groups - the Earnshaws are "storm" and the Lintons are

"calm" (Cecil, 1934/1970, p. 137). Because Heathcliff, lilce Catherine, is "a child of the

storm" (ibid.), the pair fall in love, but Heathcliff creates conflict amongst the other

characters. This description highlights the psychology Catherine and Heathcliff presents

that differs from the other characters in the novel. Cecil described Catherine's decision to

marry Edgar as a result of her being "seduced into uniting herself in an 'unnatural'

marriage" (Cecil, 1934/1970, p. 138), making Heathcliff react destructively, avenging

Hindley and creating another unnatural union with Isabella. To re-establish harmony,

Heathcliff must stop his destructive behaviour and reunite with Catherine, even if only in

death. Cecil's reading of the couple is an investigation into what motivates Heathcliff and

Catherine, and what finally causes Heathcliff to give up. This examination of characters

allows an inclusion of both the loving and destructive elements of their personalities and

actions, without a reading of the moral implications. It also shows the focus on psychology

that reviewers had developed, allowing them to come up with new ways of interpreting the

novel.

"The Theme and Structure of Wutheting Heights', written by Melvin Watson in 1949, also

contained arguments that demonstrated the shift away from the expectations of early

critics. Watson argued that Heathcliff was the driving force of the novel, and his journey

the story's central theme, writing "he not only acts and suffers, but causes others to act and

suffer; his strength permeates the story..." (Watson, 1949, p. 89). Based on this, Watson

believes that Wutheting Heights is "a psychological study of an elemental man whose soul is

tom between love and hate" (ibid.). Instead of basing his reading on ideas of morality or

didacticism, Watson highlighted the psychological torment of Heathcliffs character and the

49
way in which his psychology and behaviour move the stoty fotwatd. In taking this

appmach, Watson dedicates his atticle to conducting a psychological study of Heathcliff's

chatactet and attempts to find the specific teasons that motivate Heathcliff's actions.

Realising Cathetine has been tempted by wealth and beauty, Heathcliff decides "if love

alone is insufficient to hold Cathy, he will secure the necessary money and polish" (Watson,

1949, p. 91). Accotding to Watson, fot Heathcliff, "union with Cathy is his one desite",

(ibid.) and when she dies, the union transforms ftom physical to spititual. Watson also tries

to explain Cathetine's psychology to make sense ofhet behaviour. Watson believed

Cathetine's mattiage to Edgat is motivated by economic and social factots, and that

Catherine loves Heathcliff and Edgat, albeit in diffetent ways. The ptoblem lies in

Cathetine's naivete, that she "failed to think het decisions thmugh ... she assumes that she

can continue to rule both Edgat and Heathcliff'' (Watson, 1949, pp. 93-94). Watson's

atticle matks a complete shift fmm the original tesponse of initial teviewets in the 1800s.

Critics no longet privileged ot tejected chatactets and instead attempted to explain ot

justify theit behaviour thmugh a psychological explotation.

The modetnist gmup of ctitics, ending with Watson, offeted a completely diffetent analysis

of Wutheting Heights to those teviewets who had initially judged it. This is due to the

modetnist movement that privileged the explmation of consciousness, an appmach

obviously ptesent in Emily Btonte's novel. The modetnist ftamewotk allowed people to

see how Bmnte exploted datket psychological states, animalistic behaviour, and the datk,

abnormal state of love between Heathcliff and Cathetine. In tecognising these elements,

teviewets wete also no longet so intetested in the motal message of the story ot fot a cleat

explanation about chatactet's motivations ftom the authot. Bmnte's psychological

explotation of the chatactets, while suspending the novel's motal ftamewotk by

50
discrediting Nelly and Lockwood's authority as narrators, consequendy allowed reviewers

to favour the story.

51
 Conclusion

My thesis has demonstrated that the value of a text is never fixed. It is always possible for

the popularity or favourability of work to change. As a result, formerly unpopular texts can

become more favoured, while previously favourable texts can fade into obscurity. This is

evident in the history of responses to Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights. Although at flrst

reviewers and critics rejected Wuthering Heights, now the novel is believed to be a classic

work of British literature.

I have demonstrated that this unstable value of literature is a result of the influence of

changing literary trends and social attitudes. Because social attitudes themselves are in a

constant state of flux, so too are the literary trends that develop from them, and the works

of literature that are created as a result. Reviewers and critics, who represented the social

attitudes and trends that form the basis of valuing literature, reveal the changing response

to and literary value of Wuthen.ng Heights. Emily Bronte's influence and use of elements

from the gothic genre, an unpopular mode of writing, and the altering of popular realist

ideals, led to its initial rejection. Later, the aspects of writing that were similar to modernist

works caused it to become favourable as the modernist movement grew.

At the time of publication, reviewers focused on the gothic features of Wuthering Heights

that they found to be objectionable. Reviewers struggled to privilege the novel's focus on

emotions and psychology, and found it difficult to respond to uncertain morals of the

characters. Reviewers predominantly rejected the construction of the characters of

Wuthering Heights because of their excessive emotion and morally questionable behaviour.

Later critics, however, did not reject these features of Wuthering Heights. Their modernist

influences meant that they favoured the focus on psychology, because it offered an

52
opportunity to provide various explanations for the behaviour of characters. They also

privileged the lack of didacticism, opening up a wider interpretation to be made about the

novel. For reviewers influenced by modernism, the high emotions of the characters and

uncertain moral code allowed them to explore thought processes and different responses to

chaotic situations. The later reviewers were particularly drawn to Catherine and Heathcliff

because of their conflicting, dysfunctional relationship and the unclear motivations for their

behaviour.

Through this investigation into the changing literary standards that have influenced a

transformation of responses to Wuthering Heights in the past, further issues have arisen

concerning the present popularity of the novel as well as the recent opinions expressed by

critics in response to the mainstream success of the story. I am interested in exploring the

revival in popularity of gothic works, in particular the current popular status of Wutheting

Heights. The novel is enjoying a renewed popularity, mainly due to its rebranding as a

similar story to Stephanie Meyer's Twilight series. Meyer's novels and Wuthering Heights share

common themes of tortured characters and a dysfunctional love story, and Wuthering

Heights has recently been republished with a cover design similar to Meyer's books, and is

labelled with a sticker reading "Bella and Edward's favourite book", the two main

characters of the series. There has also been a continuous interest in adapting the story to

screen, with another adaptation of Wuthering Heights set to be released in 2011. Interestingly,

many of these adaptations choose to focus on the Catherine-Heathcliff relationship so

closely that their children are often not included in the script. In doing this, the main gothic

feature of the story, Catherine and Heathcliff and their romance, is made the sole focus of

the adaptations. As a result, the realist elements that are present before and after the

relationship are increasingly being ignored.

53
Although the novel seems to be currendy enjoying mainstream success, there is also

evidence that critically, the novel is undergoing renewed analysis. The cause for this

criticism appears to be a rebellion against the popularising of Wutheting Heights, which

emphasises the surface gothic elements of the story, without the psychological exploration

that encourages questions about character motivation. Critics have also found fault with

the sentimentalism and conventionalising of the Catherine-Heathcliff relationship. In

reaction to this, critics feel the need to emphasise the complexity of the love story, and the

psychological elements present in the story. In 1997, Marianne Thormahlen wrote her

analysis of Wutheting Heights in which she argues against the popular concept that the

Heathcliff-Catherine relationship was "the grand romantic passion of English fiction"

(Thormahlen, p. 183). Thormahlen's article asserts that Catherine suffers from psychotic

behaviour and that Heathcliff's missing three years can be explained by "supernatural

intervention" (Thormahlen, p. 191). In doing this, Thormahlen emphasised the elements of

discord and psychological instability that define the couple.

Like Thormahlen, Graeme Tyder has argued that even though popular culture

acknowledges the tragedy of the Heathcliff-Catherine relationship, the overall sentiment

towards them is "fundamentally affirmative" (Tyder, p. 167). Tyder's article emphasised the

couple's psychological illness with the instances of unstable behaviour in the novel.

Although Thormahlen and Tyder continue with the modernist focus on psychology, they

are motivated by the popular over-simplification of the Catherine-Heathcliff relationship

that presents them as a conventional, though tragic, couple. This recent critical response to

Wutheting Heights is again an example of how attitudes to the text continue to be influenced

by changing social attitudes and literary trends.

54
These two recent articles show a renewed focus on the Catherine-Heathcliff couple. These

articles, and the parallels between Wuthering Heights and the Twilight series also demonstrate

a renewed interest in gothic, psychologically unstable couples, with an emphasis on erratic

behaviour and uncertain motives. This popularity in tortured love raises questions as to

why this representation of romance is privileged and what it says about our understanding

of relationships. It also raises questions about how this is reflective of current social

attitudes and literary trends. In looking at the shifts in historical and contemporary literary

standards and systems of value, as this thesis has done, it may be possible to find answers

to these questions.

This thesis has argued that, over time, Wuthering Heights has been subject to a series of

changing responses from reviewers and critics. The shifting popularity of literary trends

and social attitudes explains this shift in responses, and these trends affect the way different

groups at different times perceive texts. This demonstrates how a text has the potential to

be received in different ways, in reaction to, as well as being indicative of, the social

attitudes and trends that are influential during a particular time and within a particular set

of social conditions.

55
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