Book Analysis Essay: Wuthering Heights
- Andrea Chang I.
- 9 may 2015
- 3 Min. de lectura

Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, written in 1846 and published in 1847, is a literature classic and Brontë’s only novel before she died the following year. It is about a love that goes beyond death, a never ending yet sinister love that never got to flourish and consumed the lovers, and the innocent people around them, in hurt, hate and vengeance until death came to safe this couple from their misery and, with that, also brought hope of a better future for the people that remained. But if Wuthering Heights is just the name of a house in the story, why is the book named after it? Well, it is not just a house, it is also the place that witnessed the beginning of this love, the misery, despair and hatred of its inhabitants and, in the end, the new beginning of the ones left to start over.
Brontë wanted to give a twist to the typical “boy meets girl” plot and show that it does not need to be a love story and still be worth telling and show as well humans’ tendency to cling to negative feelings and live for them in the name of love. For this, she played with times, going back and forth between past and present with the help of two narrators. She also used to different settings to place the story. But most importantly she made Wuthering Heights just as dark and impenetrable as its owner and the events that occurred within its walls. She placed the house in a remote place, isolated from everything serving as a prison the same way its owner is prisoner of his own hatred, desire for revenge against innocents and memories of the love that never got to be.
In regards to the characters, Brontë connects the physical appearance of the characters to their personalities. Heathcliff is portrayed as having dark eyes, hair and skin as a representation of his greed, vengefulness, malevolence and everything bad in him; and is also very hostile but has the manners of a gentleman in a way of hiding his real self. Catherine Earnshaw is described as the prettiest girl with the sweetest smile. This allowed her to get everything she wanted, and made her spoiled, selfish and manipulative and, as a consequence, made her greedy enough to turn her back on the man she truly loved and marry to insure her future. After her death she is buried between Thrushcross Grange and Wuthering Heights as a sing of her torn heart and unfaithfulness towards the two men that end up lying at each side of her.
Brontë is very descriptive in her writing and yet, she gives the reader opportunity to interpret her words, read between the lines and see that there is more to the story than what she writes in the events, that there are thing covered by her descriptions of the characters and settings. For example, when she writes “dusk” or “mellow evening” she is referring to an upcoming event, the calm before the storm.
To conclude, Wuthering Heights is the title of the book not only because the main events of the story happened there, but also because it symbolizes both Heathcliff and Catherine. As Catherine says, Heathcliff is more herself than she is and she is Heathcliff. Therefore, Wuthering Heights embodies both Heathcliff and Catherine. This book captures your attention from very first page until the end, it makes you mind work trying to unveil all the mysteries and secrets of the characters hidden behind the words. This book is perfect for people who like a challenge and read between the lines.
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