The various narrative techniques in Wuthering
Heights critically
Wuthering Heights was Emily Brontë's only novel, and it's considered the
fullest expression of her highly individual poetic vision. It contains many
Romantic influences: Heathcliff may be a very Byronic character, though he
lacks the self pity that mars many Byronic characters, and he's deeply attached
to the wildlife . When the novel was written, the height of the Romantic age
had passed: Bronte lived a really isolated life, and was in some sense behind
the days .
Wuthering Heights expresses
criticisms of social conventions, particularly those surrounding problems with
gender: notice that the author distributes "feminine" and
"masculine" characteristics without reference to sex. Brontë had
difficulties living in society while remaining faithful the items she
considered important: the perfect of girls as delicate beings who avoid
physical or mental activity and pursue fashions and flirtations was repugnant
to her.
Class issues also are important: we
are sure to respect Ellen, who is educated but of low class, quite Lockwood.
Any reader of Wuthering Heights should recognize immediately that it's not the
type of novel that a gently-bred Victorian lady would be expected to write down
. Bronte sent it to publishers under the masculine name of Ellis Bell, but
however it took many tries and lots of months before it had been finally accepted.
Its reviews were almost entirely negative: reviewers implied that the author of
such a completely unique must be insane, hooked in to cruelty, barbaric.
Emily's sister Charlotte's novel Jane Eyre was far more successful.
Emily was always wanting to
maintain the secrecy under which the novel was published, understandably. She
died soon after the publication, and Charlotte felt obliged - now that secrecy
was not necessary - to write down a preface for the novel defending her
sister's character.
The preface also made it clear that
Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell were, in fact, different people: some readers had
speculated that Wuthering Heights was an early work by the author of Jane Eyre.
It appears that Charlotte herself was uncomfortable with the more disturbing
aspects of her sister's masterpiece. She said that if Emily had lived,
"her mind would of itself have grown sort of a strong tree; loftier,
straighter, wider-spreading, and its matured fruits would have attained a
mellower ripeness and sunnier bloom."
Her apology for Emily's work should
be read with the belief that Charlotte's character was quite different from
Emily's: her interpretation of Wuthering Heights shouldn't necessarily be taken
at face value. Wuthering Heights doesn't belong to any obvious prose genre, nor
did it begin a crucial literary lineage. None of its imitations can approach
its sincerity and poetic power. However, it's still been a crucial influence on
English literature. With the passing of your time , an immense amount of
interest has grown up about the Brontë sisters, Charlotte, Emily, and Anne, and
that they have achieved the status of the centers of a literary cult.
Lockwood and Nelly function the
apparent narrators, others are interspersed throughout the novel — Heathcliff,
Isabella, Cathy, even Zillah — who narrate a chapter or two, providing insight
into both character and plot development. Catherine doesn't speak on to the
readers (except in quoted dialogue), but through her diary, she narrates
important aspects of the childhood she and Heathcliff shared on the moors and
therefore the treatment they received at the hands of Joseph and Hindley. All
of the voices weave together to supply a choral narrative. Initially, they
speak to Lockwood, answering his inquiries, but they speak to readers, also,
providing multiple views of the tangled lives of the inhabitants of Thrushcross
Grange and Wuthering Heights.
Brontë appears to present objective
observers, in an effort to permit the story to talk for itself. Objective observations
by outsiders would presumably not be tainted by having an immediate
involvement; unfortunately, a better examination of those two seemingly
objective narrators reveals their bias.
For example, Lockwood's narrative
enables readers to start the story when most of the action is already
completed. Although the most story is being told in flashback, having Lockwood
interact with Heathcliff and therefore the others at Wuthering Heights
immediately displaces his objectivity. What he records in his diary isn't just
what he's being told by Nelly but his memories and interpretation of Nelly's
tale. Likewise, Nelly's narrative directly involves the reader and engages them
within the action. While reporting the past, she is in a position to foreshadow
future events, which builds suspense, thereby engaging readers even more. But
her involvement is problematic because she is hypocritical in her actions:
sometimes choosing Edgar over Heathcliff (and vice versa), and sometimes
working with Cathy while at other times betraying Cathy's confidence.
Nonetheless, she is sort of an enticing storyteller, so readers readily forgive
her shortcomings.
Ultimately, both Lockwood and Nelly
are merely facilitators, enabling readers to enter the planet of Wuthering
Heights. All readers know quite anybody narrator, and thus are empowered as
they read.
Literacy Throughout the novel,
reading and literacy are shown to be sources of both power and pleasure.
Heathcliff purposely keeps Hareton uneducated as how to regulate the young man
and to urge revenge on Hareton's father, Hindley. Likewise, Cathy gives books
to her servant, Michael, to convince him to deliver her love letters to Linton.
The graffiti at Wuthering Heights at the start of the novel also is a sort of
dominion; by carving their names into the wall, Catherine Earnshaw and her
daughter make sure that their spirits will always preside over the crumbling
house. However, the characters also derive significant pleasure from reading;
it's one among Cathy's few solaces during her miserable first months at
Wuthering Heights, and it eventually is a pretext for her to bond with Hareton.
Solitude For a completely unique
that pulls its plot from the vicissitudes of interpersonal relationships, it's
notable what percentage of the characters seem to enjoy solitude. Heathcliff
and Hindley both state their preference for isolation early within the novel,
and Lockwood explains that solitude is one among the explanations he chose to
maneuver to the remote Thrushcross Grange. Each of those characters believes
that solitude will help them recover from romantic disappointments: Heathcliff
becomes increasingly withdrawn after Catherine's death; Hindley becomes crueler
than ever to others after he loses his wife, Frances; and Lockwood's move to the
Grange was precipitated by a briefly mentioned romantic disappointment of his
own. However, Brontë ultimately casts doubt on solitude's ability to heal
psychic wounds. Heathcliff's looking for Catherine causes him to behave sort of
a monster to people around him; Hindley dies alone as an impoverished
alcoholic; and Lockwood quickly gives abreast of the Grange's restorative
potential and moves to London.
Doubles
Given the symmetrical structure of Wuthering Heights, it follows naturally that
Brontë should thematize doubles and doubleness. Catherine Earnshaw notes her
own "double character" (66) when she tries to elucidate her
attraction to both Edgar and Heathcliff, and their shared name suggests that
Cathy Linton is, in some ways, a double for her mother. There also are many
parallel pairings throughout the novel that means that certain characters are
doubles of every other: Heathcliff and Catherine, Edgar and Isabella, Hareton
and Cathy, and even Hindley and Ellen (consider the latter's deep grief when
Hindley dies, which they're 'milk siblings'). Catherine's famous insistence
that "I am Heathcliff" (82) reinforces the concept that individuals
can share an identity.
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