Heathcliff is seeking vigilante justice. In the book, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, the main, Heathcliff, takes his revenge on the people that have wronged him: Catherine, Edgar, and Hindley. Catherine betrayed Heathcliff, when she confessed that she couldn’t be with him, because of his status. Edgar, Catherine's husband, is know to Heathcliff as the man who took Catherine away from him, and drove her to her death. Hindley degraded Heathcliff to the point that Catherine believed she couldn’t love him. Heathcliff’s reaction to Catherine’s denial sends him on a quest of vigilante justice changing the lives of all other characters. Nelly’s neglect to inform Catherine that Heathcliff was listening to their conversation forever changed the …show more content…
Hindley was always jealous of Heathcliff. Hindley’s father Mr. Earnshaw treated Heathcliff as one of the family, and Catherine’s attraction to Heathcliff added to Hindley’s jealousy. After Mr. Earnshaw died, Hindley became the sole recipient of Wuthering Heights. This is when Hindley released his wrath upon Heathcliff, branding him, an "imp of Satan" forcing Heathcliff to work with the servants. Hindley blamed his father, “for treating Heathcliff too liberally; and swears he will reduce him to his right place” (Bonte 30). Heathcliff has been belittled to nothing more than a poor servant. Consequently, the shallow Catherine is unable to marry Heathcliff because of his status. Resulting in Heathcliff searching for vigilante justice. Once, Heathcliff arrived to Wuthering Heights, he is a rich and powerful man. Hindley is a miserable drunk floundering in debt. Heathcliff takes advantage loaning Hindley money to fuel his addiction, to the point Hindley gives Heathcliff Wuthering Heights as collateral. Heathcliff is able to simultaneously torture Hindley by passively torturing him through his addiction, and belittling him to the point where he is a drunk debtor. Hindley realizes Heathcliff owns everything and says, “I will have it back; and I'll have his gold too; and then his blood; and hell shall have his soul! It will be ten times blacker with that guest than ever it was before!" (Bonte 13.63). Heathcliff pushes Hindley’s addiction to the point where it ultimately kills him; however, this wasn’t enough satisfaction for Heathcliff and turns to Hindley’s son. Hareton Earnshaw, biological son of Hindley, adopted son of Heathcliff. Heathcliff unleashed his vigilante justice against Hareton. Heathcliff raises Hareton as an uneducated field worker; the same way Hindley raised Heathcliff. Heathcliff says to the boy "Now, my bonny lad, you are mine! And we'll see if one tree won't grow as crooked
Heathcliff is a prime example of situational stress leading to sociopathic behavior. Hindley’s problems begin the day Heathcliff is comes to Wuthering Heights. Hindley is jealous of Heathcliff and feels inferior to him. When Mr. Earnshaw dies and Hindley controls the Heights, he demotes Heathcliff to the lowest position in the house, therefore feeling superior. Eventually Hindley drinks himself away and gambles the property to Heathcliff.
In Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte, Catherine's death unleashes powerful emotions in both Hindley and Heathcliff that result in a bloody conflict from which Heathcliff emerges the true master of Thrushcross Grange. Though there are many different kinds of masters, in Wuthering Heights, masters are the people with power; the power that people like Hindley are born to have, and people like Heathcliff strive to gain. Hindley and Heathcliff have struggled for power ever since Hindley’s father brought Heathcliff home, and in chapter 17, Heathcliff finally wins their lifelong war. During Isabella’s narration, she recounts that, after having tried and failed to kill Heathcliff, who in return hit him in the face with a rock, “[Hindley] had fallen senseless… [Heathcliff] kicked and trampled him… He exerted preterhuman self-denial in abstaining from
Within Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights, avenging what are thought to be wrongdoings between the characters is a common theme. Throughout the story, Heathcliff Earnshaw is hellbent on having his revenge, as he believes this is the best way for him to feel better about what has happened to him. The adopted son goes to great lengths to form his evil plan and become someone he thinks he will be proud of. Instead, through his antics, Heathcliff brings himself down mentally and ends up more unhappy than when he began. As he tortures Hindley, Edgar, and Hareton, he starts to deteriorate and never recover as his anger and violence forms and blinds him from leaving a forty-year grudge alone.
An interesting incident in the story takes place in Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff’s former home, when he returns with his new wife, Isabella Linton. He causes her great discomfort by leaving her alone in the house for a long period of time to the point of her describing him as “ingenious and unresting in seeking to gain [her] abhorrence” (Bronte 144). Heathcliff is only emotionally attached to Catherine; to all others, he treats cruelly and does not restrain his harsh insults. The major climax of the novel and the resolution to the main conflict occur with the final, dramatic union of Catherine and Heathcliff. As the two embrace and Catherine’s maid approaches them, Heathcliff “[gnashes] at [her], and [foams] like a mad dog, and [gathers] [Catherine] to him with greedy jealousy” (Bronte 159).
After Hindley saw the way a piece of garbage (Heathcliff) was being treated by his father, whenever he entered Wuthering Heights his bad feelings came with him. His view on his originally normal, father had changed and he thought of his father more ‘an oppressor rather than a friend’ (38). Also, his hatred for Heathcliff kept towering. Hindley was angry that his father gave a man from the streets the privileges he initially was entitled to as Mr. Earnshaw’s son (38). Importance is found in this because this hatred for Heathcliff will continue being built upon until his death. Heathcliff ruined Hindley’s childhood and would never forgive him for that. Therefore, Hindley will take revenge against Heathcliff for taking his childhood by torturing
Members of the family soon become involved in turmoil and fighting and family relationships become spiteful and hateful. Heathcliff’s arrival is seen as a direct threat to just about everyone, but mostly to Hindley, who is Mr Earnshaw’s son. Therefore, Heathcliff suffers another reversal in status when Hindley forces him to work as a servant while Hindley enjoys a life of luxury. Moreover, Heathcliff is often beaten by Hindley for most of his childhood. Heathcliff lives in Mr. Earnshaw’s house without being considered as a family member.
Earnshaw died and Hindley became the new master. Hindley made sure when he came back to Wuthering Heights, that he got his revenge by downgrading Heathcliff. He achieved this by taking away Heathcliff’s education privileges and making him do outside labor and also tries to separate him from Catherine. Edgar also plays a part in cruelty to Heathcliff by always making fun of him and trying to gain the love of Catherine. Because of this cruelty Hindley and Edgar inflict, Heathcliff wished he “had light hair and fair skin, and was dressed, and behaved as well, and had a chance of being as rich [Edgar Linton] will be” (Bronte 56) so that way he would at least have a chance with Catherine. After Catherine marries Edgar, Heathcliff changes his determination to get Catherine into a goal to get revenge on Edgar and Hindley for making everything he could want in life
Hindley’s treatment to Heathcliff would cause Heathcliff to vow revenge upon Hindley, and soon afterwards, his behavioral patterns would start to change as well. When things would not go his way, Heathcliff would vow revenge on the source of his issue, until he realized that revenge does not satiate the hole in his heart. Hindley’s harsh treatment of Heathcliff starting from a young age would cause Heathcliff to change in an adverse
Before Heathcliff gained his wealth, Catherine told Ellen that “it would degrade me to marry Heathcliff now; so he shall never know how I love him: and that, not because he’s handsome, Nelly, but because he’s more myself than I am” (Brontё 69). Catherine uses Edgar’s marriage proposal to stay comfortable in a lifestyle like the one she grew up in, never expecting Heathcliff to gain considerable wealth. When Heathcliff returned to Wuthering Heights, Catherine’s resentment towards her new marriage to Edgar and continuation of her romance with Heathcliff demonstrates the theme of love causing hate. Even though Catherine appears pernicious through her bullying of Edgar, Catherine’s missed opportunity to marry Heathcliff after he attained wealth rouses sympathy for the forbidden
Vengeance unleashes its utmost immoral behaviors in its perpetrators. And although its success brings temporary happiness, it ultimately rewards remorse. In the novel, Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte, the current tenant of Thrushcross Grange learns the history of the events that took place on the Yorkshire moors: the intense, dramatic romance between Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw, her betrayal of him, and Heathcliff’s resentful vengeance on the innocent heirs. In conversations of Bronte’s classic, Wuthering Heights, questions about the book’s meaning inevitably emerge. While many argue that the book focuses on love, others assert that the nature of redemption lies at the heart of the
In the novel, Bronte explores the ways of revenge,but it seemed to conclude that revenge is ultimately unsatisfactory, she shows that the only way to resolve it is with forgiveness. In the way the Bronte uses the character Heathcliff to accomplish this. Heathcliff is the character that is in search for justice. In the way that Heathcliff wanted to get revenge with the people the did him wrong. Heathcliff is often shunned, because of his social class status and because of his lack of knowledge, regarding his parentage.
Earnshaw dies their bond becomes stronger. Then everything goes south for Heathcliff when Catherine meets Edgar and chooses to marry him. I believe that this upsets Heathcliff so much because Catherine is his only friend and this is when Heathcliff really starts being manipulative and evil. While Catherine was staying with Edgar Hindley treats Heathcliff like a servant and denies him an education. This infuriated Heathcliff so he leaves for 3 years. As a result of Hindley’s torture Heathcliff becomes bitter and uncivilized. Heathcliff swears revenge against Hindley and then follows through when he moves back to wuthering heights and takes everything from him Hindley in a game of poker. After he’s pretty much ruined Hindley’s life and turns Hareton into a miniature Heathcliff it is not enough. Heathcliff marries Isabella and then tortures her in their marriage so much so that she just leaves so that he can secretly torture Edgar by being the heir to his fortune. This is the time when Heathcliff starts showing his diabolical ways and begins to ruin everyone’s life. Heathcliff is very evil and I think that it spawns from when he was a child, and how mistreated he was and now he just wants to miss treat everyone in his life so that they feel the anguish that he always
In the beginning of the novel, Nelly tells Mr. Lockwood that “Hindley hated [Heathcliff]… so, from the very beginning, he bred bad feeling in the house” (Bronte 32-33). This quote alludes to future “bad feeling” in the house originating with Hindley’s hatred of Heathcliff. “Bad feeling” (otherwise known as oppression, violence, victimizing, etc.) that Hindley initially kindled continued to plague the house for years after Hindley’s oppression of Heathcliff. Eventually, Heathcliff develops into a powerful, mysteriously rich figure and decides to exact his revenge on Hindley. In his article “Wuthering Heights as a Victorian Novel”, producer and writer Arnold Shapiro comments on Heathcliff’s transformation, noting how “Emily Bronte shows Heathcliff becoming a parody of his former tormentors, of Hindley especially. Reversing the golden rule, he does to his son, Linton, what Hindley had tried to do to him” (13). Heathcliff has undergone an emotional transformation after which he desired revenge on Hindley. Catherine, like Heathcliff, experiences a brutal transformation. Catherine begins as a sympathetic, gentle girl but later evolves into a more vengeful being. Shapiro notes, “Once she gets a taste of life at the Lintons’, she decides that she enjoys gentility; like her brother, Hindley, she enjoys wielding power and
Ever since the Earnshaw family had taken in Heathcliff, his adoptive brother, Hindley, has treated him like a servant. Hindley’s sister, Catherine, however formed an inseparable bond with Heathcliff. Despite their love for each other, Catherine marries Edgar, a young man of social grace, which attracted Catherine. Feeling wronged Heathcliff vows revenge on Hindley for trying to keep him from Catherine and treating him as a servant, and Edgar who stole the woman he loved and for not accepting him socially.
Heathcliff is a character from the novel “Wuthering Heights” that feels like life didn’t treat him fairly due to his lack of social status and due to his ambiguous nature. He and Catherine had both grown up together and in fact, his relationship with her provides the theme for the first volume. It was because of this relation as children that Heathcliff felt a strong connection with Catherin however, she later on didn’t feel the same way towards him. This would influence the story as a whole for their called “love” as children would be very influential in the second volume. Heathcliff feels like life was unjust to him due to the fact that later in the novel Catherine marries another man named Edgar Linton. The main reason why Catherine married