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Wuthering
"Catherine's face was just like the landscape -- shadows and sunshine flitting over it in rapid succession; but the shadows rested longer, and the sunshine was more transient..." Chapter 27,
This quote reveals a strong metaphor, describing Catherine's face as being "just like the landscape." Doing this not only provides brilliant imagery but also links Catherine to the land, and to her home, prevalent themes in Bronte's work. Catherine has essentially become spiritually one with the land in which she lives, anchoring her in geographic space and time. All issues of ownership of property, especially given Heathcliff's use of property ownership as a means to assert his political and social power, revert to Catherine.
Moreover, Bronte is sure to point out that the landscape of Catherine's face is filled with "shadows and sunshine," which are "flitting over it in rapid succession." This is an extension of the metaphor, showing that Catherine is susceptible to mood swings, which likewise occur in nature. Interestingly, the narrator notes here that Catherine did tend to have more shadows than sunshine on her face, meaning that she was experiencing more sadness than joy at this stage of her life. These vicissitudes are not, however, portrayed as Catherine's being an inherently "shadowy" or depressed person, but more because she is simply in tune with nature and the world around her.
This passage perfectly suits the tone of the story as well as corresponds with Catherine's character. Catherine's character is described using both the metaphor and the allusion to the land. Throughout Wuthering Heights, Bronte relies on natural imagery to convey themes and characterization.
2."I'm glad, for I shall be master of the Grange after him -- and Catherine always spoke of it as her house. It isn't hers! It's mine: papa says everything she has is mine. All her nice books are mine; she offered to give me them, and pretty birds, and her pony Minny, if I would get the key of her room, and let her out; but I told her she had nothing to give, they were all, all mine." Chapter 28, pg. 257
Here, Bronte shows how thoroughly corrupted Linton has become at Heathcliff's behest. He has been...
Linton has become Heathcliff's tool for exacting revenge against the dead Catherine and against Edgar as well. Heathcliff has, essentially, won in his game with Catherine and Linton. By forcing their marriage, he has effectively transferred ownership of the Grange to Linton and therefore achieved his secondary goal. Of course, Healthcliff's primary goal will not be fulfilled until he dies and reunites symbolically with Catherine.
This passage bears a profound sadness, as Linton is already a pathetic creature. Adding to his physical and mental weakness is the abuse meted out on him by Heathcliff, who manipulates him. The themes of possession, revenge, and anger are elucidated here as well. Moreover, Linton's emotionality is a core feature of this dialogue, and the reader can perceive his effeminate nature in the way Linton refers to her "pretty birds, and her pony Minny." Linton also loves Catherine, views her as his savior in many ways, and here reveals a comingling of self-hatred and outward-focused anger against the woman who did nothing to hurt him. Linton remains painfully unaware of the extent to which Heathcliff has manipulated him.
3. Quote 22: "You have left me so long to struggle against death, alone, that I feel and see only death! I feel like death!" Chapter 30, pg. 268-269
Reader Response: Catherine sounds like her mother here, full of melodrama. However, there is more to this passage than that. Catherine has been lately surrounded by death. She is poised to lose Linton, and she stands to lose her father. She lost her mother before she ever laid eyes on her. Therefore, Catherine does need to face the reality of death and does so here. She may even be contemplating her own mortality in this passage, as the death of Linton and her father helps foster her maturity. Interestingly, Catherine's utterances are followed by a dose of humor as she is offered some wine to calm her spirits.
This passage connects me with others in the book related to death. I appreciate that the younger Catherine is developing into a far more mature and capable woman than her mother was. It seems as if Bronte is building Catherine to be her mother's redemption, which will leave the reader feeling fully satisfied. However, there…
Wuthering First, list quotes from the passage that are either diction or detail. Diction: "a poor conclusion" "having brooded awhile on the scene he had just witnessed" "an absurd termination to my violent exertions" " train myself to be capable of working like Hercules, and when everything is ready and in my power, I find the will to lift a slate off either roof has vanished!" "My old enemies have not beaten me; now would be the
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus is a Gothic novel that tells the tale of Victor Frankenstein and his creation. As seen in other Gothic works, Shelley employs the supernatural as her character of Dr. Frankenstein creates a monster made out of the leftover pieces of dead humans to create something that is nearly super-human in stature and strength. What is perhaps most interesting about Shelley's novel, which she began
But the fact that Catherine is still drawn to Heathcliff indicates that this apparent veneer of civilization is not 'real' and merely a surface manifestation of finery, not evidence of Cathy's real nature. Catherine lives in a state of internal exile: her soul is at odds with how she is expected to behave, as an upper-class woman and as a wife. Perhaps the most extreme statement of Catherine's sense of
Bronte When Catherine states, "It will degrade me to marry Heathcliff," she exposes her prejudices and concerns about social status. She has yet to develop a mature level of self-awareness. Moreover, Catherine indicates a predisposition toward melodrama when she continues, "so he shall never know how I love him." Bronte achieves something clever with this passage, in that she withholds from Catherine her own self-awareness while indicating to the reader that
. . I cannot live without my life! I cannot live without my soul!' (139). Perhaps the scene of Heathcliff digging up her grave eighteen years after her death is the most compelling because it represents the force of their love and how time or distance could not separate them. Cathy serves as a constant reminder with her eyes and Nelly even notices this similarity and how it upset
There can be no surprise when the "shame and pride threw a double gloom over his countenance" (52). He is so taken aback by Catherine and what she says that he must be commanded to shake her hand. When Earnshaw tells him to shake her hand in a way this is "permitted" (52), it becomes more than Heathcliff can bear. While Catherine claims she did not mean to laugh