Review: Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte

Emily Jane Bronte's celebrated Wuthering Heights book, first published in December 1847, is a dark tale of love and despair between Heathclif and Catherine, set in the Yorkshire moors. It was the only novel that Emily Bronte ever published. This article will provide a review on this book.

19th century masterpiece

Celebrated classic
Wuthering Heights, with its themes of mental illness and physical crueltym, was considered such a risk at the time of printing, that Bronte had to defray the cost of publication until a number of copies had been sold. Although, early reviews were mixed, it has become a celebrated classic of English literature. Wuthering Heights film In 1939, the novel was turned into an Oscar nominated film starring Laurence Oliver, directed by A.V. Bramble. Many film critics regard this as one of the great films of the 20th century.

Positive points

A master of suspense Rich in dialogue, with believable and tragic characters displaying the full scale of human emotions, Wuthering Heights is a Gothic novel that will grip the reader as from the opening paragraph. Written with elegance and suspense, Bronte's novel is a timeless tale of the dark side of consuming love and despair.
Wuthering Heights setting The haunting backdrop of the novel is the Yorkshire moors is ever present. As the characters seem to come alive in the pages, the ever present wild moors add a powerful emotion to the story and the behaviour of Heathclif and Catherine. The Moors setting is such an important part of the book, that you can not imagine it being set anywhere else.
Memorable characters Love them or loath them, the characters of Heathclif and Catherine will linger long in your memory after you have read the final pages, Bronte has created realistic characters that have been discussed and analysed by fans of literature and psychology ever since its publication over 150 years ago.

Negative points

Unlovable characters Some readers have difficultly relating to characters whose relationship seems to border on more hatred for each other than love. The majority of the Wuthering Heights characters, particularly Heathclif and Catherine, are selfish, violent, cruel, and controlling people. They are not the typical loveable characters that some readers will expect in a "love story"
Difficult story Much like Emily Bronte's poems, Wuthering Heights can be difficult to understand and appreciate during the first reading, with a complicated plot which covers over 30 years.