I had no clue about Wuthering Heights a few years prior. The name was simply a passing title, that’s it. But since then, I’ve seen many interactions of the classic story of Heathcliff and Catherine. Some better than others (looking at you, Wuthering Heights 2026), naturally, but many of them do hold to the story the original is trying to tell. However, this article is not about the iterations of Wuthering Heights— after all, the source material should be the highlight. One should read the classic before trying to understand more modern interpretations, by my standards.

Although, as a warning, you may know my experience with Moby Dick and how that book has a style that I would call nautically evil. Luckily for everyone who reads Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë has an easy-to-understand style (of course, mixed in with the classic 18th-century language, with words such as “saucy” being commonly used).  I do have my own issues with Wuthering Heights, but that should not push you away from reading this book. This is not just because it’s a classic, but it’s impactful and genuinely moved me to my core.

The Summary

Wuthering Heights is told from the perspective of Mr. Lockwood, who receives the story from Nelly Dean, the maid at Thrushcross Grange, and was a visitor to Wuthering Heights. Both of these locations are located in the English Moors, and both are older than the residents who reside there. The story recounts 30 years up to the present point, where Nelly is now. It follows the lives of Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw from Heathcliff’s adoption to the present day of Mr. Lockwood’s entrance. Each character has their own motive, but the theme, which you should notice while you’re reading, is the endless cycle of repeating choices and violence.

Characters

Heathcliff. Heathcliff, Heathcliff. The brooding devil, as some would call him. Heathcliff is first and foremost wild. He is an uncultured individual with little care for class or social norms. He is explicitly called “dirty” on more than one occasion by Catherine in reference to his low class, but he is not stupid by any means. Heathcliff is a man of deep passion and deeper emotions: he is the heart and the soul, as I put it. Heathcliff is hard to put into words, as many characters are, because there’s so much depth to each of the actions that form him as a character. One of the most important things about him, however, is the heart of his love, Catherine Earnshaw.

Speaking of Catherine, she is the other main character of the book. Her life is decided by a singular moment… Which I won’t tell! But she has to choose between her heart and her mind, between a life of passion and one that secures her class and wealth; she is as dynamic as Heathcliff and perhaps even more so.

As I’ve said before, it is hard to define these characters in basic traits, as many are accustomed to. The best I can do is say Heathcliff is wild or Catherine is dynamic, so it has come to this-

The Conclusion

If you truly, truly want to learn more, you have to read Wuthering Heights. As a writer, I cannot, in good faith, define everything the book is. The cycle present, the character interactions, and the central idea of the story are hard to put into a summary or words as Emily Brontë did. The Woodford County Public Library has a copy of the book you can check out at any time. I implore you to go visit the Heights and hear its tale.