After reading this article, create at least two comments in which you discuss what you believe to be the most interesting, controversial, and/or incorrect thing Goldstone says. Why do you think we should read Wuthering Heights? Here is the article again: "Wuthering Heights Revisited"
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I find that the argument that Goldstone put together is very interesting; however, I feel that his analysis over-simplifies some of the characters and plot. On the other hand, he introduces concepts that I had never thought of before. Such as the way he classifies the plot of the novel into two main categories: “incidents… involving Catherine, Heathcliff, and Edgar; and those involving Cathy, Linton, and Hareton, which are meant to be separate as contrasting studies of love relationships in two generations.” I find that analysis very interesting because I would have never thought to group the plot occurrences in that way. However, I guess that assumption could be considered controversial since people could interpret the significance of the plot in different ways. I would have to disagree with Goldstone when he says that the plot is made dramatic by the “striking conflicts, the directness of the character revelation, and the speed and completeness of the action.” I believe that things are made more dramatic when the reader is left in a certain amount of suspense before having everything being resolved. Another thing Goldstone pointed out that I find interesting is how when a major event is about to happen in the story, the narrator will change to prepare the reader “for major climaxes.” I feel that Goldstone is incorrect in thinking that the novel is presented in a “direct [and] simple” way because I believe that the two separate points of view, along with the emotions connected to the story being told, and the reactions of the person listening to the story create several complex levels that would prohibit the book from being classified as direct or simple.
I think that we should read WH because it would offer us the unique opportunity to study the Byronic Hero. Also, as Goldstone says, the book presents a “view of life… [which is] scarcely” seen. It is not often that we come across a book presented in such a way that the majority of people have rarely ever seen, so it would be prudent to study such an anomaly. Also, it’s a type of gothic love story that is very rarely heard of any more, one in which love connects two peoples’ souls so completely that they cannot be parted, even in death. It’s that type of creepy, stalkerish romance that people tend to shy away from, but secretly want (because everyone wants someone who would love them that completely, even after they are dead).
I agree with Grayce that Goldstone did extremely simplify some parts of the plot. However, I really liked his views on how Bronte used an extreme range of emotion. I noticed how extremely powerful the scene of the final conversation between Catherine and Heathcliff before Catherine dies was and I really liked how Bronte used emotion in that scene. I also really liked Goldstone's description of the perspective in the novel. As Goldstone says, Bronte "structures the book that only by seeing what takes place through a number of persons' eyes can we understand its significance." Bronte's use of Nelly as primary narrator but also periodically inserting Mr. Lockwood as well as letters and stories narrated by other characters helps the reader to create a complete picture of the events in the novel.
I also agree with Goldstone about how Bronte treats love throughout Wuthering Heights. As Goldstone says, "Ms. Bronte's treatment of love is her assertion of its sheer power, for she knows it to be the deepest and most complex of all human impulses as it crystallizes all that a person stands for." I agree with Goldstone because Bronte does exactly that with Edgar's kind of weak, wimpy love for Catherine, as well as with Heathcliff's crazy, wild, and uncontrolled love for Catherine.
In “Wuthering Heights Revisted,” Goldstone says that the book “has an almost monumental simplicity.” I don’t agree with this. I don’t think Wuthering Heights is a simple novel in any way. The emotions of the characters, as Goldstone later goes to point out, encompass a huge range of feeling and extremity. How is love simple? The relationships of the characters are complex and twisted, the idea of love surviving beyond the grave is a complicated one, and the story stretches over two generations, laying the groundwork for an intricate plot. I think it’s interesting how Goldstone deals with Nelly’s character in WH. She analyzes Nelly’s attitudes towards each character, and compares her to a Greek chorus. In a way, I agree with this idea, that Nelly sees the action unfold and comments on it, yet I’m not sure I agree with Goldstone when she says Nelly “can unblanchingly accept just about whatever people do and still regard them as human beings,” like a Greek chorus. Later, Goldstone says that Nelly is unkind to Catherine because she can’t accept Catherine’s moods and attitudes that scorn reason. If Nelly were able to “accept whatever people do and still regard them as [humans],” she wouldn’t treat Catherine the way she does when Catherine locks herself away in her room for several days.
It is important to read WH because the book gives its readers a weird, strange version of love, and depicts love in so many different ways, as Goldstone indicates in her article. It’s a gothic romance whose plot is complicated but told clearly and whose characters have such passion and struggle from real, intense human emotions. Despite the supernatural moments of WH, readers can relate to the feelings of the characters and Bronte can get people to react to her characters and plot.
the link will not work anymore! so grayce, elise, or rachel if any of you guys pulled it off onto your desktop... can you like copy and paste for me please?!
i got it to work... i think it was because it was too late but i'm not sure
Goldstone makes insightful points in his article; however, I do agree that he did oversimplify a rather complex story, which could easily occur as a result to how smoothly, easily, and clearly the novel is written. To start, I agree that WH is a "strange novel," and I do believe it to be necessary to be a "strange novel" for Bronte to have established such a deep, dark, and passionate love and as Lord Cecil states, "to have [transposed] to the human world the principles of storm and calm from nature." Bronte had to juxtapose two unbelievably contrasting worlds to succeed in making this transfer to today's or just a living context. Goldstone I feel captured these aspects amazingly, but from hence, it appears he has oversimplified. Some oversimplifications I found informative and original such as his point that there are "two main groups of incidents: those involving Catherine,
Heathcliff, and Edgar; and those involving Cathy, Linton, and Hareton, which are meant
to be separate as contrasting studies of love relationships in two generations." This simplification of the plot was rather original, ingenious, and undeniably true. Obviously I agree and commend Goldstone for such a revelation! But, as I was saying he does oversimplify; and with the exception of the oversimplification I praised above, it seems for the whole of his remaining points he oversimplifies. He relates the last days of Catherine's life as rather simple: "After this quarrel, Catherine shuts herself up in her room, refuses to eat, and threatens to break Edgar's and Heathcliff's hearts by breaking her own." While this is true, it's an injustice to Bronte's intricate work in pulling together these scenes.
I think we should read Wuthering Heights to study Bronte's artistry in composing a new form of the byronic hero, in capturing a broad and believable range of emotions, and in relating to mankind a feature of themselves they may not have been already aware. Goldstone's article has increased my respect and desire to study WH further in class. Mrs. Goodman nice article choice!! I really enjoyed reading that one!
When I first looked at Goldstone's article, I wasn't too excited to read it, but after reading it, I found it very interesting. Now I think that I appreciate Wuthering Heights more. I found all Goldstone's arguments very interesting, but the one that struck me the most was the one about emotion. I agree with Goldstone when he says "[the emotions seems so natural due to] the character's capacity to express them vividly, clearly, and unself-consciously." I think that with these strong emotions, the reader becomes more attached to the characters. Another one of Goldstone's arguments that struck me was the one about "dramatic plot structure." I think it is very interesting how she classified the characters into two groups. I don't think I'd ever think about that on my own.
I think we should read Wuthering Heights because I think there is something in this book for everyone. Firstly, Bronte creates a frame story, which can be confusing, but I think it adds more suspense and makes the story more interesting. Also, as one of my classmates stated above, I think that this novel is good to learn about the Byronic Hero. Also, after reading Goldstone's article, I appreciate the relationships between the characters more, and I know why Bronte stops the story at certain times. But, I do think that Goldstone simplified some parts of this book.
I very much agree that Bronte has a great understanding of human perception. She seems to really get how people interact and knows when they understand and misunderstand each other.
That is why it is so important that the narration comes from people who went through the same experiences as the characters of the story. Because of this, readers see the narrator's misconceptions and her correct assumptions about the characters and yet are able to make their own conclusions about the characters as well.
I'd have to agree that the most striking argument is the one about emotions. I would have to agree that Bronte definitely has a good understanding of human emotion. The emotions explored in the novel are so outrageous in spectrum sometimes, yet they do not seem impossible because Bronte presents them with such a masterful understanding of human emotion.
I agree with some of the above comments in that we should read Wuthering Heights because it provides a wonderful model for studying the Byronic hero, and it also presents a frame story, which is a very interesting way to present a story.
I think that the novel is a really good model for so many things to study: the Byronic hero, Gothic romance, frame stories, human emotion, the power of love, etc.
After reading "Wuthering Heights Revisited", I agree with Goldstone that there is a big range of emotions in Wuthering Heights and how the death scene is portrayed. The emotions make the reader pay closer attention to the characters and focus in on how they are responding to the actions of the novel.
I think that we should read Wuthering Heights because unlike what Goldstone seems to believe is a simple plot, Wuthering Heights is a complex novel with strong emotion and structure that i think all students could benefit from in the classroom. As some have already said, it also gives us a new interesting view on romance and the byronic hero.
I find it interesting that Goldstone refers to WH has the "storm" and LG as the "calm." However, I have to disagree when Goldstein says the book is "simple" and "direct." By no means is it simple. The characters alone are complex but the friendships, relationships, and connections are so intricate and deep that I would call it anything BUT simple. This is why it is good to read Wuthering Heights. The characters' motives, desires, and reasonings are something that need to be studied. Bronte uses powerful emotional and physical descriptions that cannot be ignored. For this reason, Wuthering Heights is not "direct." One must look into the character's emotion pain and delights in order to understand their life. I would not call this "direct" in any way. The characters are fascinating and for this reason, Wuthering Heights should be read. Each character contrasts with the next and I find that each environment contributes to the character's emotions.
I believe Wuthering Heights should be read for its contrasts. The contrasts in places is obvious. LG is open, bright, and inviting. WH is dark, confined, and cold. It most certainly is a gothic romance with the ghosts that haunt (Catherine and Heathcliff)and the horror/suspense that fills the halls of WH. The contrasts of affections are also important. Edgar with Catherine versus Heathcliff and Catherine. One is tender and gentle while the other is secretive and desperate. Heathcliff alone has such a range of emotions that psycologically I want to find out what he's going through. Both the emotion/psycological and the physical pain Heathcliff goes through in the novel alone can be studied. Contrasts to recognize in a novel and Bronte does a tremendously well job of incorporating these contrasts. Of course without them, no great novel would have been written. Goldstone makes a great note of these contrasts in his article.
As many of my classmates said, I disagree with Goldstone that Bronte simplifies reality. In fact, I believe that Wuthering Heights is a complicated novel. The whole plot is one convoluted scene after the next. No character’s feelings are black and white. For example, Heathcliff loves yet despises Catherine after her death. Each character’s history is complex as well. Heathcliff’s childhood is mixed with pleasure and pain. Hindley seems to have a wonderful childhood yet grows into a man full of hate and jealousy. Even the narration isn’t simple. Bronte doesn’t have just one person narrate, but instead divides the duty among many characters. Thus, I just cannot agree with Goldstone’s idea that Wuthering Heights has a “monumental simplicity.”
I think that Wuthering Heights is a good book to read because it examines human beings like no other novel. First it dives into the mess of emotions that people sort through constantly. As Herbert Goldstone says, this book is wonderful because of “the force of its insights into human feelings.” Wuthering Heights highlights the jealousy, hatred, revenge, love, and compassion in all of the characters. Like Goldstone writes, there are extremes of emotion that allow the reader to clearly witness all forms of human nature. Not only does the book focus on just the feelings within each character, but it also shows the reality of human relationships. There is conflict and vendettas as well as love and friendship. The novel is excellent and a good choice to read because it is just a great study of the nature of humans and their interactions with each other.
The most interesting points that Goldstone makes are about the unique structure of the novel, the battle between emotions, and the variety of love. I agree with how Goldstone connects Heathcliff with the two love triangles in the novel: the first between Catherine, Edgar, and Heathcliff, and the last between Cathy, Linton, and Hareton. Heathcliff is the "moving force" between both plots in the novel. In other words, he involves himself in both love stories. I also found Goldstone's point about the intensity of emotions in the novel interesting. The emotions are not only intense, but also conflict with each other. In each situation, the emotions are strong at both ends of the spectrum. For example, Cathy's "tender consideration and nursing" of Linton conflicts with Heathcliff's cruelty to Hindley. Another example is Mrs. Dean's care and love for Cathy versus her "coolness" toward Catherine. Finally, Goldstone points out the variety of love in the novel: one being considerate and kind (Cathy for Linton), the other passionate and wild (Heathcliff for Catherine). However, I agree with Grayce that Goldstone's simplification of the novel is controversial. While he has valid insights into the novel, he makes the plot too organized and easy, and I think that Bronte meant for it to be more complicated and controversial.
I think Wuthering Heights should be read because of the mystery and as Goldstone says, Bronte's "force of insight into human feelings." I think Bronte very accurately understands human emotion. She perceives love in many different ways and I think that makes the novel interesting. Plus, the novel is strange and full of mystery, which makes it entertaining.
After reading Wuthering Heights Revised i think Goldstone over simplified the plot of Wuthering Heights. Also i thought it was very interesting how he divided up the plot into two categories. Goldstone put in one category incidents with Catherine, Heathcliff, and Edger. In the other category he put Hareton, Cathy, and Linton.
I think we should read Wuthering Heights because it is a complex plot unlike what Goldstone says. Also, their is an extreme range of emotions making the reader pay closer attention. Another reason we should read Wuthering Heights is because it would give us an opportunity to study frame story, byronic hero, and gothic romance.
Although many of my classmates remark upon the complexity of WH as a novel with numerous valid points, I am in agreement with Goldstone in his opinion that the "view of life" presented in WH is "direct, simple...clearly presented." The moving force of WH, its distinct "view of life" is, quite simply, the power of love; this view is clearly manifested in the lives of the two most explicitly developed characters in WH: Catherine and Heathcliff. Likewise, the plot is not particularly hard to follow, and can easily be understood from the perspective of an uninvolved third-party observer; however, the complexities arise when the reader, as any intuitive reader will, becomes immersed in the story and has great difficulty relating (and consequently understanding) the characters’ violent emotions and often startling actions. After all, a love as fierce and destructive as a tempest is not something that one encounters in “reality”; This defining characteristic of Bronte’s work probably can be attributed to the heavy influence on her writing by the works of Sir Walter Scott and Romantic writers such as Lord Byron (Byronic hero); it follows suit that her writing leans towards the more darkly fantastical side of human existence, (not to mention her highly active imagination compensating for the lack of other entertainment on the English moors where she and her siblings grew up) and that I suppose explains the “strange” factor attributed to WH by critics such as Lord David Cecil' and Dorothy Van Ghent. However, I do not think that strangeness is irreconcilable with a powerful yet direct, and clear plot; in fact, I think such a work gave fresh breath to the rather heavy genre of gothic novels.
Like Sri, i didnt really want to read this article but from the first sentence, i was intrigued. The first sentence saying that the reason why people like this novel is the strangeness of it, is so true to me. I thought it was very interesting how Goldstone says the love stories of the younger and older generations are "linked by the actions of Heathcliff." I never realized this during the novel, but now that i see that, its very interesting. Also, i disagree with Goldstone in her saying that the perspective of the novel makes it readable. I personally wish that Nelly had told the whole story because her insight really intrigued me and i love how she personally knows the characters.
Lastly, i love how Goldstone points out the range of emotions in this novel. It is so true that the loves, with the treatment of loves by Bronte, and every emotion is huge in this novel. The love is so different and appeals to every reader because almost every kind of love is in this novel.
The reasons why we should read this novel: I think that this novel is very realistic. I think that the range in emotions and loves are truly what it is like to be in life. This novel helps teach about loves, which appeals to me. I love learning about obsessive love, desperate love, melancholy lovve, and tender love. I think its important for us to see these loves and see reasons for some people's actions in the world today. Sometimes we might not understand why people do certain things, and i think this novel will help me think that people dont always do bad things for bad reasons, but maybe they have the same kind of love that Heathcliff has for Catherine.
The points that Goldstone makes about Wuthering Heights are truly insightful. I agree with almost all his points, especially about perspective of the characters. Just like Grayce, I tend to disagree with one point that he makes about the plot. He repeats that the "speed and completeness of action" is commonly used in the book. However, I feel as though Bronte took time with her actions and instead of making them quick and cut, she makes the action suspenseful. Also, Goldstone seems to narrate as if Bronte's characters and plot were simple and quite easy to follow. I highly disagree with this. The novel was quite confusing (especially in the beginning) and very mysterious. The lack of different point of views does not allows us to fully understand the character, and thus the characters still retain some mystery to the reader. On a more positive view towards his article, Goldstone's analysis on Mrs. Dean was very correct. Mrs. Dean has not sympathy for Catherine, yet she treats her daughter Cathy with high regard. This is somewhat confusing since Cathy has almost the same attitude with Linton just as Catherine had with Heathcliff. I suppose her closeness with Heathcliff makes her biased upon Heathcliff, though she did not show any sympathy for him.
The most interesting thing that Goldstone talks about is the way Bronte uses the passion of love to carry the message through the story. It's really interesting how much force Bronte uses to describe the interactions of the characters and their love for one another. Goldstone says that the most important theme in Wuthering Heights is the use of love as a sort of binder to connect all of the characters, such as the love Catherine has for Heathcliff, which is full of passion, compared to the subtle love that she feels for Edgar. Goldstone also points out that the power of love that Bronte employs is really ahead of her time period.
The most interesting thing that Goldstone talks about is the way Bronte uses the passion of love to carry the message through the story. It's really interesting how much force Bronte uses to describe the interactions of the characters and their love for one another. Goldstone says that the most important theme in Wuthering Heights is the use of love as a sort of binder to connect all of the characters, such as the love Catherine has for Heathcliff, which is full of passion, compared to the subtle love that she feels for Edgar. Goldstone also points out that the power of love that Bronte employs is really ahead of her time period.
I think that we should read Wuthering Heights because it is a really interesting representation of the emotions that people feel in regard to the proper standards that the time period held. For example, the choice Catherine makes to marry Edgar instead of Heathcliff shows the importance of wealth, but the conflicting notion that love needs to play a part. This is shown when Nelly questions Catherine about her love for Edgar, saying Catherine needs to completely and totally love the person she marries. Another reason why we should read the book is the really fascinating way Bronte uses the shifting of views of characters to show what happened when. Nelly is extremely important to the novel because she allows the reader to experience the feelings of Heathcliff and Catherine. The use of direct language differentiates from other works of literature in the time period. Another great reason to read the book is its unique way of revealing the plot line. The plot is shown through the eyes of Nelly as a flashback, which is interesting and fun.
I disagree with Goldstone's overall argument that Wuthering Heights is not strange. While I do agree that the plot's focus,
serious and intense love, is not in itself strange, the actions that it drives many of the characters to take are oddly unique and anything but simple (another aspect of Goldstone's argument I disagree with). For example, the anguish and emotion that Heathcliff feels after Catherine's death is unlike anything I've ever read in a love story. I think a period of grief would be usual, but a request to dig up Catherine's bones and bury him with her after he dies is far from usual. The complex love in this book is unique and not common.
I Thought Goldstone did have some interesting things to say about the novel in the beginning of his analysis. I agree with him in the fact that Wuthering Heights conatains elements of literature and human nature that no other book from that time period contain. It is essential that we read this novel to discover the depth of emotion and love that Bronte is able to impart. This book is truly one of a kind, as Goldstone points out because no other preovious book was able to capture the realness and nature of people as Wuthering Heights did. Another reason Goldstone offers and one that has been often discussed on this blog is the element of the frame story. The point of view it is told from makes the story so much more unusual and catchy. Wuthering Heights should be read for its quality of writing.
While Goldstone made many excellant points, he did not address the social commentary in Wuthering Heights. I personally found Bronte's investigation of the socially unacceptable fascinating and felt that she deomonstrated well the flaws and emotions in each of other that can bring out these abnormalities. I also would have loved to see a deeper exploration of ethics in the novel.
Despite the elements I found to be lacking in his analysis, Goldstone eloquently explained emotion in the novel. I particulary enjoyed his explanation of the different types of love in the novel and how these different types can be similar also.
I thought Goldstone did an excellent job at defending WH as not being strange but rather a novel that looks at things for what they really are. I agreed with Goldstone about the two groups of incidents. One involves Catherine, Heathcliff, and Edgar. Another involves Cathy, Linton, and Hareton. That even connected back to the frame story in my mind. I also especially agree with Goldstone's thoughts about the perspective in the novel. I agree with him that we can only undetstand the significance be seeing it through a number of people's perspectives. I also thought it was extremely interesting about Goldstone's critique of Nelly as judgemental towards Catherine. I had never thought of that before but it made me think.
I agree with Goldstone that WH really did a great job of indentifying the different treatments of love. Some novels portray love as only two people madly in love with people who express it in sappy and cheesy ways. However, Bronte recognizes that love demonstrates itself in many different forms. Edgar is tender hearted for example. Heathcliff exhibits a savage, desperate, and exalted passion love for Catherine. While Isabel exhibits a naive idealization of Heathcliff. Bronte demonstrates the ways lovers can treat each other cruel, violently, and selfishly.
While I do believe that the range of emotions that Goldstone talks about is extremely important and true, as well as the treatment of love, I agree mostly with the study of Mrs. Dean. Goldstone says that she is an absolutely essential character, who understands the other characters in the novel more than anyone else. She "has a detective's instinct for ferreting out what is happening, especially since she is also close to all of the people and in her own way loyal to them." She also is able to comment on the actions and thoughts of the characters since she herself is telling the story to another narrator. This is extremely important to how the reader reads this novel.
We should read Wuthering Heights because of its contrasts. The contrasts in this novel are unlike any i have ever read before. Goldstone brings up a very interesting contrast when he calls Wuthering Heights the storm and Thrushcross Grange the calm. This perfectly describes these two places, its inhabitants, and how they interact together. Contrasts in these book are so interesting. Light and dark are used throughout the novel as well. The novel is FULL of contrasts that make the plot even more interesting than it is from the beginning. The storm of Wuthering Heights causes all of its inhabitants to be dark, violent, and mean like Heathcliff. TG is calm; its first inhabitants, the Lintons, are very calm and collected people. It is light there, and they usually get along with everyone. Without these contrasts, the book would not be the same.
I found Goldstone's analysis of "Wuthering Heights" to be less controversial than Kneedler's analysis of "Pride and Prejudice"; however, Goldstone avoids controversy only through explicating a very simplified critique of the novel. I found more revelatory ideas in the allusions to Lord Cecil and Miss Van Ghent's views of the story than in the rest of Goldstone's article. Goldstone focuses on four strong points of the novel: plot structure, perspective, range of emotions, and love. However, in doing so he leaves out many important aspects of the story, glaringly Bronte's social criticism. This lapse could be excused if he had fully examined the portions of the novel he chose to focus on; however, he does not talk about the innovative frame structure of the novel, nor does he allude to Heathcliffe's characterization as a Byronic hero. I do not mean to so harshly critique Goldstone's article, as he does raise a few interesting points; the treatment of Bronte's novel as a Greek tragedy provides a unique perspective, as well as Goldstone's observation that characterization is revealed through interpersonal relationships and dialogue. However, I completely agree with Elise in that "Wuthering Heights" is by no means a simple tale. I agree with Zonia in that "Wuthering Heights" depicts most comprehensively the theme of love; however, that depiction in no way characterizes the tale as simple. Love and human passion are the most complex themes facing humanity; this complexity is revealed quite obviously in love's pervasive omnipresence through out almost every major work of literature since the beginning of the written word. I believe that the complexity of "Wuthering Heights" is a direct manifestation of the complexity of love and humanity.
I believe that one should read Wuthering Heights precisely because it is so very difficult and unsettling to read. The book does not simply sit on a shelf like a docile plaything waiting to entertain and provide literary escape; it challenges us, it depresses us, it engages the reader in a provocative and introspective dialogue. I personally do not see a point in reading a novel that I completely understand. In unraveling the complex (for yes, they are complex) themes of the novel and innovative social critique, narrative structure, and character analysis, one can learn much about the art of literature. As Goldstone says, we should read Bronte's novel for the plot, perspective, emotional range, and analysis of love-but we should also read Bronte's novel for the literary artistry, the portrait of naked human passion, and above all, the challenge.
I really liked reading this article by Goldstone because i too thought that WH was very wierd when i first read it. But Goldstone broke down different elements of the novel, and i found it a lot easier to relate to the characters and see WH in a clearer light. I found his points about the emotions of the characters very interesting, and i now can view Heathcliff more as a broken man instead of a heartless villian. Catherine also seems more compassionate because i now know that Bronte made Nelly a little bias and in understanding this we can learn more about Catherine by how Nelly reacts to her. I think that Bronte made WH so tragic so that as readers it is our job to find out how we can relate to the characters and what in turn they can ultimately teach us about life and love.
Although Goldstone's commentary is less controversial than Kneedler's writing on Pride and Prejudice, I found Goldstone's arguments very intiguing; in fact, they gave me a whole new outlook on the novel and made me enjoy its thematic elements more than before. One idea that I disagree with, however, is when he says that the novel is "direct [and] simple." In my opinion, Wuthering Heights is far from simple...its complexity in character emotions and relationships make the novel so much more interesting and available for different points of analysis.
I believe that Wuthering Heights should be read because of its ability to challenge the reader with contrasts of atmosphere, emotion, and characters. Yes, the novel is slightly strange; yet, it is realistic and romantic in a gothic way. Also, the element of perspective with narration and frame story is fascinating and unlike anything else I have read. Wuthering Heights is a great novel to read due to its definitions of human interaction and emotion with gothic romance embedded in the complex relationships of the story.
I didn’t really think about the lack of character description and the action being very fast-paced and clear-cut until I read the article, but it’s very true; I completely agree with Goldstone on this subject. Not only do I agree with this assessment, but I was very partial to this aspect of the novel; descriptions, if long-winded, can become very boring (Dickens), and I really enjoyed getting to know the character through his or her actions and words. That those actions and conversations also served to move the plot was an added bonus that shows the brilliance of Bronte. I think that this way of letting the reader get to know the character is much more effective than making the reader stumble through two pages of one long paragraph of narrative, the plot broken for the description’s sake.
I thought it was interesting how Goldstone defended Catherine and her actions. Her argument convinced me that Nelly was too harsh on her in the instances of her staying in her room, her anguish of Edgar and Heathcliff hating each other, and her talking to Heathcliff for Isabella’ sake. Previously, I was inclined to side with Nelly and share her views on Catherine’s “childish tantrum.” These instances were excellent example of the few “blind spots” in Nelly’s perspective.
It’s important to read Wuthering Heights because it is an excellent example of human emotions, the depth and intensity of them, the lengths humans will go to let these emotions be known, and the lengths that they will go to as a result of these emotions – that is, how much these emotions drive them and the extreme power and hold their emotions have over them. I find it fascinating how this intense love between two people – Heathcliff and Catherine – can have such deep and long-lasting repercussions in so many people’s lives.
I think we should read WH for Bronte's illustration of the beautiful but also tragic, darkside of love. Goldstone discusses how there is nothing stange about the Heathcliff and Catherines undying love for one another that is full of reciprocal passion and devotion. Most of us are used to the lighter side of love: boy meets girl, girl meets boy, they think the other is cute and next thing we know the two cant live without each other, they get married and love each other til they die. Its all very touching, but Bronte wants us to understand the tragic side of love. The type of love that in Heathcliffs case lasts within him for 18 years that consumed him, and that also could become other emotions such as hate and dispair. This side of love isnt pretty but it is so powerful and in the end Heathcliff and Catherine are doomed for loving each other yet their love seems to be the only thing that redeems them.
I think that Goldstone makes some very interesting arguments however vastly oversimplifies this novel. he doesnt get into the depths of the plot or the characters or any meaning whatsoever ♬. I think that Goldstone is completely wrong when he says that this book is direct and simply presented. WH is so complex and everything ties together in some way to eventually make it to a dramatic conclusion of a very gothic romance.
I think that we should read wuthering heights because it is an incredible novel packed full of emotonal depth and controversy. everything that happens is cause for question. it is a gothic romance that is so incredibly complicated, yet so clearly told through the eyes of the narrators. also wuthering heights depicts love in so many different ways that are usually never addressed in romance novels.
I half way agree with Goldstone when he says that "Wuthering Heights has an almost monumental simplicity and depth of feeling that makes it a very moving novel." To me, Wuthering Heights does have an odd sort of simplicity that makes it that much more complicated and difficult to understand. However, on the other hand, this novel is not simple at all. The love that is in the novel runs so deep and so strong that it is hard to even begin to describe it as simple. The love the Heathcliff has for Catherine thrives so passionately that it even defies the laws of death. Also, I agree with Goldstone when he says that "only by seeing what takes place through a number of persons' eyes can we understand its significance." If the point of view did not change from chracter to character, the story would not have the same impact on the reader that it does and the reader would not fully grasp the importance of the story.
I think that we should read Wuthering Heights because it is such a complex novel that it challenges the reader to stay focused and alert in order to catch every detail and change in point of view. Also, Wuthering Heights is a more complicated novel to read and comprehend and it pushes the reader to think and analyze each situation in order to understand the significance of each detail in the story.
Ahh! My comment didn't go through... :[
anyways...
The condition under which WH could ever be considered 'simple' is if by simple one was referring to the the raw, fundamental depiction of human emotion that the novel most certainly accomplishes. While the intricate tale of star-crossed love and fatal flaws of said lovers can hardly be called elementary, the realistic exposure of human emotions is in no way embellished. Therefore, I cannot possibly agree with the assertion that WH is a novel with a 'clear, unified' plot and 'monumental simplicity'
In addition, I feel that such an iconic and powerful illustration of human nature is amoung one of the msny reasons to read WH. Goldstone also remarks on the naturality of such emotions and 'the character's ability to express them vividly, clearly, and unself-consciously,' as well as Bronte's use of contrast. I agree that her frequent use of cathathis and raw passion, exhibited especially in Heathcliff's reprehension towards Catherine, adds to the merit of the novel, as such emotional depictions amplify our attachment to the characters and the plotline itself.
After reading Goldstone's article "Wuthering Heights Revisited," I've grasped a greater appreciation for the novel. There were points he made that I never would have thought of about the novel and I especially found his deep analysis of Nelly's character to the other characters in the book particularly. However in regards to talking about the whole of the novel, I really disagree with him when he says that the novel "has an almost monumental simplicity." I don't find this story to be simple in any way, shape, or form. The characters and their relationships and connections with each other are so intertwined, intricate, and complex that this novel is everything but simple.
Wuthering Heights would be a great book to be taught in the classrooms because it introduces a view on romance and love that most stories never come across. Especially for a classroom of high school girls, most of whom adore a good love story, a different aspect of the complexity of love would benefit us greatly. The different levels of the romance in this novel are so different and new from the sappy, head over heels, heart melting romance that we are so exposed to in romantic movies and novels now. So going more in-depth in this story would teach us a great deal. Also, the style form and frame story used in this novel introduce a whole new world of writing to students.
I completely agree with Nica. As teenage girls we all love a good love story. Wuthering Heights shows different depths of love and how it is not always pretty. As Goldstone remarked about idolization, passion, and exalted desperate love.
Goldstone's explanation of ranges of love and how it is separated by two generations is quite accurate. First generation, Catherine and Heathcliff have savage passion while second generation of Cathy and Hareton correct the mistakes of the first generation with their true love. I also agree with Goldstone that Nelly Dean is level headed and sees each character for who they truly are. She is the voice of reason and Nelly is the one who helps us, as readers, understand Heathcliff's rage and love along with Catherine's strength in dying. Emotions run high in Wuthering Heights but the devotion in love that these characters have for one another is viewed in a unique way.
Goldstone wrote a very interesting article to read. I like how she says that "Wuthering Heights and its
inhabitants represent storm, Thrushcross Grange and the Lintons, calm, and, just as in
nature, these principles clash and yet ultimately become reconciled" because I agree with Goldstone about this part because they are opposites. I do not like how he put the story into two separate sides though like they were two separate stories. I know that in a way that is true, but i think he makes them too far apart from each other. He makes a good argument though because he even says which each side represent. I agree with what he says about the frame stories and how that makes this story more interesting. I like how he says that Nelly is a good character because she does not sympathize over one person, but she can be blind to many things. After reading this it is easy to see what Nelly was blind to on others behalves during the story.
Wuthering Heights is a good book to read because it is not like every other love story that we always read. It is dark and scary and does not exactly have the happiest ending even though it is a love story. The suspense makes the book fun to read. Even though it was hard to follow at some parts it was still amusing. There is just nothing like this book and also it is neat to see the frame stories. I also liked reading a gothic romance and i liked it because even though it was a love story like Pride and Prejudice, it was so different from it that it was not like repeating the same book,
Because of the sole fact that all of my classmates strongly disagree with Goldstone on the fact that WH can be extremely simplified, I challenged myself to ponder why Goldstone made such an "off the wall" argument. Although I do not think that it is fair to classify Goldstone's argument as sarcasm, I do think that he makes the statement, "[WH] has an almost monumental simplicity", because it makes the reader truly fish for the details on how WH is definitely not a simple novel. In an effort to prove Goldstone wrong, Bronte's characters suddenly become the reader's argue point and become of greater importance to the reader. Just a thought. I guess this analysis is also controversial for me because like Mary Stevenson already mentioned: although the characters themselves can be simply depicted, their deep relationships and connections have different motives and reasonings that the reader must decipher.
I believe that we should read WH because of the great illustrations and explanations of emotions, the introduction of a frame story, and the open-ended suspense that the novel creates. As developing teenage girls, we are faced with all types of emotion. Some of the love themes/lessons in WH will stay with us throughout our lives. Goldstone did a magnificent job of breaking down the different kinds of emotion. For example, Heathcliff, previously viewed as a heartless antagonist, becomes a broken victim of love. His seemingly "heartless" actions change from acts of horror to motions of desperation. As many have already mentioned, the frame story definitely adds a new light to the whole reading scene. I think it would be interesting to analyze how the story would have been different without a frame story, in an effort to fully understand why Bronte chose to use it. I'm not quite sure suspense is the right word to use when I am trying to define the mysterious atmosphere at WH. Since WH is a place of horror and character destruction, I was constantly waiting for a terrible incident to take place. On another note, I found myself looking for clues as to how WH became such a dark place to begin with. How did the "new house smell, look and feel" become so ruined over the years? Overall, I think WH would be a great novel to read and further analyze.
for the most part i agree with what goldstone talks about in his article. but i feel like some of his analysis is over-simplified. He states that wuthering heights has a "clear, unified, and dramatic plot structure". i only agree with it somewhat because i felt like the plot structure was a little weird and confusing at times with all the different perspectives of the story being told. i think that goldstone forgot about the frame narratives that bronte uses. But how he presented it, made his argument make sense. He explains that Heathcliffe is the “moving force” in both love stories which is true. Because of that, his argument about the plot structure makes sense. Goldstone also has a lot of good points about wuthering heights like about how each persons perspective of the novel was biased in a way. But the point that I really like about goldstone’s article is the paragraph about the “treatment of love”. Wuthering heights shows the reality of love unlike pride and prejudice. We see how love can turn people to become savages or bring out the beauty in people.
I agree and disagree with Goldstone's statement "the view of life in the book is direct, simple, very comprehensive, and easily presented" because I couldn't really follow what happened in Mr. Lockewood or Heathcliff's life for awhile, that might have just been me, but also I agree because after I realized it I found myself saying "Oh NOW I get it" when it should have been simple in the first place..
Due to catching myself with the "simple presentation" I think we should read it to see how we catch ourselves doing these things and maybe helping ourself out by trying to grasp it in the first moment and teach ourselves how to do that and things to look for..I also think we learn alot from the many aspects such as the ones Goldstone pointed out such as the perspectives, emotions, and treatment of love.
In "Wuthering Heights Revisited," Goldstone claims that Wuthering Heights has a "monumental simplicity." I think this is very untrue. A common example of how this is not true has been mentioned in an earlier post: the frame story. The book tells two different stories and even past that, the connections and relationships between all of the characters are so complex.
Wuthering Heights is most definitely a love story and just as Goldstone said, the emotions are complex and very realistic. It makes it a beautiful tale and interesting to read.
I think we should read Wuthering Heights because of the interesting plot structure, that there are two stories but they are connected in numerous ways. The story of Heathcliff and his life takes one story and Catherine’s life takes the other story. Even though Heathcliff and Catherine’s lives are very different, Heathcliff is a recluse while Catherine is a socialite, these two people find a common love for one another and the connection between these two people is so strong that even their lives cannot conceal their love for one another. Bronte writes of each person’s life and places dramatic stops in the novel to increase the drama in the book, and to show the connection to the other person, whether it is how they feel about the other person or what the other person is doing at that moment. The connection in the plot that Bronte writes is very interesting and I think that it definitely makes the book more suspenseful and dramatic.
I think that the most interesting thing that Goldstone says in this article is Bronte’s treatment of love in this novel. Goldstone writes that Bronte describes the passionate love that Heathcliff and Catherine have, the tender love of Edgar and Catherine, and the naïve love that Isabel thinks she has with Heathcliff. Bronte covers the different stages of love and it is so interesting to have it written clearly in this novel and to see both perspectives of the different love treatments because even today these treatments of love are the same. I also like the fact that Goldstone realizes how love can make one do cruel and harsh things to another because one loves another because it is so true today and has been true for years.
I am not sure that Goldstone clearly explains his definition of "simple." He says that it is "apparent that the view of life in the book is direct, simple, comprehensive, and very clearly presented." He goes on to say that a book with this view of life "scarcely seems strange." However, I disagree. I don't think that you can make a view of life "simple" and "comprehensive" without being "strange." Life is way to weird for that.
However, as Grayce said, I did like how he mentioned that the plot is divided by "love relationships in two generations." I had noticed this as I was reading, but I didn't really think about it as two seperate plot categories with Heathcliff as the link between them. I don't think that the plot can really be defined as "clear" and "unified," though. The frame story structure makes it kind of choppy and hard to follow at times, and the range of emotions Goldstone discusses prevent WH from possessing "monumental simplicity."
One reason we should read Wuthering Heights is because it is such a great example of a Byronic hero. Also, as Goldstone said, Wuthering Heights really does provide alot of insight into human emotions, especially those pertaining to love. There is alot of passion and conflict in Wuthering Heights, and pretty much all readers can relate to the emotions in some way.
Goldstone’s arguments are all interesting; however, I feel that the most interesting point he makes deals with the emotions and relationships of the characters. Wuthering Heights has always fascinated me for its complex, yet remarkably simple, depictions of love, hatred, and passion. Heathcliff and Catherine’s love, referred to by Goldstone as “powerful, complete, and enduring,” is so vividly described that you can feel how such a love could be possible. But, as Goldstone says, Bronte deals so well with every level of love in Wuthering Heights that she demonstrates a thorough picture of humanity. Even though the types of love described in the novel are so varied (from the desperate love of Heathcliff to the sweet, simple love of Hareton), Bronte simplifies them so that readers feel their passion rather than their complexity, a method that makes the love more real to the observer. She delves so deeply into the intricacies of the heart that they become overwhelmingly elementary.
The amount of emphasis that Goldstone puts on Catherine and Heathcliff's relationship is very interesting. Although Mrs. Dean is the is the narrorator for the majority of the book and Catherine is only alive for a little over half of the book, everything that happens within the story ultimately revolves around Catherine and Heathcliff's relationship. Goldstone mentions Linton, Cathy, and Hindley very few times in his article and the emphasis on Catherine and Heathcliff shows that he is trying to over-simplify the story for us.
Wuthering Heights would be a fascinating book to discuss in the classroom because of its controversial nature. The range of emotions, attitudes, values, and people in this novel lend it to very interesting class discussions. Additionally, Wuthering Heights deals very thoroughly with the intricacies of humanity, delving deeply into the very core of human nature and leading to a place where accepted values are questioned and absurd values become rationalized. The sheer understanding exhibited by Bronte of humanity’s complexities and the range of characters (and their personalities) in the novel render this novel extremely useful to study.
I agree with Kathryn in the Goldstone puts a very interesting emphasis on the emotions of Bronte's characters. Catherine and Heathcliff's passionate love drives each of them to almost ultimate insanity and brings on other strong emotions of hatred and desperate sadness for other characters later in the novel.
Wuthering Heights would be a good book to be taught in the classrooms. It iopebs up a whole new view on romance and love that most stories never come across. The levels of the romance in this novel are so different and new from the sappy, head over heels, cliche romance that we are so used to in romantic movies and novels now. So going more in-depth in this story would teach us a great deal. I also love WH for the mystery aspect, and as Goldstone says, Bronte's "force of insight into human feelings." I think Bronte very accurately understands human emotion. She perceives love in many different ways and I think that makes the novel interesting. Plus, the novel is strange and full of mystery, which makes it entertaining.
After reading Wuthering Heights Revised i think Goldstone over simplified the plot of Wuthering Heights. Also i found it very interesting how he divided up the plot into two categories. That also makes the book complex; putting in one category incidents with Catherine, Heathcliff, and Edger, and the other category he put Hareton, Cathy, and Linton.I also found Goldstone's agruement about emotion fascinating. I think that with such strond emotions from the characters, the reader becomes more attached to them.
yeah i agree with carey. when goldstone tells us that there are two plot lines, it makes me think that the book isn't really that bad and now i see how the plot structure is parallel. the emotion arguement that goldstone presents was also a very good point. its definately an arguement that i would have never guessed. But at the same time, we see a lot of emotion throughout the novel especially because i think heathcliffe the main character is one of the most emotional characters i have ever read about.
I was really interested in Goldstone' article "Wuthering Heights Revisited." I agreed with basically everything he said. However, i didn't agree with him that Heathcliff becomes too menacing and villainous to remain fascinating after Catherine's death. If anything, that was when i was most fascinated with Heathcliff. I thought that was the most incorrect subject Goldstone could talk about. However, in everything else, Goldstone captured my attention. I like how Goldstone really dwelled on the subject that Bronte really knew how to capture all of the characters emotions of love. No matter how different each character's personality was, Bronte really forced the emotions out and kept the reader wanting more. I also agree with Goldstone that Nelly had some "blind spots" in the novel. Although Nelly is caring and reliable person, she expects everyone to be perfect and sometimes fails to see the full picture. I believe that it would be great to read Wuthering Heights because the range of emotions is amazing and Bronte's character development shows us how imaginative she really is.
Overall, Wuthering Heights would be a great book to read because of the great range of emotions, the different perspectives of the narrators through the frame story, and the "treatment of love", which Goldstone explains. Although Goldstone kept describing Wuthering Heights as a "simple" novel, i believe that there are many twists and turns that would be interesting to study with my classmates. Each character is very different, (besides Heathcliff and Catherine, who claim to be the same person)with different emotions and reactions, which would make it exciting to talk about and discuss in class.
I think Goldstone has an interesting take on Wuthering Heights; I both agree and disagree with him on certain aspects of his article. It is true that people find this novel entertaining because of all the passion and emotion; however, I found it unrealistic and somewhat frightening. I agree that the plot structure is very dramatic and all the events in the novel are always completed.
The main points of Goldstone's article that I disagree with are his views of Bronte's characters. Goldstone believes that "Edgar is not nearly
so lively or interesting as the other major characters, and Heathcliff becomes too
mechanically and rigidly villainous after Catherine's death to remain fascinating." I think that Edgar is just as interesting as the other characters in the novel; his love for Catherine is interesting to me because it such a contrast to Heathcliff's love for Catherine. While Heathcliff's love is wild and passionate, Edgar's is practical and caring. He lives to please her; Heathcliff lives to have her. As for Goldstone's take on Heathcliff, I was never fascinated by him. I have always believed him to be scary and evil, and I thought he was very destructive, even when he was in love. I also disagree with Goldstone that Nelly was wrong about Catherine; although she fails to see Catherine's genuine upset about certain things, she understands her true character. Nelly knows that Catherine does care for others, but she mostly cares for herself.
I disagree with Goldstone's point that Bronte wanted to portray all the types of love and their ramifications. I think that Bronte wanted readers to understand that love can bring short-lived happiness, but it is ultimately destructive unless the two lovers are completely emotionally stable and honest, only in the case of Cathy and Hareton.
I definitely agree on the majority of Goldstone's argument. His article creates the perfect analysis on the themes that Bronte was trying convey throughout the novel. In his interpretation of Heatcliff’s final conversation with Catherine, he mentioned that Heathcliff’s own human nature was the cause of his destruction. Not only do I agree with Goldstone's assumption, but I also believe that it brings up one of the primary reason’s to read the novel. Throughout Heathcliff’s life, he is lead by his love for Catherine. Love, being the most powerful expression of the human heart, is so strong and apparent in Heathcliff’s life that he cannot live without it. As Catherine is dying in his arms, Heathcliff’s only reason for living dies as well. His soul, in away, commits suicide, because it is murdered by the expression of love.
However, though I do agree with the majority of what Goldstone says, I find his argument on human understanding to be incorrect. Goldstone claims that Heathcliff has completeunderstanding of himself. However, I believe this assumption to be false. Heathcliff has little control over his actions because his life is lead by his love for Catherine. In my opinion, Heathcliff does not understand the intensity of his emotions. He does not realize how much his love for Catherine is destroying is life or how much it is influencing his actions. Goldstone mentions several times in the article that Bronte had an exceptional gift of making her writing mirror real life. I do agree with this, but in reality, no one truly understands themselves. Therefore, I think that Goldstone was incorrect in saying that Heathcliff understood everything about his own nature.
Goldstone explains the two parallel stories within Wuthering Heights to be a way to compare the two and relate the parallel characters: Catherine, Heathcliff, and Edgar versus Cathy, Linton, and Hareton. I agree with Goldstone on how this plot structure is easy to follow and entertaining. Goldstone points out how the narrators stop telling the stories at strategic points in order to allow to readers to compare the two different yet exact stories.
Later on, Goldstone also points out Bronte's style of writing which is to allow her readers to see the plot through a number of characters' points of view. With most of the story coming from the view of Nelly, we can feel like we are only being told the highlights of what really happened and what we need to know to understand the story. This style of writing creates an entertaining way to read a story that is being told.
I agree with Rachel that Goldstone did not explain the plot of Wuthering Heights throughly enough. She found it to be much more simple than it was. I really enjoyed the way that she described Nelly. I did believe at times that Nelly was much more of a hindrance than a help. However Goldstone did explain her point of view throughout the novel very well and it helped me to understand some things i did not get at first.
Wuthering Height should be taught because overall it is a very complex book that would lead to great discussions. The fact that there are so many emotions in Wuthering Heights allows readers to understand so much more of the book and how the characters respond so different and drasticallyto many situations. This book is also very interesting. It is feel with so many opposites but the opposites balance the book in an unusual way. It is sort of like a yin and yang.
I personally think Goldstone's article was very interesting and took a very different view of the novel that i have never though about it. Although i agreed with many of his points, I did not agree with his thought that the plot was direct and simple. Maybe to some people the plot is direct and simple, but i really think the story is rather complex. Part of this complexity comes from the form WH is told, a frame story. Goldstone on the other hand makes a great point about how this story appeals to us because of its extreme range of emotion. I think by using different narrators such as Nelly and Mr. Lockwood, it allows the readers to grasp the range of this extreme emotion.
I think we should read WH because this novel does a great job of capturing a true deep dark love. Every kind of person can get something from this novel, if one is optimistic and happy, you would identify with the inhabitants of TG, but if one looks more on the dark side of life, the could identify with the people living at Wuthering Heights. This novel also gives us a different view on romance, it is not always a fairy tale but can really have some darkness to it.
I definitely do not agree with the statement Goldstone asserted: that Wuthering Heights "has an almost monumental simplicity". In my opinion WH was a very very deep and complex novel to read. Partially because of the way Bronte wrote it and also because of how deep and complex love is. Bronte seemed to have an amazing understanding of human connections and romances. She saw them for what they are: complex. The concept is simple, but not the actual emotion.
However i do agree with Goldstone about his two classifications of the characters into categories: Catherine Heathcliff and Edgar, and then Cathy Linton and Hareton. That is ind of how i divided the book when i was reading it and even thugh it simplifies the plot and characters it makes the book easier to understand and to read.
After reading Goldstone's article, I found that many of his points were very interesting. As he states in the beginning, WH is a strange book. However, the conclusion of this novel ends with a happy ending for Hareton and Catherine. The beginning starts with Catherine Earnshaw's engagement to E. Linton and her existing love for Heathcliff. In the next generation, Catherine Linton was forced to marry her cousin Linton Heathcliff, and ignored her cousin Hareton. This book is about a love story which last for 2 generations. I liked how Goldstone mentions Bronte's "range of emotions." Bronte cleverly uses the range of emotions in incidents of the novel such as Catherine Earnshaw's death.
WH is a great book to read because it describes a dark, complex love story starting with Catherine and Heathcliff. Bronte included descriptions of great emotion throughout the novel, and keeps the reader wanting to know more. It would definitely be interesting if we read this book in class because there's just so much happening!
First, I would like to clarify my previous "comment": I do not think that Bronte's WH is a simple work of fiction by any means, as Goldstone attests it to be, and her complex and multi-faceted characters alone strip that argument of any credible value. On reflection, I believe I was trying to say that the theme of love is a fundamental and basic one prevalent even before the development of written stories, although this mainstream, worldwide prevalence does not translate into simplicity, and it would be naive to assume so.
On to the topic of "why we should read Wuthering Heights," I believe I can offer a few reasons, though my classmates have already provided many excellent arguments as well. First, the novelty of such a book as WH as learning material in the classroom should not be passed up-- novelty not in the sense that few students read and study WH, but in the sense that the opportunity to do so provides an unconventional perspective and consequently engrossing challenge (as one of my classmates has noted) in understanding the complexity and richness of the world E.B. has created within the text of this novel. Second, the compelling and sophisticated character development in WH constitutes a great example of memorable characters who actually challenge the readers previous notions about some aspects of life. Lastly, (but most certainly not all the possible reasons why one would venture to read WH) the sheer force of Bronte's words and her attention to the emotional psyche renders WH an exhilarating and fulfilling read, for it imparts on the reader a distinctly different outlook on the mutations of human behavior, not to mention a strong validation of the insuperable power of love.
Like grayce and rachel said earlier, I also believe that Goldstone over-simplifies his analysis of the novel. However, he does a great job pin pointing specific emotions and characteristics of each character, which is in essence what i believes makes Wuthering Heights the novel that it is.
I think we should read Wuthering Heights because it includes a variety of points of view and emotions which essentially makes up our lives. Our emotions and the ways in which we look at different types of situations which can differentiate us or bring us together. Also, by reading this novel, we see a passionate love between two people that has so much depth and emotion that it turns harmful and dangerous to others. Another thing Wuthering Heights teaches us is exemplified through Catherine's decision to marry Edgar even though she was in love with Heathcliff because Edgar was known to have a better social status than Heathcliff's. This teaches us the difference between an ideal world and reality, and how people can in many instances choose something as petty as better social status over passionate love for the rest of their life.
Goldstone speaks of Wuthering Heights having “monumental simplicity.” I have to disagree given the array of characters with complex and misunderstood relationships along with symbolism. Nelly is complex because she is quick to judge Catherine’s actions, while blindingly praising whatever Edgar does. Catherine is also complex, because though Nelly thinks little of her, Catherine understands two of the most interesting characters, Heathcliff and Edgar that wise Nelly does not see. Goldstone also says that Nelly never goes through “scenes of character analysis.” This is incorrect because Nelly clearly favorites Edgar over Heathcliff. Goldstone even says that Nelly calls Catherine’s behavior in response to Heathcliff is “neither sensible nor polite”!
Goldstone also says that Nelly accepts “some mystery as necessary” just because Nelly did not discuss Heathcliff’s past. Just because she did not tell Mr. Lockwood about it does not mean that she just accepts it. If that were true, that would contradict her theory that Nelly also accepts the catastrophes that happen continuously in her life, because she includes those when telling Mr. Lockwood.
I do not agree that there is any relation between Edgar and Catherine's marriage and Heathcliff and Isabel's other than that the latter was made in order to PO Edgar. Edgar's decision to propose was made out of love, unlike Heathcliff's which was made out of revenge and hatred.
I feel that Nelly is not ignorant that Catherine's fatal illness is caused by Edgar, because I do not believe it is. Yes, Catherine became ill after Edgar banned Heathcliff from TG, but what caused her to ultimately die was Heathcliff's return and their final scene together. Nelly seems to blame her death on Heathcliff and I have no objections to her conclusion.
I think the most interesting part of Goldstone's article is his in-depth inquery to the emotions of the characters in WH. He explored connections that I had never thought of before. Like he says, the emotions are very extreme yet the way they are expressed makes them seem natural and not entirely over-exaggerated. The best example, I believe, is that of Heathcliff on his last night with Catherine. He is chastising her for breaking her heart, which in turn breaks his, and the way he so violently expresses it gives depth to his suffering and makes it seem real to us.
I think we should read Wuthering Heights because it is such a great exposition of human interraction and human emotions. From the intense obsessive love to the gentle kind; from utter happiness and innonence to uninherited hatred and depression; it is a vast range of emotions and actions of life. One can gain a lot of perspective of their own life from this book.
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