A Tragedy of Human being

【Abstract】Wuthering Heights， as the only masterpiece of Emily Bronte， is actually a vivid depiction of a great love story and a tragedy of human alienation， as well as an in-depth analysis of a poignant suffering of a noble soul.

【Key words】Wuthering Heights tragic love story tragedy of human alienation

Wuthering Heights is the only novel of Emily Bronte and it is found to be quite as mysterious and rough as her own character.

Born in a poor Irish county parson family in Harworth， a remote and gloomy village on the Yorkshire moors， the author herself was as stubborn， isolated as her birthplace. Emily drew equally on her own emotional introverted nature and on the wild and mysterious moors around her for the story of the passionate Cathy and her savage lover Heathcliff， whose love as suffering lasts through their whole lives and beyond their death. The center of the novel evolves around Heathcliff 's unparalleled relationship with Cathy： from union to separation， then from separation to reunion after death.

Heathcliff， a gypsy waif was picked up by Mr. Earn Shaw in the street of Liverpool and brought home to rear as one of his own children；the other two are Catherine and Hindly. Little Heathcliff becomes attached to Cathy for they are both so wild as to run in the moors on their feet against storm.

Upon the early death of his father， Hindly， who was furiously jealous of Heathcliff， now master of the house， bullies the latter and reduces him to the humiliated position of farm drudge， and prevents him from loving， even speaking to Cathy who remains loyal as ever. An accident， however， brings Cathy into Thrusheross Grange where the young girl is attracted by Edgar Linton's good looking and good manners and the social standing of his family. When Heathcliff overhears her declaration that she can't marry him because it would degrade her， he runs away in a rage of passion， Thus the union ends. The separation lasts until he returns three years later， mysteriously enriched， to find Cathy unhappily married Edgar.

Inflamed by Cathy's betrayal， the stormy eruption of Hecthcliff's passionate and ferrous nature now makes life intolerable for her and promptly sends the rueful broken-hearted Cathy to her grave. Now that their earthly separation is complete， the demonic thirst for revenge， however， brings Heathcliff neither satisfaction nor peace. Only the memory of the dead Cathy drives him on with“one universal idea” of a final union with her spirit， and he ends his own life in a stormy night.

The strange tale is， without question， one of the greatest tragic love stories of all times. Unlike most of tragic love stories， such as Romio and Juliet， which have grand and complicated social life for their background， the tragic life and death of Heathcliff and Cathy is set against the “atmosphere tumult” of the wild moors. The emotion of each character's changes with the “tumult ” around. The drama of their “immortal” love appeals by an emotional power and intensity of its own that defies mundane imagination.

To some extent， the novel is more than a great love story， for it is a tragedy of human alienation. Heathcliff is brought home by old Earn Shaw as a “dirty， tagged， black-haired child”， a homeless and unknown gypsy foundling. He is an archetypal child of nature， who has primitive vigor of nature which can not exist in a so called “civilized” society. Once thrust into the mist of “human” society， his innocent nature begins to be twisted and distorted by the cruel ill-treating of Hindly and by the betrayal of Cathy. Hindly's treatment is enough to make a fiend of a saint. But Heathcliff might endure it with love for Cathy which he regards as nothing less than his life itself. Yet when he finds he is betrayed by Cathy and the love is past redemption in this world， his course of utter alienation is destined not to end until it reaches the other extreme of angelic innocence “a lying moster， not a human being”. Heathcliff betrays one solitary human feeling， and that is not his love for Cathy， which is a sentiment fierce and inhuman ；a passion that might boil and glow in the bad essence of some evil genius.

The novel is a supreme true tragedy in that it depicts the drama and spectacle of the most poignant suffering of a noble human soul. Heathecliff is a peculiar sort of moble savage and his nobility as a tragic hero lies essentially in his soul's great capacity for suffering. From the very beginning to the end of the novel， we can see and feel that all Heathcliff ‘s unspeakable outrage are nothing but horrifying symptom of the upheaval in his tormented soul.

Wuthering Heights remains all times one of the greatest novels in the world， for there is not any novel which has depicted such a mixed love story： Love， hatred suffering， happiness， nobility and savageness. After reading it， we can not help pondering：For Heathcliff， it is a failure as a human being， but a success as a Satan. Still further， it is the society which value Money and Status， which was so called “civilized ” that made lovers could not love each other； it is also the society which was full of alienation that made a would-be noble man a fiend. In short， the novel shows us a tragedy of human society and a tragedy of human being.

【Reference books】

[1]An introduction to the English novel [M]. Arnold Kettle， London， the Gainsbrough. 1998.

[2]Toward an Aesthetic of Reception [M]. Juanss， Hans Rober， New York， Minneapolis ： Universty of Minnesota Press， 1983.