Theme of Love in Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights

Love – relationship of Heathcliff and Cathetine

 

In Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte has Presented the love-relationship of Heathcliff and Catherine, but not that of the other lovers as an archetype. It expresses the passionate longing to be whole, to give oneself unreservedly to another and gain a whole self or sense of identity back, to be all-in-all for each other, so that nothing else in the world matters, and to be loved in this way forever.

 

Soulmates:

 

Their love exists on a higher or spiritual plane; they are soul mates, two people who have an affinity for each other which draws them together irresistibly. Heathcliff repeatedly calls Catherine his soul. Such a love is not necessarily fortunate or happy. For C. Day Lewis, Heathcliff and Catherine "represent the essential isolation of the soul, the agony of two souls–or rather, shall we say? Two halves of a single soul–forever sundered and struggling to unite."

 

Heathcliff says that "misery ,and degradation ,and death ,and nothing that God or satan could inflict would have parted us " if  Catherine had not done it herself . They know that they can't be living separately from each other. Catherine says to Heathcliff- "Stay and never go again, for every of your departure made me sick and every of your appearance brought me great cheer , great excitement ''. She also says- "Heathcliff! I only wish us never to be parted,"   when Nelly says that marriage will separate her from Heathcliff ,but Catherine replies –''don't talk of our separation -it is impractical ;" Catherine thinks that marriage will not able to divide them because " Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same, and Linton's is as different as a moonbeam from lightning, or frost from fire.'' Their love for each other is so passionate that they can not possibly live apart –'' he shall never know how I love him; and that, not because he's handsome, Nelly, but because he's more myself than I am.'' . He says after Catherine's death :" Be with me always — take any form — drive me mad! Only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you! Oh, God! it is unutterable! I cannot live without my life! I cannot live without my soul!''  He felt as though she had left him to live a life lonely abyss: without her, without love, without soul.

 

Passionate:

 

Their passionate love do not fade away with even after Catherine's death. After the death of Catherine, Heathcliff seeks her everywhere. He finds Catherine moving about the moors, hears her voice in stormy night knocking at the windows of Wuthering Height praying to be admitted in . This elusive image torments him for this long period, yet it is her shadowy presence that begins to occupy his mind more and more and drives away all other thoughts. It is the only thing that gives meaning to his life. "I cannot look down to this floor, but her features are shaped in the flags! In every cloud, in every tree—filling the air at night, and caught by glimpses in every object by day—I am surrounded with her image!. The entire world is a dreadful collection of memoranda that she did exist, and that I have lost her!"

 

Transcending isolation:

 

Their love is an attempt to break the boundaries of self and to fuse with another to transcend the inherent separateness of the human condition; fusion with another will by uniting two incomplete individuals create a whole and achieve new sense of identity, a complete and unified identity. This need for fusion motivates Heathcliff's determination to "absorb" Catherine's corpse into his and for them to "dissolve" into each other so thoroughly that Edgar will not be able to distinguish Catherine from him.

 

True love:

 

A unique example of true love is displayed through the love of Heathcliff and Catherine. Its intensity builds from their childhood. The extent of this love is exemplified during Heathcliff and Catherine's interactions with each other, during Catherine's statements to Nelly, and during Catherine's death where Heathcliff and Catherine embrace for the last time. At the time of her illness she yearned for Heathcliff. After hearing the news of Heathcliff's departure, she becomes ill. But when she hears the news of his return she becomes excited and describes his return to Nelly as "The event of this evening has reconciled me to God and humanity."   Even when she was dying, whom she wanted to meet was still Heathcliff . On the contrary, she didn't remember Edgar clearly. She finds miseries in his miseries-" My great miseries in this world have been Heathcliff's miseries, and I watched and felt each from the beginning; my great thought in living is himself. If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and, if all else remained, and he were annihilated, the Universe would turn to a mighty stranger. I should not seem part of it" (Ch. ix, p. 64)." The love she had for Heathcliff remained intact, always. As she herself said "My love for Linton is like the foliage in the woods, time will change it, I'm well aware, as winter changes the trees. My love for Heathcliff is like the eternal rocks beneath-a source of little visible delight, but necessary. Nelly, I am Heathcliff-he's always, always on my mind-not as pleasure, anymore than I am always a pleasure to myself-but as my own being." s". It is clear that even after marriage, she still loves him more.''

 

Like Catherine, Heathcliff also loved her very much. When hearing of Catherine's illness, he exclaims-: "Existence after loosing her would be hell" In this statement, we can see the extent of Heathcliff's dedication and loyalty to Catherine and the sense of desolation her death would bring to him. His love for Catherine is shown through his devotion to her in her last moments of life . When he acknowledge "oh! Cathy !oh my life !. . . . Torments of life ?", he gives us a glimpse of the true depth of love. He also compares between him and Edgar to show his depth of love for Catherine. The passion and commitment Heathcliff displays shows '' that he has never faltered his binding soul connection with her though he was out of home for three years. ''

 

The novel is based around Catherine and Heathcliff's spiritual and eternal love for one another; even when Catherine dies the love between them still influences those around them. Their love is different from conventional romance between a man and a woman.