Hindley as the Catalyst for the Tragedy Wuthering Heights: A Character Study

  • Lekshmi Gayathri A

Abstract

Published in the 19th century, Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights is such an intricately crafted novel that even after two centuries of research, there still remains dark, elusive and inexplicable themes, characters and perspectives. The greatest tragedy in Emily Brontes Wuthering Heights is undoubtedly the failure of the two wildly passionate lovers to unite -- Heathcliff and Catherine, who fail to get the ending their love deserved. It is easy to arrive at Heathcliff and Catherine as the perpetrators of their own tragedy as it is the most obvious conclusion one would draw. What is often overlooked is, what led the two people into walking a path that leads to their tragedy. It is therefore important to raise the question, what or who pushes forward the plot of Wuthering Heights to a tragedy? In examining the cause for the tragedy in the novel, Hindley has never been looked upon as a possible reason. His malevolent actions and its consequence, if analyzed can reveal his part in the tragedy. The objective of my research is to understand the role played by Hindley in the tragedy, how Hindley could have pushed the central characters into their tragedy and how the text reveals it.

 Keywords: Hindley Earnshaw, Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte, Heathcliff, Tragedy

Published
2019-11-26
Section
Articles