Review for Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë!
Quick View Review
Overall Rating: **** (4.6/5)
Amazon Rating: **** (4.4/5)
One Sentence Review: If you enjoy classical novels with plenty of drama (and beautiful love confessions), then give Wuthering Heights a try.
Full Review
Lockwood, the new tenant of Thrushcross Grange, situated on the bleak Yorkshire moors, is forced to seek shelter one night at Wuthering Heights, the home of his landlord. There he discovers the history of the tempestuous events that took place years before; of the intense relationship between the gypsy foundling Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw; and how Catherine, forced to choose between passionate, tortured Heathcliff and gentle, well-bred Edgar Linton, surrendered to the expectations of her class. As Heathcliff's bitterness and vengeance at his betrayal is visited upon the next generation, their innocent heirs must struggle to escape the legacy of the past. (Summary by Amazon).
I am growing a soft spot for classical novels like Wuthering Heights and Pride and Prejudice and Macbeth and The Count of Monte Cristo. Is it just me, or are the love confessions in classics more beautiful and heart-warming (heart wrenching in a few cases) than in newer page turners? I have practically memorized my favorite confessions in Wuthering Heights. About the novel in general--it was intriguing. Partly because I read it for school so we had to go in depth, and therefore I appreciated the characters and what they symbolized, but also because it is such a different time. The way we know life today is almost alien compared to life in Wuthering Heights. Their social structures and expectations are completely different, stereotypes are mostly the same in some cases, but the way children and servants are treated differ a lot (who even has servants nowadays?). The overall plot is a bit like a soap opera, with all the drama and loves and deaths and scandals, but with much better characters and depth. If you try to find Bronte’s purpose and message behind the novel, the story transforms into something more powerful, so I really recommend doiing that if you aren’t reading it for school. The language is a bit difficult at first to get used to, but just like getting used to a cold pool, eventually you barely feel the change (except for Joseph; still don’t understand anything he said, it’s practically gibberish). I, personally, love the way they spoke back then. I think it’s eloquent and more poetic. English has such potential to be a beautiful language (personal opinion, it’s just I prefer romantic languages over German, which has a lot in common with English, it sounds ugly to me). Anyways, the novel is one of my favorite classics, and I appreciate my school for forcing me to read it, because it was definitely a beautiful surprise. I would recommend reading it if you don’t through school, and to read inbetween the lines a bit, because isn’t that why we read? To discover a new meaning or message about life?
Make sure to come back next Wednesday for a new review!
Happy reading!
Xoxo,
Zoe
