Jade Li
English Literature

Childhood is Shown as to be a Bitter Experience in Wuthering Heights

The experience of childhood is one that is extremely importantly in everyone’s lives. Childhood is generalised as the happiest and carefree times, however in Wuthering Heights childhood is not portrayed as that. In order to effectively judge childhood being a unpleasant experience in Wuthering Heights, various methods that Emily Bronte must be looked at, as well as characters such as Heathcliff, Edgar, Isabella and Catherine may be analysed as examples. In particular, Bronte’s use of setting, dialogue, narrative voice as well as her exceptional and imaginative language choices. In the same way an analysis of the bitter childhood experiences will be explored in The Colour Purple.

The first significant portrayal of bitter childhood in Wuthering Heights is with Heathcliff. Upon entering the Earnshaw household as a child Heathcliff is immediately faced by questions of his parentage. Which ultimately leads to Heathcliff being characterised as devilish and is inhumanely referred to as “it”, his body language is “gibberish” and his dark features thus gives him the name calling of “gypsy”. Being a foundling and a resentful son Heathcliff had a tough childhood, always not having the feeling of being wanted. On top of being resented, Heathcliff was ultimately rejected by Catherine I which adds on to the bitterness of his childhood. Emily Bronte uses methods such as imagery and language choice to display Heathcliff’s bitter childhood, “He seemed a sullen, patient child; hardened, perhaps, to ill-treatment: he would stand Hindley's blows without winking or shedding a tear, ”, this effects the audience/reader by making them feel pity but also helps them understand the reasons for Heathcliff’s future actions in the novel. Heathcliff’s childhood can be compared to that of Celie’s from The Colour Purple novel, both characters suffered and were abused as a child. Alice Walker and Emily Bronte use similar techniques, which are imagery and language choice, in order to give an in-depth picture to the audience/reader. Walker uses imagery when describing Celie’s horrific experiences of her first negative sexual encounters.

Another significant portrayal of bitter childhood is that of Catherine Earnshaw I. Given all that a girl could want, born into wealth, Catherine experiences quite a lot of suffering as a child despite the fact she is generally displayed as the mischievous and cheerful girl, “she was never so happy as when we were all scolding her at once, and she defying us with her bold, saucy look, and her ready words”. When she meets Heathcliff they eventually become very close friends and conclusively be considered soul mates for each other. However when Heathcliff moves away and doesn't return for years it is obvious that Catherine was hurt after spending their childhood being best friends. Bronte portrays Catherine’s bitter childhood with narrative voice, Alice Walker uses similar techniques to portray Shug Avery’s hardship. Shug and Catherine Earnshaw may not hit the reader as comparative characters, however they do share similar pasts. Both characters experience certain hardships growing up and Shug, like Catherine, seemed to have quite a few men after her. The feeling the audience/reader, especially female readers, gets from reading Catherine’s past conclusively makes them feel much closer to her character.

The last significant portrayal of bitter childhood is Linton Heathcliff. Son of Isabella and Heathcliff he is born as a weak, snivelling, demanding and constantly ill child. For the first 13 years of his life he is raised by his mother, Isabella, until she unfortunately passes way thereafter he is sent to Wuthering Heights to live with his father Heathcliff. Heathcliff despises his son and treats him scornfully despite the fact that his son is ill and all in all is after all his blood son. Emily Bronte uses outstanding imagery to describe Linton such as, “A pale, delicate, effeminate boy, who might have been taken for Edgar’s younger brother, so strong was the resemblance: but there was a sickly peevishness in his aspect that Edgar Linton never had.”.

In conclusion, childhood is shown very explicitly as a bitter experience in Wuthering Heights. Emily Bronte uses various techniques, however she mainly uses imagery, language choice and narrative voice to communicate the bitterness in the characters childhood to the audience/reader. Alice Walker uses many of the same techniques in The Colour Purple in order to show select few character’s negative past/childhood. The most obvious comparison of childhoods can be considered Celie and Heathcliff.