An examination of the tension created by the character of Heathcliff in Emily Brontė's novel Wuthering Heights

... en Catherine remains at the Grange because a dog bites her, she is taken care of by the Lintons and returns to the Heights as a gentlewoman. The Grange possesses a healing quality that can be observed in a few instances. Catherine's conversion into a lady is one, but Mr. Lockwood's personal encounter with it is probably the most convincing. This occurs during his and Nelly's retelling of the tales in the format of Wuthering Heights while he is recovering from an ailment he acquired while walking from the Heights to the Grange with Heathcliff.(11) The healing property of Thrushcross Grange is convincing because it is discussed by the narrator, Mr. Lockwood, through his first person approach to the house's curative ability. The reader is intermittently interrupted by Lockwood with a status report on his improving condition.

The two houses certainly emit different atmospheres. Heathcliff calls the Grange heaven. The Heights is called hell many times, by all characters. The Grange is welcoming and Wuthering Heights is unreceptive (there are griffins at the door!). A very noticeable opposition exists between them. These auras at the different homes reflect the good versus evil aspect of the story. Heathcliff's internal struggle is magnified by their existence and between the two homes there is only confusion (ex. Lockwood lost in the snow, Nelly at the road sign, Cathy on her pony), similar to Heathcliff, he may only experience the extremities of the emotional spectrum whereas the intermediate is disorderly.

Catherine is the disorderly intermediate level in Heathcliff's relationships. These interactions cause evident tension. Heathcliff's counterpart, Catherine Earnshaw, loves him and a man named Edgar Linton. She finds herself between the two men and decides hastily with whom to spend her life. All of Heathcliff's existence in the novel is centered on Catherine and her activities. Catherine reveals to Nelly Dean, her friend and care giver, that she has told Edgar she will marry him with the self-justification that he has more money than Heathcliff. Her conscience weighs on her, however, because she knows she has not thought it over and deliberated the outcomes fairly. "It would degrade me," confides Catherine to Nelly, " to marry Heathcliff, now"(12) implying that it is because Heathcliff has no money that she cannot marry him. Heathcliff overhears this and thus is extremely disturbed by Catherine's thoughtless actions. Heathcliff leaves unnoticed by Catherine and she proceeds to explain why she feels she has made the wrong decision by disclosing that she and Heathcliff are two bodies that share one soul ("Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same"(13)). The tension following Catherine's confidential discussion with Nelly thickens as Catherine realizes Heathcliff overheard their conversation.(14) Her confusion is logical according to the way duality and tensions work throughout the text.

Catherine struggles with the two-sidedness of her relationships. This conflict never rests; it is unchanging even after she is dead. A sort of ...