Class notes on "Wuthering Heights"

- ABOVE: (from left) Emily Bronte, Laurence Olivier, and Merle Oberon - I love old films and film stars.

Class Notes:

- Wednesday & Friday, Laurence Olivier version of Wuthering Heights!

- What does *(character) do that helps people better understand scene *(what scene)? (2nd half of the book, to be written after seeing the movie) - write about 5 paragraphs; OR, get a scholarly article about the book, and write about it.

- Discuss Heathcliff and Catherine's relationship - are they soul mates?

- "I am not your husband!" - subtext being, "- but I should be."

- Who is he going to get revenge for and for what? Heathcliff is trying to get back at Edgar Linton - he wants to revenge himself on their social class, and because he and Catherine despised them for their weakness as children, and finally, because Edgar is married to Catherine.

- Hindley, in kicking Heathcliff out, is the reason Catherine feels she would "degrade" herself in marrying him - he took his right to a heritage, and made him a servant, someone Catherine cannot marry if she wants to remain in her social class.

- Why is Heathcliff letting him live at Wuthering Heights? Heathcliff plays cards with Hindley, and Hindley wants his money - but he keeps losing, and he bets parts of Wuthering Heights which Heathcliff owns, piece by piece. Heathcliff even takes over the love of Hindley's son, Hareton.

- Does Heathcliff want to torture just for the heck of it? Yes - probably part of the reason he marries her, to torture and her, by separating the siblings, spiting Edgar.

- Can't-live-without-you-love - Catherine can't live without him, and Heathcliff says his soul is already dead when she dies. Is it the greatest love story for this reason? - because of the sacrifice and need for each other? Sacrifice and the need for another person are necessary to relationships in general, not just romantic ones. I don't know if complete fanaticism in both principles demonstrates a relationship's greatness. It shows a disregard to outsiders I find disturbing; everyone has more and less important relationships, but to shut everyone out in favor of one person is harmful, potentially dangerous, and selfish. Catherine and Heathcliff unnecessarily hurt a lot of people in the way they went about staying in contact. Maybe it's just the violence and brutality of their relationship that makes me doubt its place in the history of great romances. I'm all too willing to consider myself completely in the wrong on this one.