“All’s fair in love and war” is a memorable quotation and idiom on the human psyche, representing the simple acceptance of immoral behaviors as these acts only transpire when the terms or situation is dire. This idiom, in specific aspects, can appear to represent a kind of anthem for violence; meaning that any and all forms of savagery can be pardoned as long as all the variables align, and create an “understanding environment for the mistaken perpetrator”. Perhaps there is a deeper sentimental motive behind the act or acts of disorder, for example suppose the acts are fictional: are they still considered immoral? Or since they are manifested by the mind of another, and not true events, are they “O.K.”? Or perhaps the violence harnesses a deeper meaning, cognate to an undesirable desire for a discouraging or degenerate appetite that craves the succulence of greed, power, control, and self obsession. Emily Brontë succeeds in conceiving characters, in her novel Wuthering Heights, that are true examples of cruelty and dark inner passions. Violence in Wuthering Heights plays several major key roles.
Heathcliff the “villain”, per say, attempts to seek revenge upon both the Linton and the surviving Earnshaw family. Heathcliff to some is not the true villain of this novel, but instead a misguided, injured pit bull-like creature whose first master spoiled and the last master abused, until the only knowledge the brute had was for harm and injury upon those who ventured near. To this damaged orphan, violence is the equivalent of power, control, and prosperity in vengeance. The reason behind Heathcliff’s desire to strike misery into his foes, in the first part of Wuthering Heights, is because of Catherine Earnshaw Senior. Heathcliff in his youth was intensely tied to Catherine, he loved her. Their mutual love was not to last as Catherine was soon tamed and struck by a more suitable love; to Heathcliff the Linton family suppressed the wild lady and tricked her into loving Edgar. His hatred towards the Linton family was because his love was “taken” from his grasp to their household simply because he was not considered “suitable” to marry. Heathcliff’s violence is stemmed to his belief that if he can punish the family that stole Catherine he can make them as broken as he is. This is one reason for his role of violence and the need for dominance and tyranny.
Another cause in the first section of the novel is the desire of revenge upon Hindley Earnshaw. After the late Mr.Earnshaw’s death Hindley became the master of the Heights household. Therefore his new-found power and his personal prejudice against Heathcliff created an environment of abuse and destruction, especially after the death of Hindley’s wife Frances. For the second part of Wuthering Heights Heathcliff is tyrannical only because he wants his plan of vengeance and ultimate control over the Granges and the Heights to succeed. In doing this not only does he grasp a destructive fist around the Earnshaw and Linton family but also holds in an ever tightening hand his own neck. For the guilt, and depression of losing the late Catherine Earnshaw sent him mad, rendering him unable to even gaze upon his kin, both adopted and blood related. Violence in Heathcliff played roles of dominance, success, madness, and depression ending ultimately in his perilous death.
Madness, mourning, jealousy, and love are interconnected emotions that can succumb to either violent death or intense and successful relations. Verbal mayhem runs rampant through the dialogue in Wuthering Heights and amplifies the harsh, needy connections each character yearns for in their solitude. The main characters in part one of Wuthering Heights are examples of this tangled mass of strong language. The competition between Heathcliff and Edgar Linton is a “tug-of-war” of brains, brawn, and masculinity for their prize of Catherine Earnshaw’s love. These men exchanged few words but the tensions between them are easily identifiable. The brute Heathcliff once deep into his prime is visibly more of a man than small Edgar, who only has his intelligence and docility towards dominance to contain Catherine as his. Catherine senior is cruel in this quarrel for her love; this is because she loves both men in different ways. To love both and be married to one is like leading dogs by the nose with a treat they can never ingest. Her cruelty and their rivalry creates an air of violence and ill manners in which has the role of complicating the relationships between the two houses.
For part two of Wuthering Heights the violence and jealousy still runs rampant between Edgar and Heathcliff, but this time in the midst of the conflict are their children. Hareton, Linton, and young Cathy are all chess pieces to Heathcliff in his game of revenge, yet to Edgar, Cathy and Linton are the last of his family his only ties to his lost sister and wife. Their conflicting ideals of preservation and consumption creates a new kind of tension between the men and heightens their hatred for each other. Since Heathcliff aims to obtain Cathy as a daughter-in-law, the worrisome paranoia Edgar hosts against Heathcliff creates a false hope of success, and safety in life through isolation for Cathy. To Edgar the only way to protect Cathy is isolation, but her wandering imagination, similar to her mother’s, abuses her fathers lenience and protective parenting. The violent jealousy and mistrust contributes to the downfall, and the eventual loss of power over the Granges the Linton had frivolously owned previous to Cathy’s forced marriage. The characters’ violent behaviour is only their doom.
All the violence is connected with the idea that each character is dependant on all the other characters due to their isolation, and lack of “other”. “Other” meaning the rest of society beyond the Granges and Wuthering Heights. Each character needs some kind of bond with another character, whether that be love or hatred. The reason behind the characters, from both part one and part two, needing this constant attention is because of their loneliness. Since throughout the novel the reader has no outside knowledge of society beyond the main setting, they must infer that the isolation within the households is so demanding they must become dependant on each other. Any emotional response, positive or negative, from the character or characters they are dependant on is better than no emotional response at all. Hence why Catherine goes mad before her death. Prior to her madness, Catherine senior discovered that the two men she loved, Heathcliff and Edgar, both returned her affection. This was considered wrong for Catherine; she needed Heathcliff to hate her so that she would not feel guilty for marrying Edgar whom loved her. Catherine needed a balance of love and hate to reassure her decisions. This was her dependency on her male counterparts. In part two the greatest dependency that is apparent is Heathcliff’s need for Linton to survive and marry. Again with most of Heathcliff’s main motives his urge for revenge drives him to act out and become needy for Linton’s life. Linton the heir to Heathcliff’s “throne” is a sick child with days that are numbered, but since he is the same age as Cathy she holds the key for Heathcliff obtaining control of the Granges. Hence then the success of Heathcliff’s vendetta rests upon this fragile, dying boy’s shoulders; therefore creating Heathcliff’s weakness and violent dependency. That, like the rest of the violent characters, ends in utter doom and death.
The brutish dependency the characters harbor is also related to their identity; to be specific the need for identity separate from the whole. Each character is searching for their own personal identity that is segregated from the other characters. Even though each identity is so extremely intertwined with an opposing character due to again the isolation of the Heights and Granges. This is apparent between Catherine and her relationships with Heathcliff and Edgar in her lines: “He’s more myself than I am” and “Well, if I cannot keep Heathcliff for my friend— if Edgar will be mean and jealous, I’ll try to break their hearts by breaking my own.” Catherine with her childish ordeals about love and relationships does not readily understand that since she considers herself apart of both Heathcliff and Edgar she does not fully have her own identity. Her lack of identification of “self” thwarts her mission of life and happiness since one cannot live as another but only them self. In part two Hareton is the character that is most obviously lacking their identity. This is apparent through his need and love for Heathcliff. Hareton is the only mourner for Heathcliff also he is the only character besides Catherine Senior and Mr. Earnshaw who had the ability to love Heathcliff. Hareton, though not as lost as Catherine Senior was in part one, still does confuse himself as being Heathcliff. This is because Heathcliff was the only decent father figure he had when he was growing up due to Hareton’s father becoming a drunkard and violent. The violence exhibited in both parts of Wuthering Heights amplifies how each character is lost, and confused among the shambles of other characters and their own identities.
Throughout Wuthering Heights, violence plays many key roles in each of the characters’ lives and relationships. The violence is used to display their inner emotions such as hatred, mourning, love, and jealousy. Therefore, creating greater dramatic scenes and sense of “togetherness” between characters. Since every character is conjoined in some sense each character, to varying degrees, has difficulties distinguishing their own identities. Catherine and Heathcliff are the most dramatic characters that can usually be tied to each event and situation of violence through their love and hatred for each other. Where there is love, hatred and jealousy can appear at the same time, the opposite is also true. From ruthless love that ends in warfare to even random muggings; violence affects people at any point in time and can play various roles. There is no set design for hatred nor is there a distinguishable version for how to properly love, there is only a blurred line of emotions society must be wary of. Often people cross the vague line of emotions, sometimes it creates a better relationship, and sometimes it makes the situation worst. The one truth that will always be apparent is that violence comes in many shapes and forms; it is not always guns and bombs but a lover with dark passions or a friend ready to betray— emotions have many disguises and violence plays many roles.
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