Friday 7 April 2017

Wuthering Heights

I remember as a child picking up my mum's copy of Wuthering Heights. I was far too young at the time to read it but it stayed in my memory and it's a book I've wanted to read ever since but I've just never got round to it. I thought it would encourage me to do so if I added it to my 50 before 50 list, and so it appears at number 9.


I read Wuthering Heights last month and I loved it. I'd seen the film so I was aware of the storyline but I always think a book outdoes a movie, words allow you to build a picture yourself and I find that's more powerful than watching someone else's interpretation of the book.

The story is set in two neighbouring houses on the Yorkshire Moors and I think this bleak, desolate setting certainly contributes to the tone and mood of the novel, which although is thought of as a love story, lacks the romance usually associated with this genre. It's actually more like a story of obsession and all-consuming passion with a handful of hatred thrown in for good measure.

Here are a few facts about Wuthering Heights.

1) The book was written by Emily Bronte, but female writers weren't respected at that time so Emily used the male pseudonym Ellis Bell.

2) Wuthering Heights received mixed reviews from critics when it was published in 1847. This review came from Paterson's Magazine (USA) in 1848:-
We rise from the perusal of Wuthering Heights as if we had come fresh from a pest-house. Read Jane Eyre is our advice, but burn Wuthering Heights….
...and this one from Graham's Lady's Magazine (USA) in 1848:-
How a human being could have attempted such a book as the present without committing suicide before he had finished a dozen chapters, is a mystery. It is a compound of vulgar depravity and unnatural horrors….

3) A ruined farmhouse near Haworth named Top Withens is said to be the inspiration for Wuthering Heights.


4) Publishers turned down the novel so Emily, along with her sister, Anne, paid £50, which was a very large sum of money in those days, to have Wuthering Heights and Agnes Grey published together.

5) Emily died a year after Wuthering Heights was published at the age of 30. She died thinking the book was a failure and never knew it would become a classic of English Literature.

Have you read Wuthering Heights? What did you think of it?

Many of the classics have passed me by but reading Wuthering Heights has inspired me to read more from the Brontes and I'd also like to read some Jane Austen too, another author whose books I've never read.

46 comments:

  1. Good morning Jo, do you know, I have never read Wuthering Heights and like you I know the story through film. The version I saw was the 1939 (I think that's the year) with Laurence Olivier and it was very dark and broody, but brilliant.
    I agree reading a book far out weighs seeing a film. The only film versions I loved was the J.R. Tolkien books, I think Peter Jackson's version of the Hobbit was just marvellous and just as I had imagined the characters when I read the books many years ago.
    I think I must search for Wuthering Heights and take the time to read the book, just as you have.
    Best Wishes
    Daphne

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think Wuthering Heights is one of those books where most people know the story yet many of them have never read the book. It was a later version than the 1939 film which I watched but it was still very dark and broody. I haven't read or seen The Hobbit but I think it's good when a film lives up to the book.

      Delete
  2. I read it a "long" time ago, & can only vaguely remember it. I've read Jayne Eyre several times, but never Agnes Gray & have read some of Jane Austen's. Have you tried any of Daphne DuMaurier's? Have a good weekend & take care.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've definitely been left behind where the classics are concerned. I've read Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier but I don't think I've read any others.

      Delete
  3. It seems quite astonishing that it received such criticism when first published. I haven't read it myself (I really should) but I watched a TV adaptation starring Tom Hardy which I thoroughly enjoyed. I should put it on a '50' list of my own. X

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's funny how opinions can change over time. I watched that same TV adaptation and enjoyed it too. You should definitely create a '50' list, I'd love to see what you include on yours.

      Delete
  4. Dear Jo
    I have read all of the Brontes novels and enjoyed them when I was younger. However, I have found as I am getting older, that the cruelty in the books is just too much for me. There is no doubt that they are all passionate, ground breaking novels. I am a fan of Anne Bronte in particular as I feel she gave a voice to women who didn't have a voice at the time - governesses and women in abusive relationships and I also think she has (somewhat unfairly) been overshadowed by her two older sisters. I also think her two books were based in fact as she was a governess and also had seen at first hand through Branwell, the damage that drink could do to a relationship.
    OK, I'll get off my soapbox now!
    Best wishes
    Ellie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think you're right about Anne being overshadowed by her sisters, the books most people mention by the Brontes are Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre, aren't they? I'm sure it will be interesting reading more from the other sisters and comparing their writing styles. You've piqued my interest in Anne now so I look forward to reading her books. I'm sure the experiences they all encountered living with Branwell will have influenced their work somewhat. I can't believe it's taken me all this time to actually sit down and read one of their books, especially as I've been interested in their lives through my visits to Haworth.

      Delete
  5. I think I read Wuthering Heights at school, although that has been so long ago I can't remember for certain. I have never watched the film adaptation, but I agree that the books are so much better than the film versions. I keep promising myself that I will read more classic novels but somehow i forget when it comes to choosing my new read! This one is on my 'to read' list, I will probably appreciate it more now i'm older anyway.
    Did you watch the programme about the Bronte's when it was on over Christmas (I think)? It was quite interesting.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If I'm going to watch a film which is based on a book I do try to read the book first as I find films can spoil the book for me if I read it afterwards. I really should read more classics, many of them are free on Kindle so there's really no excuse. I did watch the programme about the Brontes over Christmas, I thought it was really interesting.

      Delete
  6. yesterday at our U3A Open Meeting we had someone from the Bronte Society giving us a talk.He talked a lot about the father which was really interesting.I have read the Brontes in the past but after yesterday's talk I am inspired to re read them.We'll have to compare notes!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That sounds like a really interesting talk. I think an event like this can inspire us to want to learn more or like you, to re read books we've read in the past.

      Delete
  7. I read it a very long time ago, when I had to read a number of classics. It's not my reading choice nowadays. Flighty xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's not the type of book I usually choose to read but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

      Delete
  8. I haven't read it, in fact dare I said it I have never read anything by the Bronte's. They were a fascinating family though from what I know of them so this was a lovely thing for you to add to your list!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We visit Haworth, where the Brontes lived, quite regularly and I suppose my interest for them has stemmed from those visits but this is the first book I've read by any of them. I'd definitely like to read more now.

      Delete
  9. I read Wuthering Heights as a teenager, and have re-read it many, any times over the years. My favourite Jane Austen is Pride and Prejudice - again, I first read it as a teenager (it was a school prize) and still enjoy re-reading it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's lovely when you enjoy a book so much that it gets read again and again. I loved the TV adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, I'd really like to read that now.

      Delete
  10. I've never read any Jane Austin either, but did read and thoroughly enjoy wuthering heights quite a few years ago. The Brontes story is so sad xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Their story fascinates me, from their childhoods through to getting published and their deaths at young ages, and then there was Branwell who had his own story too.

      Delete
  11. Nope, I haven't read Wuthering Heights and, to be honest, I don't think I ever will. If I'm going to spend time reading, I want the story to have a happy ending. Same with films - I can sit through a whole film thinking it's quite good but, if the ending is not a HEA, it spoils the whole film for me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can understand your point of view, I usually choose books which are an easy read, especially as I read in bed just before going to sleep. I'm really glad I did read Wuthering Heights though, I really enjoyed it.

      Delete
  12. Can you believe I've never read Wuthering Heights? There's so many classics I need to catch-up on.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm the same, I don't think I'll ever run out of books to read.

      Delete
  13. Oh, I loved that movie! I've not read the book but completely agree with you on books creating a much more vivid picture in your mind than most movies do. I will sometimes decide not to watch a movie that's based on a book I've really enjoyed as more often than not, I end up disappointed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's a shame that films sometimes spoil the book, I'm often disappointed in the casting as I've visualised someone completely different in a role when reading a book to whoever gets to play the part.

      Delete
  14. I'm ashamed to say I've not read it, Jo, and somehow it just doesn't appeal ... windswept moorlands and so forth! But then, I've tried Hardy, too, and don't care for him either! Put off Hardy at school when we 'had' to read The Trumpet Major for O-level English Lit. I never read it. I just listened in class to what people said about it, and then come the exam, parroted a lot of answers to the subsequent questions - and I passed, ha ha! Not sure what it says about me - devious or ingenious!
    Margaret P

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think the windswept moorlands are a brilliant backdrop to the story and totally sets the scene. I'm really pleased I've got round to reading it and shall definitely read more by the Brontes now.

      Delete
    2. Not only have I not read Wuthering Heights, Jo, but also the Exmoor novel, Lorna Doone (although we read it in class at school, and had to read sections out loud and as I was a poor out-loud reader in those dim and distant days, I hated the book!!!) I think it's the moorland settings and the bleakness of it all, both Bronte moorland and R D Blackmore's moorland, I much prefer coastal settings, especially Devon and Cornwall, and East Anglia. But there is fiction out there for us all, it's like food and films and music, we can't all like the same things, and it's lovely there are so many books out there to be discovered.
      Margaret P

      Delete
    3. I haven't read Lorna Doone either. I hated reading out loud in class, I was a good reader but so shy and I got embarrassed when anyone looked at me. I remember reading Of Mice and Men in my English Lit O Level class and I loved it but hated The Pearl which we also had to read by the same author, John Steinbeck. I agree, there's books out there for everyone whatever our tastes and it's a good job we don't all like the same things or else the world would be a very boring place.

      Delete
  15. I love this book, and Jane Eyre. I bought both of them in Hogarth in H early 80s when I was on holiday with my parents. I'd love to go back.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not only have you enjoyed reading the books but they must also bring back happy memories of that holiday with your parents. It's lovely when books have a connection such as that.

      Delete
  16. I do agree with you when you say 'I always think a book outdoes a movie, words allow you to build a picture yourself and I find that's more powerful than watching someone else's interpretation of the book.'

    The shame of it is I haven't read this book ... yet!

    Interesting to read the facts you include here too.

    All the best Jan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I find the Brontes really interesting, there's so much to learn about them, they really are quite fascinating.

      Delete
  17. It was the first Bronte novel I read... and I loved it. What a nice thing to have on your list, Jx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's nice to get round to doing some things I've been putting off for a long time. Reading Wuthering Heights has made me want to read other books I've been meaning to read for some time now.

      Delete
  18. I read Wuthering Heights in high school, I think, and I liked it as I recall. I get it mixed up in my mind with Ethan Frome (Edith Wharton), though. I should reread both soon. My husband also read Wuthering in school and he's still periodically complaining about it more than 20 years later, which seems silly, but I guess it made a terrible impression on him? I told him to get over it, it's just a book. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. At least the book made some kind of impression on your husband, I think it's probably better to get any sort of reaction rather than be one of those books which leaves no lasting impression at all, even if it's a negative one.

      Delete
  19. I'm really surprised how many people have not read this fantastic story! The program on the Bronte family was just shown here in the states a couple of weeks ago which I enjoyed! WH is one of my favorite books and the 1939 version one of my favorite films!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think it's a case of there being so many great books out there to enjoy, it's hard to get round to them all. I really enjoyed the TV programme, it was on here over Christmas but I've never seen the 1939 film, I'll have to look out for that one.

      Delete
  20. I absolutely love this book and have read it many times. It's such a shame Emily died so young, not knowing how successful this book would become. I rather enjoy dark and brooding!xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's terribly sad that Emily never saw the success her book became. It would have been interesting to see what other novels she came up with had she not died so soon after writing Wuthering Heights, whether they'd have had the same mood, tone and brooding.

      Delete
  21. Read the book at school and saw the film, also saw Cliff Richard live in Heathcliff a version of it at the NEC (mothers a fan and it was a gift to her - i'm not the fan!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I forgot about that musical. We've got a Cliff Richard fan in our family too, I wonder if she got to see him in that, I bet she did, she's seen him so many times. I'll have to ask her.

      Delete
  22. I've not read it or seen the movie. Wuthering Heights just reminds me of Kate Bush.
    Lisa x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think all of us who are a certain age associate Wuthering Heights with Kate Bush.

      Delete