Wuthering Heights and unity of identities
Love and unity between two
identities in Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights
By: Shaymaa A.
“Nelly, I am Heathcliff- he’s always,
always in my mind: not as a pleasure, any more than I am always a pleasure to
myself, but as my own being” (Bronte et al., 2009)
The notion of perfect unity between two selves which are in love is an ancient idea. It is a quality where both lovers exist in one metaphysical entity: “He’s more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” it is a point that enhances the supernaturalism and metaphysical elements in the novel. Brontë had made use of this utter amalgamation of selves between Heathcliff and Catherine, “If all perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and, if all else remained and, he were annihilated, the Universe would turn to a mighty stranger” (pg. 73). The prior line expresses the inevitable and great necessity for Cathy to exist in juxtaposition to Heathcliff; wherein any attempt for the universe to keep him, she shall exist, if the universe demolished his identity, the world would no longer become familiar a place.
Moreover, when Brontë used this element in her novel, she made the unity between Heathcliff and Cathy both indestructible and vulnerable. The former is explained in how the self no longer only exists on its own, but it continues to exist and thrive in the soul of the lover; that way, the unity of love between Heathcliff and Catherine is only ceased when both souls cease to exist, it becomes more powerful: the overall concept of the quality of the self becomes undefeatable. What’s more, the power of their tie lies in their completion of each other and the shutting down of other people’s influence over them, taking more of a mystic or animalistic manner which transcends all the moral conventions. Catherine, for instance, draws a strict borderline between Heathcliff’s character description and the quality of her sentiments towards him. When Catherine acknowledges Isabella’s attraction towards Heathcliff, she begs Nelly to certify the explanation she gives about Heathcliff’s character: “Tell her what Heathcliff is- an unreclaimed creature, without refinement- without cultivation; an arid wilderness of furze and whinstone…and he’d crush you like a sparrow’s egg, Isabella…(pg. 9-1)”. Catherine’s brutal and straightforward description of Heathcliff’s character is deceiving: she is aware of his true self, yet chooses to regard it as irrelevant to her love for him. This animalistic element: the willingness to fall for “an unreclaimed creature” with unconditional love is an element of much debate in Wuthering Heights.
However, the latter explains how the identity of the self becomes even more apt to weakness. In Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff renounces a rage-infused prayer after the confirmation of the death of Cathy, he says: “Be with me always- take any form- drive me mad! Only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you!”. Heathcliff cannot grasp the idea that Catherine has departed; but reassures himself that as long as he lives, her soul shall always be with him, even as a ghost, who appears as a child later in the novel, or he shall dig her grave and be comforted with her company.
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