True love of Catherine Earnshaw and Edgar Linton and Heathcliff: "Wuthering Heights" by Emily Bronte

Essay by jdutiaB, February 2007

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One of the chief disagreements amongst critics with respect to Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights has been Catherine's decision to marry Edgar instead of Heathcliff. Her reasons to marry Edgar Linton foreshadow the beginning of the end as complete chaos breaks out hereafter; nonetheless, her rationale did seem just at the time. Heathcliff's love for Catherine is blind, and Catherine, is to some extent the same, as she decides to marry Edgar for Heathcliff's benefit and this explains why Heathcliff and Catherine were not meant for this world. Catherine was the mirror image of Heathcliff and they were too alike for their own good. Also, Catherine is well aware of her social surroundings and she was able to avoid being a servant to her brother by marrying Edgar. Finally, given this book took place in the Victorian Era, social status was fairly important and there was lots of potential for her to grow by marrying Edgar.

Therefore, I argue that her reasons to marry Edgar Linton were based on helping Heathcliff, social status and finally getting the best of both worlds.

For Catherine, it was either Heathcliff or Edgar. The problem with Heathcliff and Catherine getting married is similarity. They are just too alike and Catherine acknowledges this when she states "he's more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same" (102). Essentially, they are one; the same person and Catherine see's eye to eye with this when she says "I am Heathcliff!" (102). This symbolizes why their love is not suited for this world. Given the time period and the way events followed one another, their love was best suited in the next realm. Edgar was everything she needed in this lifetime whereas Heathcliff was everything she wanted in every lifetime to...