While commonly characterized as Victorian, Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heightscan also be classified as Gothic literature. Prevalent traits of Gothic literature that are exhibited in Wuthering Heights are sinister buildings, extreme weather, mention of the supernatural, and revenge. Heathcliff’s home, Wuthering Heights, is described as being subject to “the atmospheric tumult to which its station is exposed in stormy weather” (Bronte 2). The reader receives an example of the tumultuous weather when Mr. Lockwood returns to visit Mr. Heathcliff for the second time and is forced to spend the night due to the “bitter whirl of winter and suffocating snow” (12).
A censored topic of the Victorian period but frequently used in Gothic literature, Emily Bronte introduces the idea of the supernatural in her novel when Mr. Lockwood sees the ghost of Catherine. Occurring on the same night of the violent storm, Mr. Lockwood’s sighting of the ghost is preceded by ominous wind that forces a “branch” to knock on his window. Revenge, another common theme in Gothic writing, also plays its role in the novel. Throughout his life, Heathcliff is filled with vengeance and is constantly plotting to get back at those who have wronged him. Wuthering Heights itself is also a symbol of Gothic literature because of the eerie way it is described. With no signs of warmth in the building, it gives off a sinister air found in all aspects of the novel. These omens not only foreshadow the events to come but help to classifyWuthering Heights as Gothic literature.
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