Gender Studies in Emily Brontes Wuthering Heights Essay -- Wuthering

Gender Studies in Emily Brontes Wuthering Heights Gender played an pregnant role in the style of writing known as black letter. Traditional stereotypes were often broken. Men were non always portrayed as dominant, backbreaking, rational or masculine. Likewise, women were non always portrayed as weak, submissive, irrational, or feminine. This essay will take a verbal expression at the blood between Catherine and Edgar Linton in Emily Brntes Wuthering Heights. We will take a look at how their characters are portrayed, how this affected their marriage, and how each character retained nigh of the traits attributed to their gender. Catherines character will be examined first, since she is one of the main characters in the book. Catherine was not your typical sweet, caring, angelic little girl. Ellen describes her by apothegm, Her spirits were always at high-water mark, her tongue always going--singing, laughing, and plaguing everybody who would not do the same. A wild, wicked sp ot she was- (p.32), and, In play, she liked, exceedingly, to act the little mistress using her hands freely, and tyrannical her companions she did so to me, but I would not bear slapping and ordering so I let her know.(p.33). From these two descriptions of Catherine, it seems she was always testing her limits, not at all submissive. Even as a child she had a strong mind that would not easily be swayed. It is obvious that Catherine was dominant and as yet domineering, an example of this would be the way she continually ordered her playmates around and by resorting to physical abuse to get them to do what she wanted them to do. Later in the book Catherine described herself as a child by saying she was half savage, and hardy, and free(p.97). Edgars chi... ...ar gave up his judicial office, stopped attending church, and did not go anywhere anymore. So he assumed the wifes role by staying home and raising his child, and that was Catherines final show of dominance. Edgar and Catherine had a complex relationship. severally went into the marriage for different reasons. Edgar thought he loved her but barely loved an idealized version of her, and Catherine married him to help the man she sincerely loved, Heathcliff. He thought she was perfect, she thought he was weak and easy to control. Eventually, these idealizations languid away. Throughout their relationship, Catherine and Edgar switched gender roles. While they did switch roles, each one managed to aliveness traits that were attributed to their own gender at that time. Works CitedBerg, Maggie. Wuthering Heights The Writings in the Margin. New York Twayne Publishers, 1996.