Wuthering Heights

Story

The story of two families, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, set on the Yorkshire moors where Emily Bronte grew up. The story follows the dramatic and doomed relationship of Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, an orphan boy taken in by Catherine's father. A story of passion, romance, betrayal and revenge which spans two generations.

Why we chose it

A novel which was considered shocking on its first publication but which has become a classic of English literature – and which is often first encountered as a teenager.

Where it came from

Emily Brontë (1818-1848) wrote her novel between 1846 -1847 at her father’s parsonage in the village of Haworth, Yorkshire, where she grew up. The novel was set firmly in the Howarth moors. As a child, Emily frequently visited nearby Ponden Hall and it is thought that this house, surrounded by the Haworth moors, inspired Thrushcross Grange while Top Withens, a ruined farmhouse was possibly the model for the Earnshaw’s house, Wuthering Heights. At the time, because female authors were not as respected as men, Emily released her novel under the name “Ellis Bell”.

Where it went next

Victorian readers found Wuthering Heights shocking and inappropriate, and at first the novel sold poorly, particularly when it was revealed it had been written by a woman. However, since her death the story has grown in popularity, and has been adapted all over the world into films, TV series’, plays, and even a graphic novel. It has also influenced numerous artists and musicians, most notably Kate Bush in her debut single "Wuthering Heights" (1977).

Associated stories

Wuthering Heights was Emily Brontë’s only published novel, though she wrote a number of poems. Her sisters also wrote both novels and poems. Charlotte Brontë is the author of Jane Eyre, Shirley, The Professor and Villette while Anne Brontë wrote Agnes Grey and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.