In two classic examples of Victorian era literature, Wuthering Heights and North and South, the theme of isolation has been particularly prevalent. Not only are the settings of each novel physically secluded, but the characters themselves have been inwardly isolated. In North & South, Margaret Hale’s father’s sudden decision to leave the Church prompted her move to the industrial North, making Margaret alone in her opinions and her way of living. Wuthering Heights, on the other hand, has an overall tone and prevailing sense of desolate loneliness and solitude, mainly in the form of Heathcliff, but also in his surroundings. Both novels’ usage of the theme of finding one’s true nature in solitude reflects the Victorian tendency to use Gothic
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Bessy’s purpose in the story was very important, exposing the harsh truths of life in the North. She brought important perspective into Margaret’s views, uncovering her eyes and revealing her otherness. Bessy’s father, Nicholas, saying Margaret’s foreignness cause her ignorance, remarked, “Yo 're just a foreigner, and nothing more... Much yo ' know about it. Ask th ' masters! They 'd tell us to mind our own business, and they 'd mind theirs. Our business being, yo ' understand, to take the bated ' wage, and be thankful, and their business to bate us down to clemming point, to swell their profits” (Gaskell …show more content…
Isolation in the two served as a means to explore the deeper natures of these subjects. In North and South, Margaret was more socially isolated than physically, while Wuthering Heights used its remote setting to dissect the lives of its characters. The sharp contrast between Margaret’s upper, middle, and lower class lives and her feeling of otherness in North and South allowed her to fully understand the conditions of those below her. Despite being so physically distant from society, the characters of Wuthering Heights were still bound by the constraints of class. Catherine’s decision to become the “greatest woman of the neighbourhood” (Brontë 78) made her not the carefree girl of the past, but a cunning social climber. Heathcliff, constantly downtrodden and denied any rights under Hindley, staked his revenge directly to class issues, targeting Hindley and Edgar who were ranked above
Bessy’s purpose in the story was very important, exposing the harsh truths of life in the North. She brought important perspective into Margaret’s views, uncovering her eyes and revealing her otherness. Bessy’s father, Nicholas, saying Margaret’s foreignness cause her ignorance, remarked, “Yo 're just a foreigner, and nothing more... Much yo ' know about it. Ask th ' masters! They 'd tell us to mind our own business, and they 'd mind theirs. Our business being, yo ' understand, to take the bated ' wage, and be thankful, and their business to bate us down to clemming point, to swell their profits” (Gaskell …show more content…
Isolation in the two served as a means to explore the deeper natures of these subjects. In North and South, Margaret was more socially isolated than physically, while Wuthering Heights used its remote setting to dissect the lives of its characters. The sharp contrast between Margaret’s upper, middle, and lower class lives and her feeling of otherness in North and South allowed her to fully understand the conditions of those below her. Despite being so physically distant from society, the characters of Wuthering Heights were still bound by the constraints of class. Catherine’s decision to become the “greatest woman of the neighbourhood” (Brontë 78) made her not the carefree girl of the past, but a cunning social climber. Heathcliff, constantly downtrodden and denied any rights under Hindley, staked his revenge directly to class issues, targeting Hindley and Edgar who were ranked above