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Theme Of Self Alienation In Wuthering Heights And Frankenstein

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Obsession and Self-Alienation in Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein One of the most prevalent themes in Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights and Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein is that of obsession. Obsession is the restless driving force by which the characters in Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein are taken down the path of self-alienation. In Wuthering Heights two, very closely related, obsessions are a driving force behind the events that take place throughout the novel. Firstly the obsessive love between Catherine and Heathcliff. Catherine claims that her love for Heathcliff “resembles the eternal rocks beneath –a source of little visible delight, but necessary” (73). She tells her housekeeper “Nelly, I am Heathcliff –he’s always, always in my …show more content…

At the beginning of the novel, Catherine is described as a wild and rebellious child. However, that changes after her stay with the Linton’s. When she returns from her stay her “manners were much improved,” and “instead of a wild, hatless little savage jumping into the house…there lighted from a handsome black pony a very dignified person, with brown ringlets falling from the cover of a feathered beaver, and a long cloth habit which she was obliged to hold up with both hands that she might sail in” (46). Catherine was tempted by the way of life the Linton’s lived and, to fit in, has concealed her wild and rebellious nature. She confides in her housekeeper that she loves Heathcliff, but can’t marry him because it would “degrade” her (71). While Catherine does have some affection for Edgar, she does not marry him out of love, she marries him because he is rich. Her love for Edgar is not natural, it is pretended. When Catherine falls ill, there’s a certain moment that she believe she is being haunted because she does not recognize herself in the mirror. When Nelly manages to convince her that the image in the mirror is her own, Catherine is horrified. “At the point when Catherine realizes the woman in the mirror is herself…she recognizes just how profound her self-alienation…can be” (Ablow 62). She realizes that by marrying Edgar she has alienated herself and concealed her own nature in order to become his

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Her account is also pretty selfish, as she thinks of no one but herself. However, by the second quote, it is obvious that Catherine has changed. She compares herself to the Jews that stopped by her manor, meaning that she is also thinking of others. By the end of Catherine’s narration of her year, she has grown more thoughtful,

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An obsession is essential for the development of a character, however, one must keep in mind the consequences that a character may face to achieve their obsession. Characters often overlook the obstacles that one might come across for the sake of their obsession. As a result, one may ruin their relationship with others and attain a state of unhappiness. Although one might argue that a character’s obsession may lead to happiness, an analysis of Prince Hamlet in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and Guy Montag in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, depicts the theme of uncertainty when a character leads to downfall due to their obsessions. In the novel Fahrenheit 451, the protagonist, Guy Montag, develops an obsession with books.

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Isabella Linton is a sheltered, ignorant, romantic child who longs for love. Watching Cathrine and Edgar's romance causes her to become obsessed with finding her own love. Consequently, she becomes infatuated with Heathcliff and convinces her self that she is in love with him. Cathrine becomes aware and attempts to get her to see reality. Despite Heathcliff’s new civilized appearance, Cathrine attempts to convince Isabella that he is actually still “an unreclaimed creature, without refinement, without cultivation,” a wolf in sheep’s clothing (Brontë).

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Catherine says that her dream happened in heaven, where everything was civilized and fun. However, she longed to return to Earth where the WutheringHeightsestate was located. This account symbolizes Heaven as Edgar and Wuthering Heightsas Heathcliff. In Chapter 9 Catherine says: " I was only going to say that heaven did not seem to be my home; I broke my heart with weeping to come back to earth, " then she says, " I've no more business to marry Edgar Linton than I have to be in heaven ...

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Heathcliff is a miserable human being. Linton and Catherine’s ill-treatment was the cause of the transition, and his position in the household gave him faith and courage. To sum up, the changes in a character’s position greatly affected the

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In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, both of the main characters undergo physical and emotional isolation. This enforced or chosen solitude causes Frankenstein to become over-ambitious and harbor secrets from his family and friends, leading to his demise. In the monster, isolation turns to misery, which causes him to become vengeful against his creator and all the world. Through these examples of total isolation, Shelley shows that when people have no connection to others in the world, their worst characteristics and flaws are brought out. Victor Frankenstein was the first character to show a major flaw while in isolation.

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It can destroy a person's relationship and bring harm to lots of people. Isolation becomes a key component of the Frankenstein novel as it will be the driving force behind Victor Frankenstein's actions and the Monster's actions. When

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The rising action of the novel begins when Catherine comes home, this is when Heathcliff is truly contrasted to a near perfect opposite. The Lintons are described as refined, cultivated people, and what is worse; they appear to have refined and cultivated Catherine into a young lady. This marks a drastic contrast to the rough and tumble Heathcliff who has kept himself in the background until Catherine calls him forward. She kisses and hugs him at first, and then her nature turns right about and laughs at him directly in his face because he is so “black and cross”. This wounds him and it changes his development from her for the rest of the novel.

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Obsession- Stalking begins; you receive angry phone calls, email and text scoured for imaginary clues. Destruction- rage, anger, plots revenge (Heathcliff) leading to more stalking and increasing danger. Heathcliff Obsession: Heathcliff starts lurking around Thrushcross Grange Visits late at night Rage against Hindley and Hareton, even though Hereton was just a little kid, when abusive father,

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While Heathcliff’s affection for Catherine is irrefutable, the magnitude of his crimes from his return to Wuthering Heights onwards cannot be adequately explained as merely the actions of a spurned lover. One of the man’s greatest motivations may indeed be love; however, the only emotion this man exemplifies is wrath, and no other character is as fiercely dedicated to vengeance as

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Kate Campbell AP Literature Judy Goff 20 February 2018 Wuthering Heights QQN 2 Chapters 12-18 Catherine finally eats, but she is still hysterical about Edgar, and she still believes that she is dying. She speaks of her death, and her childhood on the moors with Heathcliff. Catherine tries to open the window, telling Nelly that she is certain that she can see Wuthering Heights. Edgar finally goes to see Catherine, and is very surprised about the seemingly dangerous condition that she is in, physically.

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This passage shows the emotional and passionate side of Heathcliff, and the passionate desperate side of Catherine.

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Mary Shelley (1797-1851) born as Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, the daughter of philosopher William Godwin (1756-1836) and well known feminist Mary Wollstonecraft (1759- 1797), is credited as a great revolutionary in the field of literature. With influences of family guests such as Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1843) and William Wordsworth (1770- 1850), and access to an extensive family library, Mary Shelley is believed to have developed great imaginative skills and fondness for literature at a very young age. She went on to marry the famous English romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley in 1816 after his first wife committed suicide. During her lifespan she went through the tragic death of her infant son, suicide of her half-sister and the drowning

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In the beginning of the book, it shows that Catherine wished to be the royal baker and have a calm, simple life. In the book it states “All I want is to be the royal baker and not some stupid queen who has to take care of everything.” (Meyer 14) This quote shows how she does not want to marry the king and become queen. She wants a normal life as a royal baker that’s married to the jester.

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There are many themes displayed in the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. There are themes such as blind ambition, the dangers of playing God, prejudiceness, revenge, need for love, and many others. Isolation is a major theme that consistently reappears throughout the novel. The aloneness that is displayed in Frankenstein drives the characters to act irrationally. The book Psychology and Personal Growth explains that, solitude or loneliness often refers to our separation from other people.

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