Southwest Licking School District Literature Selection Review
Teacher: K. Berry School: Watkins Memorial High School Book Title: Wuthering Heights Genre: Fiction Author: Emily Bronte Pages: 370 Publisher: TOR Books Copyright: c1998 (first published in December, 1847 under the pseudonym Ellis Bell)
Book Summary and summary citation: (suggested resources include book flap summaries, review summaries from publisher, book vendors, etc.)
On a business trip to Liverpool, the warm-hearted Mr. Earnshaw impulsively rescues from the street a dirty, ragged child, who speaks a strange language that no one can understand and is possibly the son of a foreign sailor. Mr. Earnshaw brings him home to Wuthering Heights and insists he shall remain and be treated like one of his own children. He names the boy Heathcliff.
From the very beginning, the dark, gypsy-like intruder breeds ill feelings in the family. Fourteen-year-old Hindley resents having to share his father with a stranger. He bullies Heathcliff, is punished for it, and broods upon being wronged. Mr. Earnshaw's favoritism not only antagonizes his son, but also rashly encourages Heathcliff's black temper and pride. The willful, wayward Cathy, however, grows deeply attached to her adopted brother, and they become inseparable. Then Mr. Earnshaw falls ill. As soon as he dies, Hindley, now master at the Heights, fulfills his threat of revenge by subjecting Heathcliff to harsh treatment. Heathcliff is banished to the servants' quarters and degraded to the level of farm laborer. Thoroughly neglected, he and Cathy grow up reckless and defiant, running wild together over the moors.
Through a series of mishaps and half-truths, Heathcliff and Cathy are separated. Devastated by Cathy's marriage, Heathcliff runs away and is not seen or heard of for three years. He returns rich and self- possessed, outwardly a gentleman. However, he is unchanged at heart and secretly bent on settling his score with his enemies. He exacts his revenge through Isabella, Cathy’s sister-in-law; Hareton, Hindley’s son; Linton, Heathcliff’s own son; and Catherine, Cathy’s daughter.
Maddened by grief and rage, Heathcliff now lives only to complete his schemes for the ruin of both the Lintons and the Earnshaws. Heathcliff is able to savor at leisure the satisfaction of tormenting the children of his enemies. It proves, however, a hollow victory, for time takes its own revenge.
In the end, Heathcliff is defeated by an unexpected turn of events, and the reader is left with a sense of the triumph of love over the forces of darkness.
Provide an instructional rationale for the use of this title, including specific reference to the curriculum map(s): • Students will analyze the influence of setting on the novel’s tone, theme, and characterization. • Students will explore the elements of Gothic Romance and explain how they are evident in this novel.
Include two professional reviews of this title:
Review #1 – by an anonymous source written in Douglas Jerrold’s Weekly Newspaper, 15 January 1848
Wuthering Heights is a strange sort of book,—baffling all regular criticism; yet, it is impossible to begin and not finish it; and quite as impossible to lay it aside afterwards and say nothing about it. In the midst of the reader's perplexity the ideas predominant in his mind concerning this book are likely to be—brutal cruelty, and semi-savage love. What may be the moral which the author wishes the reader to deduce from his work, it is difficult to say; and we refrain from assigning any, because to speak honestly, we have discovered none but mere glimpses of hidden morals or secondary meanings
Review #2 – by Heather Huckfeldt
A breathtaking story of obsessive love AND hate. Two tortured souls divided by social structure. This book will leave you as chilled as the wind on the Yorkshire moors but in complete awe of the power of love.
What alternate text(s) could also fulfill the instructional requirements? Title: Jane Eyre Author: Charlotte Bronte Title: Sense and Sensibility Author: Jane Austen Title: The Scarlet Letter Author: Nathaniel Hawthorne
Document any potentially controversial content: • This novel delves into the destructive forces of madness, nature, the supernatural, violence, and emotional cruelty.
Keeping in mind the age, academic level, and maturity of the intended reader, what is the suggested classroom use: (check all that apply) General education (advanced English)
GRADE LEVEL(S): 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
INTEREST LEVEL(S): 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Date Submitted to Website: 8/21/2011
Suggested Professional Literary Review Sources:
School Library Journal Horn Book Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates) Library Journal Book Links Publisher's Weekly Booklist Kirkus Review Wilson Library Catalog English Journal (and other resources of the National Council of Teachers of English) The Reading Teacher (International Reading Association) Literature for Today’s Young Adult