History Literature / WutheringHeights

* InterracialAdoptionStruggles: Heathcliff is an AmbiguouslyBrown foundling--described as a "gypsy," but largely as a convenient shorthand for his dark skin, as we never find out his actual ethnicity. He's adopted by the white English Earnshaw family. Within the family, he's basically a servant. While he's [[ParentalFavoritism his adoptive father's favorite]], and he's thick as thieves with Cathy, this doesn't really change his baseline poition. His outcast status drives him down the path of vindictive villainy as he grows up.

* RiddleForTheAges: There are two mysterious and unanswered gaps in Heathcliff's life: The first from birth to the time he arrived at Wuthering Heights. The second, three years in his late teens to early adulthood, when he left and made his fortune somehow.

* DeathByChildbirth:

* IncestSubtext: The fact that Catherine and Heathcliff were raised together as brother and sister adds an element of incest to their love. Going beyond NotBloodSiblings, there's also the possibility Heathcliff is actually Mr. Earnshaw's illegitimate son and they're biologically half-siblings.

* UptownGirl: ''Brutally'' deconstructed. Catherine is hopelessly in love with the grungy Heathcliff, who has been turned into a manservant by her older brother Hindley, but she also receives a marriage proposal from the more prim and wealthy Edgar. Hindley would never accept Catherine marrying Heathcliff, but instead of doing the "romantic" thing and eloping with him and severing ties with her prejudiced household, Catherine instead concocts a scheme to marry Edgar [[GoldDigger to gain access to the Linton family fortune]], and then split the pot with her true love Heathcliff. Heathcliff only hears the part about Catherine not wanting to marry him before running away to plot his revenge.

* BigFancyHouse: Thrushcross Grange. Wuthering Heights is more of a large farmhouse than an estate.

* BreakTheHaughty: Happens to Cathy (II) after Mr. Lockwood leaves.
* ByronicHero: Heathcliff, though he's more a {{Deconstruction}} of one.
* TheChessmaster: Heathcliff on returning to the moors puts into action a plan to make Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange his own.

* CreepyChild: The little girl (Cathy I as a child) in Lockwood's nightmare.

* DiesWideOpen: Heathcliff, much to Nelly's horror.

* DomesticAbuse: And the depressing reality is that Heathcliff's appalling treatment of his wife is, as he points out, perfectly within the tolerant limits of the law.
* DrivenToSuicide: Heathcliff. What exactly kills him remains a mystery, though.

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%%%* GenreDeconstruction: Of the "poor guy runs away, becomes rich and comes back for revenge" romance genre.

* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Mr. Lockwood, who thinks Heathcliff is "a capital fellow." And Isabella, who thinks Heathcliff is a good man to marry. Partially excusable by Heathcliff's Byronic personal magnetism, and in Lockwood's case because he sees himself as a misanthopic loner too, so he initially thinks Heathcliff is a kindred spirit.

-->'I heard distinctly the gusty wind, and the driving of the snow; I heard, also, the fir bough repeat its teasing sound, and ascribed it to the right cause: but it annoyed me so much, that I resolved to silence it, if possible; and, I thought, I rose and endeavoured to unhasp the casement....'I must stop it, nevertheless!' I muttered, knocking my knuckles through the glass, and stretching an arm out to seize the importunate branch; instead of which, my fingers closed on the fingers of a little, ice-cold hand! The intense horror of nightmare came over me: I tried to draw back my arm, but the hand clung to it, and a most melancholy voice sobbed, 'Let me in - let me in!' 'Who are you?' I asked, struggling, meanwhile, to disengage myself. 'Catherine Linton,' it replied, shiveringly....'I'm come home: I'd lost my way on the moor!'

* TheIngenue: Isabella Linton, who has no idea what she's getting into when she falls in love with the resident bad boy, Heathcliff. Later there's Cathy Linton, who also doesn't realize what she's getting into when she befriends Heathcliff's son. Both have their innocence taken advantage of by Heathcliff, who proceeds to [[BreakTheCutie abuse it out of them.]]

%%* {{Jerkass}}: Oh so many: Joseph, Hindley, Heathcliff, Catherine, Linton...

* KissingCousins: Catherine (II) and Linton, then Catherine (II) and Hareton.

* TheLostLenore: Catherine Earnshaw/Linton (Cathy I) dies young. Heathcliff... fails to get over this.

* LoveRedeems: Averted with Heathcliff, but played straight with Hareton.

* MySisterIsOffLimits: Invoked by both Hindley Earnshaw and Edgar Linton; Heathcliff ignores them both.

* OnlyOneName: Heathcliff, Mr. and Mrs. Earnshaw, Mr. Lockwood, and Joseph.

** Mr. Earnshaw prefers Heathcliff over his own son.

* ParentalSubstitute: Nelly for Hareton and Catherine (II). Later, [[AbusiveParents Heathcliff for Hareton.]]
* ThePlace: Wuthering Heights. It's notable that four houses in Emily's and [[Creator/AnneBronte Anne]]'s novels have "W.H." initials: Wellwood House in ''Literature/AgnesGrey'', the eponymous mansion in ''Wuthering Heights'', and Wildfell Hall and Woodford Hall in ''Literature/TheTenantOfWildfellHall''. According to Stevie Davies, both sisters used places and characters in their Gondal cycle as a source of inspiration for their fiction.

* TheRival: Heathcliff and Hindley, as well as Heathcliff and Edgar. Linton Heathcliff and Hareton have some shades of this as well.

* SelfMadeMan: Heathcliff, and we never find out how.

%% * ShadowArchetype: Heathcliff for Edgar Linton.

* UptownGirl: ''Brutally'' deconstruted. Catherine is hopelessly in love with the grungy Heathcliff, who has been turned into a manservant by her older brother Hindley, but she also receives a marriage proposal from the more prim and wealthy Edgar. Hindley would never accept Catherine marrying Heathcliff, but instead of doing the "romantic" thing and eloping with him and severing ties with her prejudiced household, Catherine instead concocts a scheme to marry Edgar [[GoldDigger to gain access to the Linton family fortune]], and then split the pot with her true love Heathcliff. Heathcliff only hears the part about Catherine not wanting to marry him before running away to plot his revenge.
* VillainProtagonist: Heathcliff. At the end of the day, this is ''his'' story.

* WildChild: Heathcliff and Catherine (at least before she meets the Lintons and cleans up). Hareton becomes one after being left without a reasonable ParentalSubstitute.

* AllGirlsWantBadBoys: Isabella has a naïve, childish crush on Heathcliff. This is contracted with Cathy's attraction to him, which is based in a much more realistic assessment of his personality and BirdsOfAFeather. Cathy tries to {{Def|iedTrope}}y it when she warns Isabella about Heathcliff in no uncertain terms: