Structure Flashcards
Overall structure of wuthering heights
Straightforward, no subplot, complexity created through the non-chronological recounting of events by multiple narratives
How does Brontë construct the novel
Carefully, with dates, seasons and times of day
Dividing point of novel
Chapter 16, death of Catherine and birth of alternate Cathy
Birth and death
Death of Catherine birth of Cathy
Birth of Linton, death of Hindley
What does the first part of the novel provide
Motivations for Heathcliff’s revenge or to see the first part as the story of Heathcliff and Catherine and the second Cathy and Hareton
What is Hareton in the second part
Barely a major figure
How to potentially view the two parts of the stories
The two Catherine’s, drawing attention to the comparisons between their stories and their characters. Nelly outlines similarities and differences
Second half
A repetition, less powerful? Two part structure is a familiar gothic device
Narrators
Heathcliff, Isabella, Cathy and Zillah narrate chapters, Catherine doesn’t speak directly except through her diary, she narrates important aspects of childhood
All of the voices
Weave togtehr to provide a choral narrative
Objective observers
Attempt to allow the story to speak for itself, objective observations would not have been tainted by having direct involvement- although the seemingly objective narrators reveal their bias
Flashback
Main narrative
Nellys narratuve
Involves the reader and engages them in the action, her involvement is problematic because she is hypocritical in her actions, favouring Edgar over Heathcliff to
Nellys narrative as intrusive
During the plot the reader endures scenes of violent passion in which Nelly seems to be in the midst of the action
Three generations
Symmetry of the pedigree, unlike real life, arouses the readers interest and to give vividness and reality
