B is for Bronte

Posted on by

20130331-132454.jpg

Emily Bronte was born in 1818 in Yorkshire, England and is best known for writing my favourite novel of all time, Wuthering Heights. Although published in 1847, it wasn’t until 1850 that her name appeared on it.

With her siblings Anne, Charlotte and Bramwell, she spent her childhood writing stories and creating fantasy worlds, inspired by Bramwell’s toy soldiers.

Wuthering Heights is a classic piece of English Literature, but when it was initially published it was controversial because of its subject matter (mental and physical cruelty) and hence received mixed reviews at the time.

Just like Austen, Emily died young, at the age of 30 and it was rumoured that she was working on a second novel. Unfortunately, no trace of it has ever been found.

My favourite Emily Bronte quotes:

“If I could, I would always work in silence and obscurity, and let my efforts be known by their results.”

“I have dreamed in my life, dreams that have stayed with me ever after, and changed my ideas; they have gone through and through me, like wine through water and altered the colour of my mind.”

“A person who has not done one half of his days work by 10 o’clock, runs a chance of leaving the other half undone.”

Because I’m a true romantic, I love Emily Bronte’s passion for her characters and her setting. The Yorkshire moors became a character itself under her touch. It wouldn’t surprise me if there had been a part of Emily that was in love with Heathcliff herself, I know I am 🙂 *sighs* How I would so love to write like that!


My Favourite film adaptation of Wuthering Heights with Timothy Dalton as Heathcliff (PHWOA!)

So do you think it helps to be a tiny bit in love with your hero?

Related articles

43 thoughts on “B is for Bronte”

  2. Wuthering Heights wasn’t my favorite. But that’s me. So many others love it, and don’t like the ones I do. That’s books for you.Bronte was great at her craft. It was a riveting story.

    Like

    Reply

    • Thanks Char 🙂

      I think the thing that made me fall in love with WH was the passion. It was the first book id ever read about a love that was so intense. I guess ive been searching for another book ever since that has that same emotion….so any recommendations would be greatfully appreciated 🙂

      xx

      Like

      Reply

  4. I adore Wuthering Heights. Always have. I think its such an honest depiction of how selfish we can be.

    I haven’t seen the Timothy Dalton version but he is my favorite Bond.

    Like

    Reply

    • Thanks Amber 🙂

      Oh you MUST see that version. Timothy Dalton is EXACTLY how i imagined Heathcliff to look when i first read the book. I can HIGHLY recommend it. It makes me cry every blooming time! lol

      xx

      Like

      Reply

  5. Oh, you have to be in love with your hero – faults and all – or he just won’t work! Given the choice of the wimpy narrator, Edgar Linton or Heathcliff, it would have to be Heathcliff all the way! She probably even named him after the two most rugged things that came to mind (as well as the two most inhospitable). My fave is actually sister Charlotte’s Jane Eyre (I’m a Rochester groupie) but Wuthering Heights comes a close second!

    Like

    Reply

  6. I love Wuthering Heights, and every time I read it I wonder why I love Heathcliff so much! He’s quite the anti hero, so it must be the way Bronte writes him, there’s a lot to learn there. Lots of readers of Can’t Live Without said they were in love with Paul, and he’s the total opposite of the Heathcliff character – not very dangerous, really nice and kind and thoughtful. I wanted to show that nice men can be sexy too 😉 But I’d love to write about this kind of passionate, all-consuming love – I think the Twilight series does it really well. In this month’s Writing Magazine, an agent is bemoaning the lack of ‘big’ love stories, asking ‘Where is the Love Story of our time?’ Could be your chance, Vikki 🙂 xxx

    Like

    Reply

    • Thats exactly how i feel Jo 🙂 There is just SOMETHING about him lol.

      Ohhhhh, so would i *sighs* 😉

      He he he, well, my Ronnie is probably an anti hero, i’ll see what i can do *goes off to dig out her copy of Heights*

      xx

      Like

      Reply

  7. I really struggled with Wuthering Heights when I first read it. I found it deadly dull and just couldn’t see what the fuss was about. Looking back now I realise I just wasn’t mature enough to understand it. When I last re-read WH I got so much more out of it though I still find descriptions of landscape deadly she does manage to make them bearable here by using them to set an emotional tone. What I still don’t get is how anyone could have a thing for Heathcliff? He’s a monumental arse.

    Like

    Reply

  8. I loved Wuthering Heights – great choice. I do think it is good to feel a connection to a character in a book – otherwise why have a four hundred page conversation with them? Even more so when you are writing them – you could spend years with these people. If they are irritating your partner might dump you! Jan Morrison

    Like

    Reply

  11. I have to admit that I really disliked WH. I read it purely so that I could announce how much I disliked it to my best friend of the time in college, who was weak kneed over Heathcliffe. I could never even think about liking a character who kills a dog.

    Yet, I suppose the very fact that the writing makes my blood boil at characters that I find unsympathetic and whiny and cruel, means that Bronte must have created something that evokes emotion – even if they are negative ones!

    Each to our own I guess.
    Looking forward to the rest of the alphabet!
    Cat x

    Like

    Reply

    • Thanks for stopping by Jak 🙂

      Ha ha ha! You and me both honey! I think my “to be read” will definitely be increasing by the end of the month! Lol

      I’m not too sure why really? It was first published under “Ellis Bell” (a mans name?) but I know in those days “writing” was considered a “mans” occupation (wasn’t everything?) so perhaps with the subject matter they thought it would sell better if the public thought she was male. Bit like George Eliot, who The Hubster only discovered was a woman quite recently lol

      Oh, if you like Timothy Dalton you MUST see that adaptation….it’s brilliant! 🙂

      Xx

      Like

      Reply

  17. Funny but I seem to come across people (e.g., my wife and oldest kids) who really don’t like Wuthering Heights (except if you’re talking about the Kate Bush song–they’re all fans of that!). I like it, partly because it’s very different. It’s not your run-of-the-mill romance story. Neither Heathcliffe nor Catherine are really very sympathetic. But there’s something compelling about it as a story, and you root for the two of them… even though things don’t work out the way they might have if someone else had written the novel! 🙂

    Like

    Reply

  18. Ok. Those quotes were epic! I must read her novel. Although it’s sad how she died so young, I am glad her works gave rise to people being more informed about abuse and cruelty.

    Like

    Reply

  21. Definately helps to be in love with your hero. I know I’m in love with mine. Now, if I could just figure out how to conjure him up for real….. 😉

    Like

    Reply

Lets chat!