Khadra Zerouali
While there were many concerns and fears during the early 19th century, the concern with economics, personal property and status were among those concerns of high importance. Although men and women alike were concerned with the subject of economics and prosperity, men in particular were affected by the changes found in Victorian society. Rather than act with composure in all aspects of life, in Emily Brontë’s novel Wuthering Heights, the male characters like Heathcliff and Hindley Earnshaw – and to a lesser extent Hareton Earnshaw and Linton Heathcliff – react with violence towards those around them, displaying a crisis of the masculine identity and with power, ultimately leading to their own demise. I argue that through the economics of the 19th century, there was a toll taken on men who did not fit the mold of success, and this caused them to react in violent and destructive outbursts (either self-destructive or destructive towards others). Often these violent and destructive outbursts took tolls on the mental health of the man himself and those who were around him in the domestic sphere. Other critics may argue that characters such as Catherine Earnshaw are more damaging in their actions towards themselves and towards others, as she manipulates the emotions of Heathcliff and marries for status, making both herself and those around her miserable. I maintain, however, that within Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, it is predominantly Heathcliff and Hindley Earnshaw that cause the most damage, not only to those around them but to themselves, because of their individual desire for monetary wealth that would lead them to a high ranking position in society.
In the article “The Subject of Money”, Kristen Guest analyzes the reason Victorian males suffered and how economics were a key player in defining the male identity. The men that suffer do so because of a conflict between the domestic and economic spheres. She argues that the crisis that middle-class men suffer at this point in time is the cause of the internal conflict that had to do with the new “competitive capitalist economy” and the “long-established standards of private, moral rectitude” (636)[1]. Characters in Wuthering Heights that are solely focused on economic society seem to be more “evil” or have cruel intentions compared to characters that have a balance between the economic and domestic, such as Heathcliff’s cruel actions versus Edgar Linton’s ability to balance his wealth and his domestic life to an extent. Guest also adds that in the 1800s there was a rise of “economically motivated, increasingly middle-class villains” in both society and literature who demonstrate a crisis in masculinity (636)[2]. Men of the time both held power in the domestic sphere and in the economic sphere, creating anxieties because more pressure was placed on them to create livelihoods and support their families, while also retaining their economic self-interest. Men appear as both villains and victims of the time period because of the large quantity of power they held in society and the lack of being able to solidify their identity in society.
Guest’s argument and research directly applies to Heathcliff and Hindley since their identities revolve around economic self-interest and creating livelihoods. Hindley represents the anxiety in Victorian males when they are unable to solidify their identity in society because he suffers from a great domestic and economic loss. Hindley lacks balance in his economic and domestic life which causes him to be cruel and violent towards others. Heathcliff, on the other hand, represents the middle-class villain whose motivation lies in revenge-based economics. Similarly to Hindley, Heathcliff lacks the balance between the domestic and economic spheres, which causes both anxiety and violent outbursts. While Heathcliff does control the economic sphere in Wuthering Heights, he lacks real control of the domestic sphere as everything he does in the domestic sphere has an economic motive behind it. These economic motives cause Heathcliff to act violently towards his wife and his son, as well as kidnap Cathy later in the novel. Heathcliff acts this way to retain his economic self-interest so that he can attempt to solidify his place in society – something that was refused to him when he was a child. Both of these male characters are unable to retain their identities as Victorian gentlemen, which causes great tolls on their own health and causes them to act in extreme violence either in verbal or physical abuse to characters that have less autonomy either due to age, gender, or social status.
Similarly to Guest’s argument, Joseph Carroll states that the economic power possessed by males since they held the positions of power in society and that much of character motivation comes from competition “as essentially political and economic in character” (68)[3]. This economic competition reaches its climax in Hindley and Heathcliff’s relationship. While I agree with Carroll that economic power can stem from competition, I would like to add that this economic competition can result in antagonistic actions as well as provide motivation for characters’ actions. Hindley’s motivation for power stems from jealousy of Heathcliff from when they were children since Mr. Earnshaw treated them as equals, buying “a couple of colts” and giving “the lads each one,” (Brontë 53) which was unsatisfactory to Hindley because of Heathcliff’s supposed gypsy heritage. Likewise, a majority of Heathcliff’s motivation for power stems from anger towards Hindley because for his formative years, Hindley had more power than Heathcliff, abused this power, and abused Heathcliff directly. Heathcliff vows to “pay Hindley back” and that “God won’t have the satisfaction” to punish Hindley (Brontë 70). These motivations for power and competition reach their crux when the introduction of debt is put in the novel. This ultimately makes Hindley lose the economic competition to Heathcliff because he lacks the wealth to continue to compete. No longer having a competitor, Heathcliff’s violent actions go unchecked because once he takes control of the Heights. From that point on in the novel, Heathcliff competes with the ghosts of his past abusers and uses economic motivations to inflict pain on the people around him. Terry Eagleton argues that “Heathcliff disturbs the Heights because he is simply superfluous; he has no defined place within its biological and economic system” (106)[4]. I believe that because Heathcliff does not have a defined place in society, he reacts to his displacement with violence, and he strives to find his identity through economic gain. However, Heathcliff can never be satisfied through wealth because he has no limit to reach to satiate his economic drive. One potential reason for this is Heathcliff’s lack of economic wealth since birth as he did not have an identity that was accepted by society, so he had to forge his own based on his understanding of what is proper in Victorian society. Therefore, he acts in violence when ‘society’ – society meaning the people around him in the countryside – push back against him.
When we are first introduced to Heathcliff, he appears to be a landed gentleman. According to Nyborg, landowning gentlemen or a landed gentleman is the type of man who lives in the domestic sphere rather than the traditional professional sphere. These men made their money through their inheritance of land rather than work in more labor intensive positions in society. Nyborg argues that this particular position in society creates a “cycle by which damaging landed ideals of power, control and inheritance" (378)[5] which negatively affects males like Heathcliff and Hindley. While Hindley originally owned the property of Wuthering Heights, due to immense debt from gambling, Heathcliff manipulated this moment of economic weakness and took the Heights for himself. This removal of property and ultimately the removal of status is seen as a threat to Hindley’s masculinity, as being a landed gentleman already put into question the male identity. Hindley instead reacts to this change in economics with verbal violence, damming Heathcliff and vowing that he “will have it back; and I’ll have his gold too; and his blood” (Brontë 134). Nyborg also argues that the masculine identity was founded in being viewed as an independent provider for a man’s self and for his family, if he had one. This was often accomplished through hard work and proper financial and household management. The landed gentleman instead only had to wait for their inheritance and manage the estate that was gifted to him.
Nyborg also comments that Brontë utilized the character of Heathcliff to critique the abuse of power from the elite since Heathcliff is the prime representative of the violent, antiquated landed male who would use his position to abuse others in order to gain more control of his current economic and social situation. I would argue, however, that it is both Heathcliff and Hindley that represent the violent male, but at different points in their lives. When they were young, Hindley was the one who held the power because he was to inherit the Heights since he was not only the oldest male but also the biological son of Mr. Earnshaw. Upon returning with an education – furthering his status into the upper class – Hindley lords his new-found power over Heathcliff and makes Heathcliff into a servant with no autonomy, driving “him from their company to the servants, deprived him of the instructions of the curate, and insisted that he should labor out of doors instead” (Brontë 59). As a child, Hindley was physically and verbally violent towards Heathcliff, but as an adult he takes this violence further by beating Heathcliff and by refusing him an education. Hindley abuses his powerful position as a landowning male in order to control those around him. It is when Hindley’s wife dies that he turns into a depraved and even more violent male. He is left with an incomplete household and even goes so far as to threaten the safety of his son by actively attempting to “break the brat’s neck” (Brontë 81). This destructive outburst is caused by the lack of stability not only in Hindley’s domestic life, but in his economic life as well.
In the article “Communities Built from Ruins,” Leeann Hunter discusses how financial ruin affects men. She states that when “a man becomes financially ruined… it meant either incarceration in the debtors’ prison or a declaration of bankruptcy,” (140)[6] meaning that men could be viewed as failures to both their families and to the society that they pertain to. Rather than be the sole provider for his family, debt created a level of dependency that removed the male economic identity. This applies directly to the loss of identity that is evident in Hindley’s character as he becomes unrecognizable by the end of his life. He is unable to provide for Hareton and is unable to maintain the Heights due to “the whole property” being “mortgaged” by Heathcliff (Brontë 170). By the time he dies, Hindley is an abusive drunkard who is drowning in a mountain of debt leaving his son to be “little else than a beggar” (Brontë 170). It is a vicious cycle that his desire for control and power caused. Power and control are intrinsically linked to monetary gain. Hindley’s lack of control and lack of money makes him violent towards everyone around him and makes him a failure in the eyes of Victorian society.
While Heathcliff is meant to appear as a Byronic hero, I believe that his actions portray him as a more villainous character in comparison to other characters in the novel. Because of his economic drive, Heathcliff is described as a “most diabolical man, delighting to wrong and ruin those he hates” (Brontë 198). Heathcliff is driven by his hatred towards others and is unable to fully process his emotions, leading him to act in violence since violence has been the primary emotion that has been dealt towards him. His understanding of the world around him leads him to believe that the only way to best his enemies is to humiliate them economically. However, because of the economics of the world that the novel is set in it is clear that Heathcliff’s violent acts are linked to a “deep psychic wound” (276)[7]. In the article, “‘Whose Injury Is Like Mine?" Emily Brontë, George Eliot, and the Sincere Postures of Suffering Men”, Morrison suggests that there is a cultural expectation for males in Victorian society to not be dependent on others. If men show dependency or vulnerability, it is perceived as weakness. Morrison also argues that the male characters in Wuthering Heights suffer from their own versions of wounded masculinity that leads to them react in violence or in distress, allowing the plot to move forward and for true character motives to be revealed. The wounded masculinity that Heathcliff has had for most of his life permits him to act cruelly towards others. This wound also acts in tandem with his economic drive because he utilizes the wound to justify his desire for economic growth and wealth.
Although Heathcliff is able to take the Heights from Hindley – and by extension Hareton - Heathcliff is not satisfied with this economic gain. Since Heathcliff was unable to marry Catherine because he had no economic prosperity or title attached to him, he instead marries Isabella Linton, the sister of his romantic rival. It is clear that Heathcliff’s intentions are purely economic as he never shows love towards his wife. In fact, he demonstrates the very opposite. In the article “My Name Was Isabella Linton”, Judith Pike explores the causes and effects of domestic violence within the novel specifically through Isabella’s narrative and the interactions between characters. Pike argues that Isabella’s narrative is of high importance as it is the only one that sheds light on the cruelty of Heathcliff in the domestic sphere. It is through Isabella’s narrative that readers are able to decipher whether or not Heathcliff’s account of their marriage is accurate and just exactly how much violence is taking place within the home. By creating the character of Isabella, Brontë is able to delve into the topic of domestic abuse by questioning Heathcliff’s humanity.
Pike also points out that Heathcliff “assumes the prerogatives of his position as baron under laws of coverture” (368)[8]. Heathcliff clearly has extremely violent tendencies but he acts with some restraint so that he can still be accepted in larger society. What is most troubling is that Heathcliff desires to turn Isabella’s “blue eyes black every day or two” (Brontë 108) because they resemble her brother’s eyes. And although this desire is not explicit evidence that he is acting violently towards Isabella during their unusual courtship, it provides more insight on Heathcliff’s expressions of violence. This is Brontë’s method of discussing the topic of domestic violence and abuse, while also explaining how positions – especially high positions – within society force individuals to conform in a specific matter (to an extent). Heathcliff’s emotions towards Isabella are nothing more than a means to enact a larger revenge towards Edgar Linton. Heathcliff views marrying Isabella as a means to improve himself both socially and economically.
Although domestic violence was not a topic frequently talked about in the Victorian era, it does have a prominent role in the relationship between Heathcliff and Isabella. It is through their union that Heathcliff is able to further solidify his status in the upper middle class, since Isabella is a woman of wealth. The court case Regina v Jackson describes an instance when a man abducted his wife claiming that he had the right to do so because she was his ‘property’. He tried to support his position by stating that “The husband hath by law power and dominion over his wife, and may keep her by force within the bounds of duty, and may beat her, but not in a violent or cruel manner”[9]. The courts decided that no English citizen may imprison another, despite marital status. This case meant that individuals in the late 1800s were having a better grasp of what constituted domestic violence (whether that be physical or psychological). This also demonstrates a change in society and a closer look at how violent males were handled in terms of the law. This court case also concerns the idea of property law, since Regina was a property owner in her own right. While this court case took place many years after Wuthering Heights was written, I believe that it accurately describes what could have happened between Heathcliff and Isabella if there was a higher power in the law that could hold him accountable. Isabella was simply a means for gaining property. When she does not submit to Heathcliff and leaves, Heathcliff reacts with violence and torments those around him since his economic competition and motivations have been threatened.
According to King and Shephard, there was a large amount of stress concerning the courtship process as the desire to make a favorable match was important for retaining a good position within society. King and Shephard also argue that not only was making an economic match important (and stressful), but that economics “took on a particularly prominent role in setting the tone of the courtship” (335)[10]. This concern with economics demonstrates how there was a need to prove masculinity in terms of economic status and stability. While Heathcliff did not truly have much of a name for himself, he did now technically own Wuthering Heights which made him a somewhat favorable match to Isabella.
Sascha Auerbach’s “A Right Sort of Man”, describes how the rise in education within the middle class was perceived by Victorian society as “an effective means for self-improvement,” (82)[11] which was increasingly important in an economic world that was becoming more competitive. Evidence demonstrates that this type of society exists in a lesser extent within the novel because education does permit for an increase in respectability and in economics. However, it is up to the men with power in the novel, like Hindley and Heathcliff, to decide who is permitted to receive an education. Heathcliff, in an effort to maintain control and authority over those around him, denies Hareton a proper education simply because Hindley denied Heathcliff one when they were younger. In this sense, Heathcliff uses the power and social status he gained through economics to harm the development of the younger generation. While this may not be an obvious act of violence, since many view violence as a physical act, I argue that the detrimental action of denying Hareton autonomy through education is just as violent since it maintains Heathcliff as an authority figure that cannot be contested. In addition to creating an unjust hierarchy within the Heights, this power move allows Linton to see Hareton as lesser than, or as young Cathy puts it, a “dunce” (Brontë 218). Both Cathy and Linton forget that “Hareton was” Cathy’s “cousin… he was as quick and as intelligent a child as ever you were” (Brontë 219). Heathcliff’s cruelty has caused Hareton’s sorry state.
Heathcliff defines himself by economics which is detrimental to himself. To use Karl Marx’s remarks on money and the nature of economics, “the extent of the power of money is the extent of my power”. Both Heathcliff and Hindley, and by proxy Hareton and Linton, are negatively affected by the nature of economics. Heathcliff and Hindley’s economic pursuits turn them into violent characters because the more wealth that they are able to accumulate, the more power and social standing they have over others which they abuse. This power from economics morphs the males to become violent because they struggle to maintain it. There is an underlying anxiety that Heathcliff and Hindley go through because they struggle with the power that comes with being in a changing economic world. Power and money become a gangrenous duo, causing destruction wherever they go. They lead to both a mental and physical distortion of the male characters in Wuthering Heights, creating toxic and violent conditions for every person involved.
Notes
[1] Guest, Kristen. “The Subject of Money: Late-Victorian Melodrama's Crisis of Masculinity.” Victorian Studies, vol. 49, no. 4, 2007, pp. 635–657. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4626371.
[2] Guest, Kristen. “The Subject of Money: Late-Victorian Melodrama's Crisis of Masculinity.”
Victorian Studies, vol. 49, no. 4, 2007, pp. 635–657. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4626371.
[3] Carroll, Joseph, et al. "Human Nature in Nineteenth-Century British Novels: Doing the Math." Philosophy and Literature, vol. 33 no. 1, 2009, p. 50-72. Project MUSE, doi:10.1353/phl.0.0031.
[4] Eagleton, Terry. Myths of Power: a Marxist Study of the Brontës. Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.
[5] Nyborg, Erin. ‘A Just and Liberal Landlord’: Manliness, Work, and the Landed Gentleman in the Brontës’ Novels. Journal of Victorian Culture, Volume 22, Issue 3, 1 September 2017, Pages 362–379, https://doi-org.lib-proxy.fullerton.edu/10.1080/13555502.2017.1302894.
[6] Hunter, Leeann. "Communities Built from Ruins: Social Economics in Victorian Novels of Bankruptcy." WSQ: Women's Studies Quarterly, vol. 39 no. 3, 2011, p. 137-152. Project MUSE, doi:10.1353/wsq.2011.0058.
[7] Morrison, Kevin A. “‘Whose Injury Is Like Mine?" Emily Brontë, George Eliot, and the Sincere Postures of Suffering Men.” NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction, vol. 43, no. 2, 2010, pp. 271–293. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40959706.
[8] Pike, Judith E. “‘My Name Was Isabella Linton’: Coverture, Domestic Violence, and Mrs. Heathcliff's Narrative in Wuthering Heights.” Nineteenth-Century Literature, vol. 64, no. 3, 2009, pp. 347–383. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/ncl.2009.64.3.347.
[9] "The Incorporated Law Society." Times, 26 Aug. 1891, p. 8. The Times Digital Archive, undefined. Accessed 11 Nov. 2019.
[10] King, Steven, and Mark Shephard. "Courtship and the Remarrying Man in Late-Victorian England - Steven King, Mark Shephard, 2012." SAGE Journals. University of Leicester, 2012. Web. 11 Nov. 2019.
[11] Auerbach, Sascha. "‘A Right Sort of Man’: Gender, Class Identity, and Social Reform in Late-Victorian Britain." Journal of Policy History, vol. 22 no. 1, 2010, p. 64-94. Project MUSE muse.jhu.edu/article/370367.
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Biography
Khadra Zerouali is a second -year graduate student from California State University, Fullerton. She earned both her B.A. in English as well as her Single-Subject Teaching Credential from California State University, Fullerton. Her areas of scholarly interest include the Victorian, Romantic, and Gothic Eras, as well as Psychoanalytic and Marxist theories.
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