'Violence breeds violence'. Wuthering Heights.

The Victorian Gothic novel 'Wuthering Heights' by Emily Bronte is set in the 17th Century Yorkshire moors. The Yorkshire moors is the birthplace of Emily and her two sisters and brother, and was influential in her works-especially Wuthering Heights which is set in the same setting, this may have been due to her love of the moors as they are wild and uncontrollable- which is further reflected in her characters which are too wild, passionate and violent, as ‘The Gothic . Emily Bronte's novel is very Gothic in terms of its transgression of social and moral boundaries which may have had a more shocking impact on the original Victorian readership than modern readers as elements of the plot- such as Cathy 1's violence to her own body, by starvation, in order to have a relationship simultaneously with the two men she loves- would have transgressed the hegemonic ideologies of relationships which their society was rigidly built upon. Violent behaviour runs through the novel and an interpretation for why the violence (and passion) of the characters are so extreme-for example Hindley threatening to kill Nelly with a gun in her mouth- is due to the lack of societal influence in the moors, merging both civil and primitive behaviour within the characters.

As previously mentioned the novel is set in the moors. The moors are displayed as a vast and un-tameable landscape which is inhabited by two houses: Wuthering Heights and Thurshcross Grange. Both houses are a doubling of each other (a key Gothic theme) as one may been seen to show the primitive side of humanity which transgresses boundaries due to the stimulation of extreme passionate and violent emotions (the Heights) whilst the other highlights the civilised culture of society which encourages human moral flourishing (the Grange). The houses have an effect on the characters and amplifies their emotions, for example in chapter 3 when Lockwood stays over night at the Heights (due to the 'stormy weather' in which the Heights is 'exposed' too as it represents a Gothic 'fallen world'-Ann B Tracy. Lockwood’s fear and terror are magnified in the Heights (the ‘central mood for the Gothic’-Punter), causing shocking actions which are unexpected of a character traited to be calm, proper and pacifist (as he is stereotyped as a gentleman, in which those trait would have been expected of an upper class Victorian male). Lockwood, after punching his hand through the glass window pane was ceased by 'cold little fingers' which awoke him stirring the feeling of an 'intense horror of a nightmare'. As 'terror made him cruel', he rubbed the child of Cathy 1's  ghost’s wrist over the broken glass of the window pane causing her 'blood' to soak the 'bedclothes' as he tried to be released from her grasp, as in the ‘Gothic we are constantly in the presence of ghosts’(Punter)An interpretation of this moment is that his violent reaction towards Cathy 1 is fuelled by the nature of the Heights, as the Heights can be seen to expose the dark, primitive side of humanity which bases action on heightened emotions –such as fear or passion- as opposed to reason and logic.

What’s more, violent behaviour within the Heights is treated as normality in everyday life of the household, as before Lockwood had his supernatural ghostly encounter he had a shock with the household dogs. The dogs are wild and savage as they are not domesticated dogs but (like the Heights) they serve for practical use such as hunting or guarding the house, and so when Lookwood went to show affection (by stroking it), the dog went to bite him which Heathcliff stopped by 'punching' the dog in the face with his foot. Thus violence is one way for people in the moors to establish power/dominance over others, causing it to become a cycle as it is learnt and breed to other characters. A key example of this is when Nelly returns to visit the Heights (to tell Heathcliff to leave Cathy 1 alone) and she meets Hareton after 10 months. His response to her is to pick up a 'flint' and throw it at her 'bonnet' and then followed his action by repeating a 'string of curses' he learnt from Heathcliff, highlighting that his aggressive nature was breed by Heathcliff’s own violent nature and his reason for inflicting degrading behaviour on Hareton is to get revenge for Hindley’s abusive treatment of Heathcliff showing that violence has been breed in a vicious cycle. Alternatively, it could be argued that violence was not breed into Hareton as he is intrinsically good and moral, this can be seen when he is the only person to morn Heathcliff after his death even after his inflicted degradation. This gives the plot hope, as the problems and issues caused by the first generation can now be fixed and restored by the second through the marriage engagement of Hareton and Cathy 2 in the ‘new-year’ with the house Wuthering Heights fully restored to the rightful Earnshore and the Grange being inhabited by a civilised man of high social standing.

In conclusion violence is breed by violence which is used as a continuous cycle for characters-mainly Cathy 1 and Heathcliff- to use to maintain or manipulate power. However the infliction of violence does not seem to apply to the second generation-Hareton and Cathy 2- who instead promote a relationship of education and civility.

"In gothic writing, the presentation of places is often more interesting than the presentation of characters." How far do you agree with this view?

In Gothic literature, the presentation of place has an important significance to the plot and the development of characters. This is a key tool to show the inhospitable landscapes that reflect a 'fallen world' (Ann B. Tracy). The landscapes have the power to reflect or emphasise aspects of characters which would not have as much impact on the reader if they were merely described a sole traits. It is the symbolism which intrigues the reader and makes the story more captivating. For example, Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange in Bronte's Victorian Gothic novel are representative of the doubling-a key Gothic element. Both landscapes are contrasts of each other, as are the characters. Whilst the Heights is an 'atmospheric tumult' that is 'exposed' to the moors 'stormy weather', the Grange is a 'beautiful...splendid place' that is sheltered in the valley. It is the use of Gothic opposition that places the reader in an intense world. Similarly, the Marquis' castle in The Bloody Chamber is a fairyland of 'solitude' which is shrouded in mystery, quite like the Marquis himself. The isolation from the stir of society places it in the Gothic realm as the marginalised becomes a normal transgression. It is the mirroring of the character's and the places they inhabit which make up the dark elements of the Gothic. Wittenburg, the setting Faustus is placed holds religious reference in which his original readership would have been aware of- as Wittenburg is the birth place of Protestantism. Religion is central to the plot as religion and science are debated(another key Gothic theme). Therefore the use of characters alone would make the plots significantly less interesting.

Wittenburg (in Germany), the central setting to the Gothic Elizabethan play Dr Faustus, has key religious importance as it is the birth place of Protestantism. England, in the 16th Century, was experiencing religious conflict between the Catholics and the Protestants. John Calvin, born in Wittenburg created the Protestantism Reformation due to the belief of corruption within the Catholic faith (such as priest's talking indulgences to 'reduce' someones time in purgatory) and placed 95 theses on the church door, this lead to the radical opposition of conducts in worshipping the same God. Christopher Marlowe, the playwright, purposely placed Dr Faustus in the birth place which created the conflict between religions, as Faustus uses both of the religious ideas to excuse his sin of selling his soul to the devil. This transgression of religious boundaries is forewarned in the Prologue by the chorus-'waxen wings did mount'- who use the mythical story of Icarus to show Faustus tried to surpass the humanities limits. Marlowe creates a satire of the religious conflict which can be seen in scenes such as Act 3 Scene 1 where Marlowe employs the use of melodrama as Faustus 'haunts' the Pope, essential mocking the Catholic faith as the Pope is portrayed as a feeble and docile man who is corrupt by selling indulgences. Wittenburg has further significance as it is also the place Dr Johann Faust lived. Johann Faust  is an old German legend which Dr Faustus is based upon. Johann Faust supposedly sold his soul to the devil to gain dark necromantic powers, similar to Faustus who too sold his soul to the devil to gain powers of 'necromancy'.

Places contribute significantly to Wuthering Heights as they add the gothic element of mirroring. The novel is set in the English Yorkshire moors, Which are highlighted as a wild and extreme environment which provoke the extremes of emotion in humanity such as passion and violence, as it is 'completely removed' from the civilised 'stir of society'. The story is set between the two houses Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange. The Heights is portrayed as an uncultivated land with its 'stunted firs' and 'gaunt thorns' which stimulate a grotesque and gothic environment, highlighting the hardships of life there. The house is made for practicality as the windows are narrow and set deep inside the stone of the house, and the house orientates around the centre of the house-the harth- as it is the only source of heat. The Heights additionally seems to encourage violence in the characters, the dogs are voitile and can only be controlled through violence and commands, and even Lockwood becomes agressive with the ghost of Cathy 1 (after just a night in the house) when he rubs her wrist across the cut glass in Chapter 3- the house seems to influence an uncivilised way of life. This is key to the plot as Heathcliff symbolises the life of the Heights- transgressive of moral boundaries, passionate and violent. Whereas the Grange however is a contrast and represents the civility of society, the house is decorated with 'carpeted crimson', has 'gold' bordered on the ceiling with a 'shower of glass-drops hanging in silver chains in the centre', displaying their materialistic higher social class. The Grange is set in a cultrivated land in the valleys with 'hedges' and 'flower beds' showing the chance of flourishing and education in an extreme landscape. Edgar represents the Grange as he embodies the calm civility of the upper class. As Cathy 1 belongs to both houses she embodies both sides of the houses, her passionate love for Heathcliff and her upper class roots with Edgar, this symbolises the Gothic element of the divided self, as Cathy is torn between both men, beliving she can love Heathcliff without being degraded by his social status due to her marriage with Edgar.

Angela Carter's 'The Bloody Chamber' uses setting to create a place of beauty and transgression which alienates the characters. The narrator describes the castle of the Marquis as 'a lovely sad, sea-siren place', it is a castle full of mystery and surrounded by the wild sea, showing its exposure to the elements-just like in Wuthering Heights. the phrase 'sea-siren' shows the castle has a dangerous deathly allure, identical to the Marquis who has the 'opulant male scent of spice and leather' which is one of his features which draws the narrator into his trap. However the castle later serves as a form of imprisonment which entraps the narrator with the Gothic stereotype of a predatory male. The plot of a young virgin being entrapped within a isolated place and being chased by the predatory male is a common gothic theme which first appeared in 'The Castle of Ortranto' when Isabella was chased in the underground labyrinth by Manfred. Carter uses the castle to represent the will of the sadistic male as in 1979 Carter was writing at a time when the objectification of the 'male gaze' was a popular issue in the women's rights movements- thus why the Marquis uses the 'assessing eye of a conniseur' to objectifiy the narrator. However Carter shows that women too are apart of this objectification as the narrator feels for the first time a 'sense of corruption' within herself. This is further symbolised in 'the bloody chamber' a 'slaughterhouse' were the Marquis previous wives are ornamented in their gruesome deaths-such as the 'iron maiden' who had been killed by '100 spikes' or the wise who was 'embalmed' on a bed of satin- highlighting the male fantasy. Some feminists have previously commented that Carter uses the bloody chamber to show the cycle of women subservience to men and how this has ultimately lead to their own fate- a lack of rights even in death.

In conclusion, all three texts use gothic setting to compliment and emphasise the characters traits which work together to create a dark and transgressive atmosphere. Places often highlight character personality or motive which may not be reflected by the character themselves therefore useful in expanding the key gothic elements.