Heathcliff's 3 year absence!

[sdr4jc]

What kind of storyline can you guys come up with for his absence? He came back a rich man with manners and class. There is speculation that he joined the military, or maybe went to America, or even got an education somehow. What do you think makes the most sense (and the best story supplement!)

[The Unnamable]

I think he went off to meet Mr Darcy from Pride and Prejudice. For those of you who don’t know, Mr Darcy is like Edgar Linton, only pubescent. He is what most women would call “all man”. Mind you, I’ve heard some say the same about Kris Kristofferson. On his way over the bleak and lonely moors that night, all Heathcliff could think of was Cathy’s comment, “It would degrade me to marry Heathcliff now;” He had to face the obvious fact that he simply wasn’t dashing enough for Cathy. He knew no big words, broke wind openly and seldom washed his feet. He didn’t even own a single pair of undergarments. He knew he would have to become a gentleman.

Cathy had taught him to read sufficiently well that, when he stopped off at Mrs. Scratchpit’s Tea House just outside Liverpool, he was able to read the flyer on her wall, next to the sign advertising the local TB support group. The flyer was also an advertisement. It read, “Are YOU tired of missing out on REAL ladies?” It offered the personal etiquette tuition of a Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, who had fallen onto lean times after his divorce from Elizabeth. She had caught him tubbing Lydia in the Pemberley wine cellar. Healthcliff bludgeoned Mrs. Scratchpit to death with one of Hindley’s gin bottles, emptied the till and enrolled on Darcy’s course, held in Wigan.
He and Darcy hit it off and set up a business, in partnership. They were cultured gentlemen by day and dissolute rakes by night. The business thrived and Fitzy moved to Tahiti. That’s when Heathcliff returned to purchase the Heights.

[sdr4jc]

Well I guess that could have happened...yeah! You are VERY creative!! I cannot stop chuckling.

[imaditzyreader]

Hey, it all makes sense now. Thanks, Unnamable

[The Unnamable]

Well I guess that could have happened...yeah! You are VERY creative!! I cannot stop chuckling.
What do you mean could? Every word of it is true. I keep Emily in the cupboard under my stairs and I beat the truth out of her.

Anyway, I’m glad you liked it and for that I’m going to try to help you properly. I realise that you have to write an assignment that is presumably creative and concerned with what Heathcliff did during those three years and I can’t help with specifics. However, if you understand a little more about why Bronte left a gap, it might stimulate some ideas.

Edgar’s sister, Isabella says in chapter 13:

“Is Mr Heathcliff a man? If so, is he mad? And if not, is he a devil….I beseech you to explain, if you can, what I have married…”

Now, although I’m pretty sure that this is something that goes through every woman’s mind shortly after the day in white, its significance in the novel is that we have yet another character unable to comprehend the nature of Heathcliff. He is presented as enigmatic and baffling. In terms of the mechanics of plot structure, Bronte helps build and maintain suspense by making Heathcliff a moving target. We can never quite pin him down and he is at times as impressive as he is repugnant. We simply don’t know what he will do next. We do, however, feel that the range of possibilities is wide, such has been the depth of Bronte’s characterisation. There are a number of uncertainties about Heathcliff that the author has chosen not to resolve.

We don’t really know where he came from.
We know almost nothing about what happened during those three years.
We see nothing of his courtship with Isabella.
We don’t know if his relationship with Catherine was ever sexual.

Whether or not Bronte intended this is irrelevant (I don’t want to get into a discussion about authorial intention). It does have an effect on how we see Heathcliff. It is a partial view that not only keeps us interested but also makes him seem like something not quite like other people.

So when you are writing your supplement, you should try to preserve this tension and ambiguity. Don’t give any easy solutions. I think I’d favour the military option as that would not only explain how he came to learn some degree of self-control and basic social skills, it would also give you the opportunity to show a Heathcliff still having to cope with the demands of others. The military context might also give you the opportunity to explore further the darker, more menacing side of Heathcliff. In chapter 34, Nelly suspects him of being a ‘ghoul or vampire’ and his passion for Catherine is almost necrophilic when he imagines sleeping with her in the grave. As a soldier he would probably have travelled a great deal and seen death at close quarters, in various forms. How did he respond? I hope that helps but if it doesn’t, at least I made you chuckle (great word).

[sdr4jc]

Well, the question wasn't posed for a paper...I graduated 6 years ago! I just love, love, adore this book and will entertain all kinds of conversation about it. But I do often wonder about his absence, and it's funny that you lean towards the military theory because I always have as well. And you are right, concerning the many shady or even altogether unknown pieces of Heathciff's story. I'd say it makes for a very good plotline, and lends itself to many questions, such as mine...And if nothing else, I guess I could always go pick up the book about his return to Wuthering Heights and just see where that goes. I don't even know the full title...but I'm not very anxious to pick it up. If Emily didn't write it (and she didn't) then it can't possibly do justice for this book. Have you read it? If so, what is your opinion? Anyone?

[malwethien]

I think I’d favour the military option as that would not only explain how he came to learn some degree of self-control and basic social skills, it would also give you the opportunity to show a Heathcliff still having to cope with the demands of others.

I think I liked the Darcy explanation better :lol: