Heathcliffe's certainly a brute, but as I said earlier it's a damn fine novel, and better because of Heathcliffe's personality I think. I quite like Mr Lockwood despite the fact that he is a bumbling fool.
Heathcliffe's certainly a brute, but as I said earlier it's a damn fine novel, and better because of Heathcliffe's personality I think. I quite like Mr Lockwood despite the fact that he is a bumbling fool.
Might I add, also, Polonius, of Hamlet. I constantly hear people pull the "To thine own self be true" quote out of Hamlet, but I'm sure most people forget exactly which character they are quoting.
Polonius, a shameless social climber, eavesdropper, and "sponge" for the King's use, out of all the characters in the play for Hamlet to stab behind an arras, I'm glad it was him. Besides that fact, the Polonius family scenes are by far the most boring of the play.
I KNOW!! I hated her so much! She was so vain and selfish and hypocritical and just all over the place. I know she was all messed up on drugs by the end of it, but I was so ready for her to be done. To be honest, there wasn't a single character in that novel I had much use for. Every now and then I start to think a character has a redeeming quality or two, like Dolly, but then she would do something so completely idiotic that I would go back to thinking she's awful again. Maybe that's just me though.Originally Posted by The Comedian
I'm weary with right-angles, abbreviated daylight,
Waiting for a winter to be done.
Why do I still see you in every mirrored window,
In all that I could never overcome?
That's true, but I think it's fun to dislike her
It makes me feel quite defensive when people say they "hate" Anna. I almost wonder if I was reading a different book than everyone else as she didn't seem at all despicable to me. I think she was deeply depressed, going through life like a zombie, until Vronsky awakened a need in her that she didn't even know she had. I think she resisted him as much as she could, but because she was so depressed she was too weak to resist his advances. The very fact that she turned to drugs proved to me her mental instability, and I don't think it's appropriate to attach blame to a person who is suffering from a crippling mental illness.
Anna is among the characters I feel most sympathy and affection for. Vronsky was the character I hated.
I think that's the strength of this novel, and of Tolstoy in general: the realism of the characters. All real people have flaws and do idiotic things that make us question their characters, and I think Tolstoy reflects this perfectly.
I agree, she was very annoying. But though she got on my nerves, I couldn't exactly hate her because she was clearly insane.
"Books don't offer real escape but they can stop a mind scratching itself raw." David Mitchell
Ah well. To each their own. I'm sure there are novels I love that other people can't stand!
Personally, I was deeply disappointed by the novel. I wanted to like it but I got more and more fed up of it the more I read. I do think it's possible to write a novel that is enjoyable whilst the characters are not likeable but I didn't think Emily Bronte managed this. I just disliked all the characters so much by the end that I didn't really care what happened to them. You always need a reason to carry on reading a novel. If it is character driven (as I think WH is) then the reader needs to care enough about the characters to want to see what becomes of them. Unfortunately I gave up caring about the characters in WH fairly early on.
Pavel Smerdyakov from The Brothers Karamazov really gives me the creeps. Even his horrible name- though I suppose that's not his fault. Anyway, there's his revolting sadism, and he's just like Iago, bringing about the destruction of those more noble than him in an inhumanly cunning manner.
Exit, pursued by a bear.
I almost listed him in my opening post, but the fact that he is so obviously the villain made me hesitate to class him alongside the other two, who I felt it was just my opinion to dislike.
But I agree, he's horrible
"Books don't offer real escape but they can stop a mind scratching itself raw." David Mitchell
Ah, I see what you mean!
Exit, pursued by a bear.
It is definitely worth another attempt, I think I gave up the first time but perseverance unlocks its full potential. One of the most interesting aspects of the novel is the unreliability of all the narrators to the extent that the "truth" of what we are hearing about the characters has to be taken with a very big grain of salt. I mean really, who is the real Heathcliffe?Ah well. To each their own. I'm sure there are novels I love that other people can't stand!
Personally, I was deeply disappointed by the novel. I wanted to like it but I got more and more fed up of it the more I read. I do think it's possible to write a novel that is enjoyable whilst the characters are not likeable but I didn't think Emily Bronte managed this. I just disliked all the characters so much by the end that I didn't really care what happened to them. You always need a reason to carry on reading a novel. If it is character driven (as I think WH is) then the reader needs to care enough about the characters to want to see what becomes of them. Unfortunately I gave up caring about the characters in WH fairly early on.
Personally, I rate this novel well high up there amongst the best novels ever written.
Interesting point of view. I certainly didn't get the impression that she was depressed at the beginning of the novel. I think of Anna as a very superficial person who was happy with everything she had at first because it was the perfect picture for her society- wealthy, prominent husband and a child. But then she saw Vronsky and suddenly what she had before wasn't good enough. She wanted a young, good-looking, well-liked husband plus all the benefits and it just didn't go the way she daydreamed. She was most definitely suffering from a severe depression by the end, but that's not the reason why I detest her. It was her behaviour when she was in a healthier state of mind that I cannot forgive. If there is one thing about your view I MUST disagree with, it's that Anna resisted Vronsky. I don't think that was the case at all. Her behaviour towards her husband and son is completely unforgivable. But don't worry- I hated Vronksy just as much!
I think you're right about Tolstoy and the strength and realism of his characters. They really are real people and subject to the views and opinions of their times.
I'm weary with right-angles, abbreviated daylight,
Waiting for a winter to be done.
Why do I still see you in every mirrored window,
In all that I could never overcome?
I agree with Scher. The novel was written by a white woman who grew up in the south. I don't think who tells the story undermines the struggle or makes the story's quality any less. Maybe its a bit "overrated" but it is an excellent story and well told. It is very moving and an important part of American literature
I think that Aglaya was easily just as bad. She mocked the Prince and showed him no affection, then threw a fit when he didn't immediately choose her.
My vote goes to Luzhin from 'Crime & Punishment.'
Tom Buchmann - The Great Gatsby
Dmitri Karamazov - The Brothers Karamazov
I like Dmitri, but I also think he's horrible.
I agree, she seems to be healthy at the beginning of the novel. But considering the depth of her later depression, I think it's unlikely that she could have been as healthy as she seemed. I don't think a crippling, suicidal depression like that could develop without some underlying mental instability. And with hindsight you can see the signs earlier. For example, her intense agitation on hearing of the accidental death of a guard, and her conclusion that it is an omen of evil.
After dancing with Vronsky at the ball in Moscow, Anna does not stay on to supper and determines to leave for Petersburg on the following day. On meeting him at the station, she begs him to leave her alone and dashes into the train. And finally, at Princess Betsy's, although it is now clear that she will give in, she is still trying to resist him, if only in words: "Then do this for me: never say such things to me, and let us be friends,"
"Books don't offer real escape but they can stop a mind scratching itself raw." David Mitchell
I did consider re-reading it. I was going to read that and The Great Gatsby again because I felt I must have missed something the first time I read them. (I didn't dislike The Great Gatsby the same way I did Wuthering Heights but I expected more from it.) However, when I was studying for my Victorian Lit exam I wanted to refresh my memory of WH in case I needed to pull it out as a back up option to write about. I read some summaries to help me remember character names etc and it just reminded me of all the reasons I disliked it so much. Perhaps at some point I'll give it another try but for now I have a list of sixty-something books I want to read that's growing every day!
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