I think my main issue with Wuthering Heights has always been more about the amount of people especially women who look to plots like Wuthering Heights as the type of Romantic Story they want to be in. Yet what really needs to be added to the term Romantic novel here is the word "Tragedy". Wuthering Heights is a tragic romance. Therefore it is not a story that is written so that others will want to live as the characters in it do, but tragedies are basically warning stories of people with fatal flaws that will ultimately destroy their lives, as we see in Wuthering Heights. It's only as I understood what a tragedy actually was that I could actually learn to appreciate Wuthering Heights for what it actually is. Just the same as every other tragic romance in fiction. Really wish more people understood about what a tragic Romance is meant to be and would stop idolising and longing for these types of stories.
You did a great job! I always thought Nelly was a really interesting character in Wuthering Heights when you really start to analyze the way she pushes the plot along and consider if she is a reliable narrator or not.
As a former teacher of English Literature, I thoroughly enjoy your videos. Very insightful and you allow me to see other facets of the works you discuss. How wonderful that is!
When I saw the title, I thought “I should listen to a point of view different from mine”. A few minutes in, I was glad I did because it’s clearly true that it’s a Romantic novel, if not quite a “romance” novel in the current sense. I just finished reading the book this afternoon and have little to add other than to say it is the template for almost every soap opera / telenovela I have ever seen.
I always love a Wuthering Heights analysis, great video! (Also, I can't believe it took me this long to know that "wuthering" means "strong winds." You would think that would be in an annotation somewhere.......) I would love to hear another one from you on WH as a historical novel. A lot of people bring this up in their videos and essays, but never seem to dive into that feature.
In the classic sense of a romantic novel, absolutely it fits the bill. It's not to my mind a love story, and I honestly went into it thinking I would love it like I do Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice, but I don't. I love it still, but I love it in an entirely different way, and I've truly never read another psychological horror novel that stuck with me like this one does. This book sent me into a book hangover so hard I couldn't pick up another new book for months. I know I'm going to read it many more times just because of the fact that I've never read another horror novel that evoked so much emotion in me, and I read a lot of horror novels. This book also got me back into classics, because I'm a masochist and will love any novel that can make me cry.
Haha I know some people do love it as a love story, like a dark and twisted love story. I've never really thought of it as horror though because horror and gothic are like a Venn diagram that overlaps but isn't a circle, you know? But it is an interesting way to look at it!
@@RoisinsReading Honestly when I was done reading it (which only took two days, I couldn't put it down!) I was so distressed by what I'd read that I had to sit down and puzzle through my feelings. I went into the book not actually knowing what the story was about, oddly enough I really hadn't seen many reviews or synopsis' or anything about it and had avoided the movie (quite a feat after 30 years of avid reading if I do say so myself, especially when my favorite book has been Jane Eyre since I was 12) so I really didn't know what I was getting into. I'd heard so many people say it was their favorite love story and many more people say it was their favorite romance that I thought it was going to be sweet and fluffy, and then it tore my heart out. I had to reclassify it in my mind just to be okay with it in any way, and now I love it! Also, that's a really good way to think of the relationship between horror and gothic, that would probably be a fun Venn diagram to make :)
Thank you for the video! It inspired me to continue reading "Wuthering Heights" because now I truly want to read more about the wild weather. Also, it's funny how, because I've never been to England or lived in the 19th century, I imagine that the world described in 19th-century novels was a realistic and unfiltered description of 19th century England. Though, of course, these novels now may be telling even more about the history of art and literature than about the actual history of the country. I really enjoyed your essay!
@@RoisinsReading yes, and also it was very interesting to find out why stories used to be written in a poetic form before book printing became more affordable! I didn't know that.
The brief part about this possibly being one of the first 'historical' novels seemed like a great topic for a video! I'd love to hear more about the development of that genre. Obviously people have written about the past for ever (Iliad, Arthurian stories...), but I'm sure you could weave a very entertaining tale of how historical fiction came to be "a thing"!
They were as wild and untamed as the nature around them. Free spirits. Untamed. Just as the land untamed. Women have insights into relationships often more so than men. So it's no surprise they could write deeper gothic thought. Wow. I have a BA English and you gave a whole semester in 10 minutes. Overwhelming frankly.
You are quite welcome! And I'm American and cannot compete with comparisons to your rich history! We re only 250ish years old as you know! But you gave me a fast refresher course on my English degree. Now! You may know that we were started with the Puritans Anabaptists and all from England. My point is!! We frankly are kind of repressed in some areas of thought. But I told a friend when I watched Charlotte and Tom Hardys version... I sad he was standing looking in the front window when Heathcliff returned!! Then her husband said. Do you want divorced to go with him?? It would be totally scandalous over here!! Police called... Get him out of here ie Heathcliff. Then husband would say. If you leave me I will ruin your life. And leave you broke! And !! I will get custody of the baby. And that's how we roll!! As our saying goes. We are blunt. Rude. And to the point. I'm telling you this to brighten your day!! Or make you laugh cuz you know we do act that way. Anyway... Was that book. Scandalous when it came out?? One other question!! Did Catherine actually cheat with him? As in after married? Or just the kissing?! Thanx for your response! I will research your lecture as I know nothing of the Georgian period. ? You talked about! Over here we think all the otherworldly came from the Celts! Thanx much! Cindy
Ps. I said the repressed part of Americans is if someone cheats while married! Then divorces to be with the other. People. Do Not Forget It Here!! They are seen as a sneaky person to watch! If they did that then they probably are doing other unethical things!!
Thank you! I do have one about Mrs Bennet from Pride and Prejudice ruclips.net/video/6fTsV4e8jM8/видео.html And one about Hamlet and A Midsummer Night's Dream ruclips.net/video/F-Si05SOpB0/видео.html
I love everything about this video: the voices, the editing, the dress. But most of all your amazing views on the amazing Wuthering Heights! You’re very good as video essays, wow! So inspiring!
Wuthering Heights is in my opinion the greatest romance of all. It's brutal, it's cruel, it's angst filled, and it stabs your heart like no other. The gothic setting, the language, it has it all. That love is stronger than death. The longing alone in the story causes me to gasp. Heathcliff is ethereal, dangerous. He can't be controlled, he cannot breathe without his Cathy. He is haunted and driven and scary. He is the ultimate bad boy but deliciously so. The first time I saw it (Timothy Dalton) I fell in love. I've read the book a hundred times. Ñow I am old and I still love it. There's NOTHING like it. It's a hard read, but so worth it.
I enjoyed this video and liked your assessment. I never thought that there was a real difference between a romance and a love story but you made some excellent points.
I love WH and have read it several times and I am not even sure why I like it. Thank you for explaining the period in which it took place and was written all seem so relevant. I think one reason I don't read much from the Romantic period is they are (1) too hard to read or understand easily and (2) there aren't that many great books that would probably appeal to me. I wasn't a lit major so mostly I got to read a bunch of books in high school, the one closest to that time was Les Miserables which is epic and reread it again much later in my life and found that it is even more epic, possibly it was not the entire book even though it took me a month reading every day like 50 pages. I find talking about books so personal as without an historic perspective and a vocabulary of words that we just don't use anymore, these books are only enjoyed through movies and adaptations which do not convey the narrative, even the book itself is so open to interpretation as without descriptive narrative the words used could have a history all in itself that as modern readers would not understand the meaning of. I personally think this book is so misunderstood and placing it into any one genre is not doing it justice. Afterall, it wasn't written in London by someone published and connected to that world, but from the heart and imagination of someone living a life far removed and connected to a world of maybe harsh realities and a life that wasn't or couldn't be kind and benign all the time.
“Arcadia” by Tom Stoppard comes at the Romantic Period considering it the nervous breakdown of the Enlightenment. Stoppard also takes out after the contempt for facts and rational discussion in favor of selfishness.
Well done. Yes, WH is a romance novel, but since there is very little love shared by any of the characters, I would balk at labelling it a love story. The romantic movement was a reaction to the science, logic, and reason of the Enlightened age, and the Gothic branch is merely an extreme form of romanticism. WH is all atmosphere, sensibility pushed to extremes, but with a very clever structure and an author who knew what she was about. What I'm left mostly puzzled about, however, was trying to guess what the narrator was actually eating during the course of that first "tea", and I could only guess about what Joseph was trying to say in most of his comments. Was he supposed to be an extreme form (romanticized) of Yorkshireman or a Scotch figure of speech?
Dear Roisin, Thank you for your video essay on 'Wuthering Heights' as an expression of The Romantic Novel'. (I also enjoyed your reading of extracts from the novel.) Helen Welch - Australia. P.S. I, like some of your viewers, appreciated your outfit - although the unmade bed is a little trying. (Apologies!)
I read this book a couple of years ago with my husband for funzies and the only way I could make sense of it is to imagine it as a black comedy directed by the Coen Brothers. Or it's just a horror story.
Thank you so much for this amazing video. I have now subscribed. Could you have a look at Carries War that I read at the age of 11 and absolutely loved. Xx
Thank you for an informative and entertaining video and more of the same would be great! I discovered your channel 2 weeks ago and since historical fiction is also my favorite genre it was a "no brainer" to subscribe.
This is just not a romantic story it's tragic all the bad things in life are all in this book cruelty jealousy abuse physical abuse betrayal heartbroken to pieces people should not enjoy the story but they just keep coming back it draws you back I'm back again like the light in the window ready to haunt you in the film when you see Cashy's ghost in the window so profound I don't know how many times I'm going to see this film before I leave this earth but it's going to be a few he is more like me than myself if that doesn't scream Soulmates I don't know what does
Withering heights is Twilight” of that time. It’s supposed to be romantic, but it’s actual one of the most toxic relationships ever. In fact, most, if not all, the relationships are toxic.
No, i'm sorry. You're wrong. You are teaching people wrong facts. I'm an English Literature student I've got to say this so people are aware that Wuthering Heights is NOT a romance novel. People tend to think it's a romance novel but in actual fact it's closest to a GOTHIC novel. The love story between Heathcliff and Cathy is only throughout half the book not the whole book. The novel is more dark and glory. The story is full of ''tragedy.'' therefore not romantic.
The gothic was linked to the Romantic movement, which you’ll know about as a lit student, and which is what I’m talking about. I specifically say it’s not a love story in the first minute of the video. Romance does not equal love story in 19th century lit, again as I say in the video.
![Megan Thee Stallion - Neva Play (feat. RM) [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/TpYTyAaTRts/mqdefault.jpg)
I think my main issue with Wuthering Heights has always been more about the amount of people especially women who look to plots like Wuthering Heights as the type of Romantic Story they want to be in. Yet what really needs to be added to the term Romantic novel here is the word "Tragedy". Wuthering Heights is a tragic romance. Therefore it is not a story that is written so that others will want to live as the characters in it do, but tragedies are basically warning stories of people with fatal flaws that will ultimately destroy their lives, as we see in Wuthering Heights. It's only as I understood what a tragedy actually was that I could actually learn to appreciate Wuthering Heights for what it actually is. Just the same as every other tragic romance in fiction. Really wish more people understood about what a tragic Romance is meant to be and would stop idolising and longing for these types of stories.
You did a great job! I always thought Nelly was a really interesting character in Wuthering Heights when you really start to analyze the way she pushes the plot along and consider if she is a reliable narrator or not.
Yes definitely, Nelly is fascinating
Yes! Why her? Was she seen as the most objective ?? What an abusive bunch. More mentally than physically. Mental cruelty!!!
@@cindylou.who.261she was the only person present to the events who was available and open to Mr Lockwood.
As a former teacher of English Literature, I thoroughly enjoy your videos. Very insightful and you allow me to see other facets of the works you discuss. How wonderful that is!
Thank you so much, I'm glad you enjoy them. Means a lot coming from a teacher!
I really like this format of essay videos. The Pride and Prejudice one got me here! Great job!!!!
Thank you so much, glad to have you here!
When I saw the title, I thought “I should listen to a point of view different from mine”. A few minutes in, I was glad I did because it’s clearly true that it’s a Romantic novel, if not quite a “romance” novel in the current sense. I just finished reading the book this afternoon and have little to add other than to say it is the template for almost every soap opera / telenovela I have ever seen.
Thank you
I always love a Wuthering Heights analysis, great video! (Also, I can't believe it took me this long to know that "wuthering" means "strong winds." You would think that would be in an annotation somewhere.......) I would love to hear another one from you on WH as a historical novel. A lot of people bring this up in their videos and essays, but never seem to dive into that feature.
I'm not sure how much there is to say about that but maybe I could do a video on the history of the Historical novel
In the classic sense of a romantic novel, absolutely it fits the bill. It's not to my mind a love story, and I honestly went into it thinking I would love it like I do Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice, but I don't. I love it still, but I love it in an entirely different way, and I've truly never read another psychological horror novel that stuck with me like this one does. This book sent me into a book hangover so hard I couldn't pick up another new book for months. I know I'm going to read it many more times just because of the fact that I've never read another horror novel that evoked so much emotion in me, and I read a lot of horror novels. This book also got me back into classics, because I'm a masochist and will love any novel that can make me cry.
Haha I know some people do love it as a love story, like a dark and twisted love story. I've never really thought of it as horror though because horror and gothic are like a Venn diagram that overlaps but isn't a circle, you know? But it is an interesting way to look at it!
@@RoisinsReading Honestly when I was done reading it (which only took two days, I couldn't put it down!) I was so distressed by what I'd read that I had to sit down and puzzle through my feelings. I went into the book not actually knowing what the story was about, oddly enough I really hadn't seen many reviews or synopsis' or anything about it and had avoided the movie (quite a feat after 30 years of avid reading if I do say so myself, especially when my favorite book has been Jane Eyre since I was 12) so I really didn't know what I was getting into. I'd heard so many people say it was their favorite love story and many more people say it was their favorite romance that I thought it was going to be sweet and fluffy, and then it tore my heart out. I had to reclassify it in my mind just to be okay with it in any way, and now I love it! Also, that's a really good way to think of the relationship between horror and gothic, that would probably be a fun Venn diagram to make :)
Me too, this story OWNS me.
Thank you for the video! It inspired me to continue reading "Wuthering Heights" because now I truly want to read more about the wild weather. Also, it's funny how, because I've never been to England or lived in the 19th century, I imagine that the world described in 19th-century novels was a realistic and unfiltered description of 19th century England. Though, of course, these novels now may be telling even more about the history of art and literature than about the actual history of the country. I really enjoyed your essay!
Thank you so much, I'm glad it inspired you to finish the book!
@@RoisinsReading yes, and also it was very interesting to find out why stories used to be written in a poetic form before book printing became more affordable! I didn't know that.
I just watched your 'In defence of Mrs Bennett' video essay and absolutely loved it. WH is one of my fav books so I'm super excited for this one!
I hope you like it!
I loved your explanation about Romance Novel and Wuthering Heights and also when you read chunks of the book. Greetings from Colombia.
Thank you!
The brief part about this possibly being one of the first 'historical' novels seemed like a great topic for a video! I'd love to hear more about the development of that genre.
Obviously people have written about the past for ever (Iliad, Arthurian stories...), but I'm sure you could weave a very entertaining tale of how historical fiction came to be "a thing"!
I'll have to think about that!
They were as wild and untamed as the nature around them. Free spirits. Untamed. Just as the land untamed.
Women have insights into relationships often more so than men. So it's no surprise they could write deeper gothic thought.
Wow. I have a BA English and you gave a whole semester in 10 minutes. Overwhelming frankly.
Thank you so much!
You are quite welcome! And I'm American and cannot compete with comparisons to your rich history! We re only 250ish years old as you know! But you gave me a fast refresher course on my English degree. Now! You may know that we were started with the Puritans Anabaptists and all from England. My point is!! We frankly are kind of repressed in some areas of thought. But I told a friend when I watched Charlotte and Tom Hardys version... I sad he was standing looking in the front window when Heathcliff returned!! Then her husband said. Do you want divorced to go with him?? It would be totally scandalous over here!! Police called... Get him out of here ie Heathcliff. Then husband would say. If you leave me I will ruin your life. And leave you broke! And !! I will get custody of the baby. And that's how we roll!! As our saying goes. We are blunt. Rude. And to the point. I'm telling you this to brighten your day!! Or make you laugh cuz you know we do act that way. Anyway... Was that book. Scandalous when it came out?? One other question!! Did Catherine actually cheat with him? As in after married? Or just the kissing?! Thanx for your response! I will research your lecture as I know nothing of the Georgian period. ? You talked about! Over here we think all the otherworldly came from the Celts! Thanx much! Cindy
Ps. I said the repressed part of Americans is if someone cheats while married! Then divorces to be with the other. People. Do Not Forget It Here!! They are seen as a sneaky person to watch! If they did that then they probably are doing other unethical things!!
Real quick: I found you by watching your defense of Mrs. Bennett video and I love these! Also your outfit looks so stinking cute!
Thank you so much!
Absolutely LOVE this format! Truly love the blending of analysis + history lesson, I would love if you made more!
Thank you! I do have one about Mrs Bennet from Pride and Prejudice
ruclips.net/video/6fTsV4e8jM8/видео.html
And one about Hamlet and A Midsummer Night's Dream
ruclips.net/video/F-Si05SOpB0/видео.html
I love everything about this video: the voices, the editing, the dress. But most of all your amazing views on the amazing Wuthering Heights! You’re very good as video essays, wow! So inspiring!
Thank you so much! Haha I'm glad you love the dress!
@@RoisinsReading it’s gorgeous. 🥰
I see this as a tragic and tormentous love story about the ghosts that could (or not) haunt the Wuthering Heights.
Amazing video! thanks for explaining everything! you answered all the questions in my mind.
So the romantics were doing cottagecore more than two hundred years before it was cool.
Exactly, even the tons of blush and painting on hearts is very late 18th C
Beautiful essay. Pleased discuss Madam Bovay and Conte of Mont Cristo. Xx thank you
Love your wall colour and how it goes with your dress! And also of course the content 🙂
Thank you so much 😊
Thank you - wonderful
Wuthering Heights is in my opinion the greatest romance of all. It's brutal, it's cruel, it's angst filled, and it stabs your heart like no other. The gothic setting, the language, it has it all. That love is stronger than death. The longing alone in the story causes me to gasp. Heathcliff is ethereal, dangerous. He can't be controlled, he cannot breathe without his Cathy. He is haunted and driven and scary. He is the ultimate bad boy but deliciously so. The first time I saw it (Timothy Dalton) I fell in love. I've read the book a hundred times. Ñow I am old and I still love it.
There's NOTHING like it. It's a hard read, but so worth it.
I enjoyed this video and liked your assessment. I never thought that there was a real difference between a romance and a love story but you made some excellent points.
Thabk you, I'm glad you enjoyed it
I love WH and have read it several times and I am not even sure why I like it. Thank you for explaining the period in which it took place and was written all seem so relevant. I think one reason I don't read much from the Romantic period is they are (1) too hard to read or understand easily and (2) there aren't that many great books that would probably appeal to me. I wasn't a lit major so mostly I got to read a bunch of books in high school, the one closest to that time was Les Miserables which is epic and reread it again much later in my life and found that it is even more epic, possibly it was not the entire book even though it took me a month reading every day like 50 pages. I find talking about books so personal as without an historic perspective and a vocabulary of words that we just don't use anymore, these books are only enjoyed through movies and adaptations which do not convey the narrative, even the book itself is so open to interpretation as without descriptive narrative the words used could have a history all in itself that as modern readers would not understand the meaning of. I personally think this book is so misunderstood and placing it into any one genre is not doing it justice. Afterall, it wasn't written in London by someone published and connected to that world, but from the heart and imagination of someone living a life far removed and connected to a world of maybe harsh realities and a life that wasn't or couldn't be kind and benign all the time.
“Arcadia”
by Tom Stoppard comes at the Romantic Period considering it the nervous breakdown of the Enlightenment. Stoppard also takes out after the contempt for facts and rational discussion in favor of selfishness.
Interesting, I'll have to check it out
Well done. Yes, WH is a romance novel, but since there is very little love shared by any of the characters, I would balk at labelling it a love story. The romantic movement was a reaction to the science, logic, and reason of the Enlightened age, and the Gothic branch is merely an extreme form of romanticism. WH is all atmosphere, sensibility pushed to extremes, but with a very clever structure and an author who knew what she was about.
What I'm left mostly puzzled about, however, was trying to guess what the narrator was actually eating during the course of that first "tea", and I could only guess about what Joseph was trying to say in most of his comments. Was he supposed to be an extreme form (romanticized) of Yorkshireman or a Scotch figure of speech?
Dear Roisin,
Thank you for your video essay on 'Wuthering Heights' as an expression of The Romantic Novel'. (I also enjoyed your reading of extracts from the novel.)
Helen Welch - Australia.
P.S. I, like some of your viewers,
appreciated your outfit - although the unmade bed is a little trying. (Apologies!)
Love love loved this video essay! Please make more!
Thank you! I have one on pride and prejudice! Do you have any requests
I read this book a couple of years ago with my husband for funzies and the only way I could make sense of it is to imagine it as a black comedy directed by the Coen Brothers.
Or it's just a horror story.
Fantastic video! You’ve made me want to reread Wuthering Heights…again 😅
Thank you so much, I really enjoyed rereading it for this video!
Great video!!
Just found your channel and would definitely love to see more video essays.
Thank you so much!
Your acting skills =🔥👏 and your outfit 😍 great vid.
Haha thank you!
Yes
Love that dress!! Your hair! Beautiful! And your background!
Thank you so much for this amazing video. I have now subscribed. Could you have a look at Carries War that I read at the age of 11 and absolutely loved. Xx
Thank you for an informative and entertaining video and more of the same would be great! I discovered your channel 2 weeks ago and since historical fiction is also my favorite genre it was a "no brainer" to subscribe.
Thank you for subscribing! I'm glad to have you here
fab a joy to watch!!
Love this video❤️ Excellent job!
Thank you!
Emily Bronte knew about Twin Flames before the rest of us knew about them .
Great video essay. Keep them coming. :)
Thank you! Any requests?
@@RoisinsReading maybe look into proto-feminism of classic writers? Anne Brontë's The Tenant of Wildhell Hall is a great example.
@@BeatrixOnyx I've not read that one, I'll have to do some reading
Great talk and analysis .
Can you tell me plz the name of the music in the begining of the video ? 😊
Great video!!
Thank you!
❤❤❤🙏
girl I just had to subscribe
Welcome! Thank you
Hi! This video essay is amazing but I think you accidentally put a portrait of Mary Shelley up on the screen instead of one of Anne Radcliffe :)
Oh did I! I'm not familiar with her so it was the first Google images picture!
Also; ‘roman’ is Dutch for novel! Haha.
See it's all connected!
This is just not a romantic story it's tragic all the bad things in life are all in this book cruelty jealousy abuse physical abuse betrayal heartbroken to pieces people should not enjoy the story but they just keep coming back it draws you back I'm back again like the light in the window ready to haunt you in the film when you see Cashy's ghost in the window so profound I don't know how many times I'm going to see this film before I leave this earth but it's going to be a few he is more like me than myself if that doesn't scream Soulmates I don't know what does
Withering heights is Twilight” of that time. It’s supposed to be romantic, but it’s actual one of the most toxic relationships ever. In fact, most, if not all, the relationships are toxic.
No, i'm sorry. You're wrong. You are teaching people wrong facts. I'm an English Literature student I've got to say this so people are aware that Wuthering Heights is NOT a romance novel. People tend to think it's a romance novel but in actual fact it's closest to a GOTHIC novel. The love story between Heathcliff and Cathy is only throughout half the book not the whole book. The novel is more dark and glory. The story is full of ''tragedy.'' therefore not romantic.
The gothic was linked to the Romantic movement, which you’ll know about as a lit student, and which is what I’m talking about. I specifically say it’s not a love story in the first minute of the video. Romance does not equal love story in 19th century lit, again as I say in the video.
Alright. Thanks for that.