Gothic Love and Toxic Romance: reviews on Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights

As an avid Jane Austen fan, and a fan of the classics in general, it was only a matter of time before I was sucked in by the Brontë sisters. So far, I have read Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, which are arguably the two most famous of the Brontës' novels. I am looking forward to my next Brontë read!

Let's start with Jane Eyre:

Sadly, I went into Jane Eyre knowing about the major plot twist. But don't worry, for anyone who DOESN'T know, I will not spoil it. Also, I envy you.

Jane Eyre was a delight from start to finish. It is dark and atmospheric, moody and brooding, but with touches of humor throughout. It is hopeful and uplifting, and highly thought provoking. You read the whole book feeling as if the clouds are a steely grey overhead, ever threatening rain, and a chill wind is blowing.

And it has everything you could want in a romance: enemies to lovers, a dark and brooding leading man, and a steady and stoic leading lady.

However, one of the elements of Jane Eyre that I did not know going into it, was how long it takes before Jane arrives at Rochester's home. I was delightfully surprised to find that we follow Jane through her entire life and that being a governess to Rochester's daughter, while the moment of rising action in the book, is not the main point of the story.

The story is a well developed one: you meet Jane as a child, abused and unloved. You follow her to boarding school where she meets her first friend, who helps her through the trials of both growing up and the abuses of those running the school. You watch her cope with loss; begin to come into her own; grow into a young woman; and ultimately, set out to map her own destiny. This leads her to the home of the enigmatic and moody Rochester, where she is hired as governess to his daughter. From there, Jane continues to chart her own course, even setting out on her own yet again when everything seems set against her.

Is Jane Eyre a coming of age story, or a romance? Or both? I will leave the reader to decide. But that aside, there is a reason this book is a classic. It is beautifully constructed, and a perfect moody read to get you through the winter months.

And now for Wuthering Heights:

I must be honest-- I found Wuthering Heights a bit of a disappointment after Jane Eyre. That being said, however, it was still a wonderfully well-written novel, and had all the moody vibes (and some) that I will come to expect from all future Brontë novels.

Wuthering Heights is everything Jane Eyre is not: hopelessly dark, toxic, and nearly every character is a villain. That is not to say it was bad, but this review may very well be an iteration of "it was not to my taste." So with that aside, allow me to continue my review in that vein.

Wuthering Heights, at it's heart, is NOT a love story. Or, if it is, it is of the most toxic kind. At it's heart, it is a story of a group of people, family and friends, as they grow up, make mistakes, and bear no consequences for their increasingly unhinged actions. The plot meanders in Wuthering Heights. It is definitely a character-driven story.

Heathcliffe's story can be seen as the story of a neglected and abused little boy becoming a villain. But this seems a little bit unlikely-- both because that is a far more modern trope, but also because Heathcliffe has no redemption, no remorse, and Emily Brontë truly writes him as a villain. Based on the notes at the end of the novel, she wrote him so blatantly villainous that the original reception of Wuthering Heights was lackluster at best because it was too obvious. He was written as, simply, a monster. Perhaps it would have been better to have written him as a sympathetic villain.

Interestingly, though, Catherine is similarly villainous, but in a much more subtle way. Her character is a bit more complex. At her heart, she is selfish, but she is also wrestling with the limitations placed upon women in that era. She is spunky and brazen. Interestingly this makes her likable to modern audiences, but probably seemed wild and inappropriate to the original audience, furthering her villainous character.

Maybe Emily Brontë was ahead of her time. In a lot of ways, I wonder if this story has stood the test of time because there are many moments that feel like reading a modern novel. It is highly sensational, with plenty of drama: extra-marital affairs, violence, alcohol abuse, physical and emotional abuse, and ghosts.

I may not have enjoyed Wuthering Heights all that much, but the vibes were fantastic: dark and brooding beyond anything I have ever read before. And I am glad I read the book, even if I can only give it an average rating.