Understanding Heathcliff

One of the most interesting characters in Wuthering Heights is Heathcliff. The scholarly journal by H.W Gallagher compares Heathcliff to Mary Shelly’s character Victor Frankenstein. If one compares Heathcliff to Frankenstein then one can have a better understanding of Heathcliff’s actions throughout the novel. Events include: Heacliff’s beating of Hareton and his hatred of Catherine because she looks like her mother. These first two events are easily explained through the history of the story. The last event which is confusing to understand is Heathcliff’s death.
I was shocked once I realized Heathcliff died from the pain brought to him by the haunting of the ghost of Catherine, and also how much he realized his daughter in law resembled the one woman he once loved. Since Heathcliff was in love with Catherine, the lost of her pushed him to an edge where few humans go, because all he wanted was to take revenge on the people that turned him into the “monster” of being “lower” class.
I believe Heathcliff died finally because he realized taking out his thoughtless revenge on Catherine and Hareton, finally made him realize, his crazed state of “evil,” will never bring back Catherine no matter how much he tries to destroy the people who destroyed him.
I believe once he realizes how much his daughter in-law resembles Catherine Heathcliff, hits a turning point when he realizes the only way he can see Catherine again is to die. The ending of Heathcliff struck me similar to the death of Catherine because he stops eating until one day he finally dies.
Heathcliff is the polar opposite to Victor Frankenstein because Frankenstein creates life, while Heathcliff tears down the worlds of people who remind him of his failure to marry Catherine. Heathcliff is ruthless in his injustice, because he takes his revenge out on his own daughter in-law; he takes it almost to the point of striking her.