Hareton and Cathy vs Heathcliff and Catherine

[Gabriela]

Is there someone else who likes Hareton and Cathy more than Heathcliff and Catherine?

[Gabriela]

Heathcliff and Catherine are more fascinating characters and their relationship is unique. But Hareton and Cathy are so sweet together. I wish there was more about them.

[Saima]

The love between Catherine and Heathcliff is out of this world. We can't say the same for Hareton and Cathy because we don't find out how they end.

[[deleted user]]

Hareton and Cathy are definitely the nicer, more likable couple. I prefer their love story, but only because Heathcliff and Catherine's are so selfish, and I don't think true love should be like that.

[Hayley]

My favourite part of Wuthering Heights is actually Hareton and Cathy's fledgling romance. I just never liked Catherine or Heathcliffe. They were cruel, selfish people who deserved their fate, in my opinion.

[Saidah]

I agree with Hayley. If that part wasn't there, I do not think I waould have finished the book. It was too gloomy and depressing. And I hated Heathcliff.

[Alex_k]

I rather despise Heathcliff for the hideous mistreatment of his departed beloved's daughter. I wish Cathy Jr. had had the guts to stand up to the monster but she only raised her voice once or twice against his insults. The man had destroyed her uncle; had brutally abused her aunt, his wife; had made Hareton, her cousin, grow up in squalor and ignorance; had killed his own son, her husband and cousin, and had stolen her rightful inheritance - yet she did not even plot any revenge against him. Mercifully, he died, having starved himself to death like Cathy Sr. and possibly Emily Brontë, the author.

So yes, pretty much any other character in the story is more human that Heathcliff, except old Joseph perhaps. Catherine Earnshaw though is a mystery to me.

[Blaze]

I thought Hareton was getting ignored in the hoopla of Heathcliff. Nice to see a few people did notice him. Not saying that I don't love Heathcliff's character, without him wuthering heights wouldn't be wuthering heights.

But sometimes I wonder if Hareton too is not as capable of nastiness as his creator, Heathcliff. There were instances where his cruelty comes out strong. Who knows what lengths he would have gone too if his Cathy hadn't returned his affections. 'Cause I have no doubt he was as obsessed with Cathy as Heathcliff was with Catherine.

Hareton was different in the fact that he was willing enough to change for his love, whereas Heathcliff wanted Catherine with all his cruelties and evil machinations.

[Joana]

Well as much as I enjoyed Catherine and Hareton's love (it was truly like a breath of fresh air in that gloomy, opressed environment) I do have to say that one of the things that kept me so into this book was the love between Cathy and Heathcliff.. they were not the typical loveable main characters and they were very dark and flawed, but what I loved about it was to see Heathcliff's character, normally so cruel and terrible become almost like this boy in love, acting in irrational jealous ways and being completely mesmerized by Cathy; even if their version of love wasn't the standard one, I think that his transformation around/about Cathy was truly amazing.

[Kate]

Catherine and Heathcliff were depressing and disturbing. Cathy and Hareton's story was nice but at that point, nothing could redeem the book for me.

[Victoria]

Gabriela wrote: "Is there someone else who likes Hareton and Cathy more than Heathcliff and Catherine?"

Yes , I would rather be Hareton and Cathy the 2nd myself.Of course this book isnt one Id choose to live in.

[Zeib]

The story of catherine and heathcliff ended with sad ending and their life was completely covered in crisis because of such problems, They became too negative characters. Especially heathcliff who didn't love his only son where as cathy and hereton were good nature and they've respect for others.

[Holly]

Dina wrote: "Most definitely. Cathy and Heathcliff are all drama and metaphysical bonds and something ethereal and the dark side of love. I adore them as characters, but Cathy Linton and Hareton are redemption ..."

I also remember reading that piece/theory! Great stuff. And I agree with your summation of the two pairs. Sometimes I wish the novel had ended though with just Heathcliff and Catherine, because it seems a bit repetitive.

[Paula]

I prefer Hareton and Cathy by far. I think they redeemed the book. Heathcliff and Cathy were too wild and selfish by far. If it wasn't for the softness and promise of redemption their romance brought, it would have been a very bleak book indeed.

[Kaya]

Heathcliff and Cathy had unique relationship indeed. But they were too much destructive and, at the same time, making each other happy and deeply joyless and wrathful. Their love was unbearable, dark and dysfunctional. I was so compeled by how tragic their love story was. But if they ever actually got married I think everything would've got worse instead of better. On the other hand, Hareton and Cathy were everything that Heathcliff and Cathy could've been if they had healthy and non-obsessive relationship. And still, their bond had all the thrilling elements that their ancestors had. I definitely prefer Hareton and Cathy.

[mandinmandin]

Heathcliff and Cathy had this unique relationship. Their relationship went the way it went because of the circumstances that surrounded them during growing up and educating. Cathy needed security, while Heathcliff needed to give security to her.
While Hareton and Young Cathy had a different life. They were both loved, even Hareton was loved by Heathcliff in a way.
They are the same people to me, only improved.

[[deleted user]]

Heathcliff and Catherine are perfect for each other: they are both toxic people with toxic intentions. I don't believe that their loves "out of this world" because Catherine was an incredibly selfish woman that had cake but still still wanted to eat it. If she truly loved Heathcliff, she wouldn't have married Edgar. Sorry, she was just an annoying histrionic and Heathcliff was creepily obsessed with her.

Hareton and Cathy are definitely the superior couple: they grew to understand each other. Their love isn't just mindless passion - it's a love of the minds. And even though they argue, you can tell that they care. Also, unlike their parents, they aren't toxic people.

[Hannah]

Heathcliff and Catherine. Cathy and Hareton were boring in comparison. All they did was bicker like an old married couple. Heathcliff and Catherine were crazy yes, but passionate and far more interesting.

[Hannah]

Dina wrote: "Most definitely. Cathy and Heathcliff are all drama and metaphysical bonds and something ethereal and the dark side of love. I adore them as characters, but Cathy Linton and Hareton are redemption ..."

They're incredible.

[Sorrel]

Hareton and Catherine mostly because I didn't really feel any romance between Heathcliff and Cathy. They proclaimed their love and acted as if they were obsessed but I never really connected with it. Added to that they were just generally less likeable characters. I empathised with them, Cathy less, but I could not like them.
I think the younger Cathy was not the nicest person either, by the end of the book. And some of the ways she treated Hareton just because he dared to be her cousin. However, I think in the end they managed to overcome the past and I could feel that they loved each other more, they weren't just obsessed.

[Kasun]

Gabriela wrote: "Heathcliff and Catherine are more fascinating characters and their relationship is unique. But Hareton and Cathy are so sweet together. I wish there was more about them."

I too wish the same and you know the most enjoyable part of the novel for me was when Cathy tries to remedy her mistakes to Hareton and Hareton just ignores her...

[Sam]

Heathcliff and Catherine's relationship seems so dysfunctional because it's not supposed to be understandable. They don't 'love' each other, nor are they 'obsessed' with each other, they simply NEED each other to survive, they are soul mates, two halves of the whole. Their relationship is not about happiness, and they both understand that, its about uniting together, and transcending the mortal world. That's why Heathcliff digs up Catherine at the end of the novel, so the two halves can finally be one.

Bronte is mocking the stereotypical 'love' in Cathy and Hareton. The reason they end up together is because they are both so alone in the world. Yes, Cathy does make the first move, and Hareton reciprocates, but they both only do this because they are so alone.

Bronte is trying to show her audience that true love isn't pretty, things aren't tied in a nice neat bow at the end of the day. She is a Gothic writer, and they believed in passion and violence, and in inner beauty.
So, in my opinion Bronte is giving readers the Cathy/Hareton relationship to placate them, but direct them towards a different kind of love.


Sorry for the length, I just feel really passionately on this topic ahahaha. I made an account just to comment on this. Also thanks if you read all of this :)

[Paula]

Sam wrote: "Heathcliff and Catherine's relationship seems so dysfunctional because it's not supposed to be understandable. They don't 'love' each other, nor are they 'obsessed' with each other, they simply NEE..."

It's a great discussion. I understand the point made by Sam. I believe that as far as Emily Bronte was concerned, her Heathcliff/Catherine relationship was intended to be superior. They were indeed two halves of a whole. I like the theory that her second generation was intended to be a faint mirror of the first. Yet if she intended to placate the reader, it worked for many of us. Even though I'm not sure Bronte wanted us to, I can't help preferring Cathy and Hareton just the same. I would have liked the book far less without their love story at the end.

It's bit stereotypical maybe, but far better than the Cathy and Linton fiasco. And also better than the Cathy and Lockwood union would have been, had his fantasies come true. I love the way Cathy and Hareton bring the best out of each other.

[Hannah]

Sam wrote: "Heathcliff and Catherine's relationship seems so dysfunctional because it's not supposed to be understandable. They don't 'love' each other, nor are they 'obsessed' with each other, they simply NEE..."

No need to be ashamed. I feel very strongly about this too.

[Hannah]

Dina wrote: "Most definitely. Cathy and Heathcliff are all drama and metaphysical bonds and something ethereal and the dark side of love. I adore them as characters, but Cathy Linton and Hareton are redemption ..."

Wow! This sounds fascinating! If you ever find this article I would love it if you could post the link.

[Marcia]

I liked Hareton and Cathy better. I liked the way their relationship grew out of all the unrest and anger. Heathcliff was very cruel. The book for me really brought out for me the lack of standing women had in those days. I would not be surprised if many women were kidnapped and forced into marriage when their were fortunes up for grabs.
Linton was almost as bad as Heathcliff. Such a sickly weak self absorbed character. I don't understand why anyone would like him. Hareton proved to have so much more potential which I thought was really good.

For me the ending was totally unexpected. Having not seen any of the movies I was expecting Hareton and Cathy to come to some unfortunate end. I always perceived that it was a really sad book. The book I thought ended on quite a happy note.

[Paula]

Marcia wrote: "I liked Hareton and Cathy better. I liked the way their relationship grew out of all the unrest and anger. Heathcliff was very cruel. The book for me really brought out for me the lack of standing ..."

I agree with Marcia. It was a nice surprise that the ending wasn't entirely bleak. Good for them! By that stage, I was getting tired of Heathcliff's dramatics anyway, and their romance was the perfect deviation.

[Kristine]

I like the different couples in different ways.
While I can appreciate Catherine and Heathcliff's intensity, I wanted to yell at them at times. Cathy and Hareton however, I wanted to nudge toward each other.
(I know they're book characters, but still.)
I was so happy when they got together.

[Iris]

I think it's a tie with me. Heathcliff and Cathy knew who each other were, inside and out. To the depths of their souls. And they accepted and loved each other both because of and in spite of those things.

Hareton and Cathy didn't know each other fully, and probably never will. Because of how they were brought up they are more reserved and closed off to both good and bad things. They each live in their world and no matter how much they might want to I can't see them really opening up to each other.

[Colleen]

I love "Wuthering Heights" and I understand the appeal of the Heathcliff/Cathy love story, and I think in the relationship of Hareton/Catherine there is a chance to have something of a happy ending that Heathcliff and Cathy didn't get to have. True, as stated by Iris, the former couple knew one another much better, but who knows if Hareton and Catherine will form the same relationship in that sense. I think that's one of the things that softens Heathcliff toward their blossoming romance in the end - he sees the similarities between the two young ones and the bond he once had with Cathy. Hareton is very much like Heathcliff in terms of position in the household, Catherine was more or less "the lady of the house". However, Hareton has more of a sensitivity than Heathcliff. Not to say that young Earnshaw and young Catherine would have a perfect relationship; they both have experienced tragedy and tyranny, the latter due to Heathcliff himself. I don't think Catherine ever loved Linton, although she cared for him.

It was obvious that Hareton, while he maybe didn't fall in love with Catherine when he first saw her, was taken by her. She came to dislike him because she thought he was just like Heathcliff and saw him as beneath her, but she discovered he had been robbed of his own inheritance and in a sense, his own identity. His thirst for knowledge I think eventually also wore away her resentment. I feel for Catherine being a pawn in Heathcliff's revenge and I can understand to a certain degree why she became so unpleasant. But at times I wanted to shake her because she didn't see how much Hareton really did care for her. He was sensitive enough to know when people looked down on him, and he was humiliated when she discovered his attempts to better himself and his education.

Yes, Hareton and Catherine are definitely the more pleasant love story, not nearly as complex as their forbears, but I too wish there was more about them in the book. I also like seeing them on film and television and I've liked pretty much every actor I've seen portray Hareton. Catherine, like Cathy can be harder to cast, but for the most part she has been portrayed very well onscreen.

[Colleen]

Very good points, Cemre. There are similarities between Heathcliff and Hareton, but also differences. The forgiveness factor: Hareton loved Heathcliff and viewed the latter as his father despite the treatment he often received from him. He was really the only one who grieved when Heathcliff died, and could not bear for anyone to speak against him. Totally contrasted with Heathcliff, who not only never forgave Hindley but plotted and carried out revenge against him. And of course, it didn't stop there. He even sought retribution with his own son, and used him as a pawn.