What life lessons did this teach you?

[MJ]

I got "Choose your neighbors wisely".

[[deleted user]]

...to follow your heart despite what others might think ans say.

[Alex]

That if you do not have LOVE in your life, you don't have anything. That without love you are an empty person ...

And another lesson will be that love is the strongest feeling from all, That it can get throw everything, even death.

[Kayla]

Just because something does not go the way you want it to does not mean that all is lost - unless you wallow in it and allow it to consume you.

[Iris]

To second guess yourself is more fatal than to follow through with your desires. Always be sure of yourself.

[Nahed.E]

Be ware of your dreams , maybe become true !!

[E.]

"Chicks dig jerks."

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

Ignore media hype about a novel/film, even if said hype is over a century old. Charlotte was a much better writer than Emily, and Villette is hugely better than Jane Eyre.

[Gandalfgrijs]

Being in love with someone is no excuse to behave badly or hurt other people.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

From the very first chapter, I'd say "don't barge into your landlord's house uninvited and expect to be treated like a welcome guest. He's renting a house to you, yes, but not the one he's living in. If he wants you to visit, he'll invite you."

[Nanofate]

Don't get so god damn obsessed over whoever you love and don't use your love for someone to ruin other peoples lives, including the life of the one you love.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

Nanofate wrote: "Don't get so god damn obsessed over whoever you love and don't use your love for someone to ruin other peoples lives, including the life of the one you love."

-but is that kind of obsessive, possessive attitude really love?

[Nanofate]

Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) wrote: "Nanofate wrote: "Don't get so god damn obsessed over whoever you love and don't use your love for someone to ruin other peoples lives, including the life of the one you love."

-but is that kind of..."

Yeah, Heathcliff loved her alright, for me that was kind of the point, possessive love that is so often portrayed in classical literature is a lot more destructive than people like to think.

[Nanofate]

Mary wrote: "Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) wrote: "Nanofate wrote: "Don't get so god damn obsessed over whoever you love and don't use your love for someone to ruin other peoples lives, including the life o..."

Hate to go all Nietzsche on you but love is always in part about owning someone, you want exclusive rights to them and their body, that's why you get jealous when other people flirt with your partner, when someone you love is with someone else you get jealous because you want to own them. I'm not saying love is always like that but part of loving someone is wanting to "own" them in certain aspects.

[Iris]

Mary wrote: "The problem is this: Heathcliff never had Catherine to begin with. She wanted him to get rich. He followed her orders but he didn't tell her where he was or what he was doing. In the meantime, she ..."

Well he never had her physically but emotionally she was his. She says as much throughout the pages. But she chose the money because she needed it to take care of herself and him. In her mind, because she loved him and had the means to provide for him she must do so. No one wants to see the person they love suffer.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

Mary wrote: "I was joking when I said that. Didn't childbirth kill Cathy? She seemed to be pretty wimpy health wise. If she got wet in the rain or felt a little stress it made her go all bed ridden."

Upper class women were expected to be so delicate that they could die of a chill. Even Charlotte B's heroines (particularly Jane) were brought to death's doorstep by missing a couple of meals and being out in the rain, although Jane was young, healthy and strong at the time. "Delicate" meant "true lady."

[Carolina]

Those who are too passionate get either a shorter life or a long but miserable one. Moderation above all things!

[Darren]

Don't mistake obsession for love.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

Well, you have to remember that not even aspirin was available to the general public until the 1920s or so. But in literature, the "delicate lady" was a trope from the 18th century (like the French "precieuses") on.

[Hannah]

That love is the most important thing in this world and that once you find it you should ever let go.

[[deleted user]]

This taught me that people are or can be bound to someone in a spirtual way without them being lovers or family. I says to me about the power or friendship.

[Hannah]

Cemre wrote: "I've got two; unsurprising since it ia essentially two novels in one book:
" Never betray who you are for being accepted by society."
"Don't let your hate consume you.""

Wow! This is exactly right.

[[deleted user]]

Mary wrote: "If you are an adult, act like one. If someone is toxic to you in any way, stay away from them. Linton's sister got a bad deal all around. I wonder why her brother was so horrible to her? He complet..."

I don't think she knew that at the time.

[Iris]

Cemre wrote: "Cathy and Heathcliff are two childhood friends (actually siblings-not biologically) who spent years together playing, talking, resisting. They never had any friends but each other. Their love doesn..."

I don't think that Heathcliff is 'undoubtedly a bad person', he was just an extremest who didn't know how to react to the intense feelings that he was experiencing.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

Emily herself was not a happy balanced person, Mary. The biographies seem to concur with Charlotte's view of Emily; whenever she left Haworth for any length of time, whether on a visit or when she went to Belgium or the short time she taught, she would eventually become physically ill because she couldn't live without the moors.

Also she knew she was seriously ill and refused to see a doctor until she was actually dying.

[Geoffrey]

For those who love Jayne Eyre but fault the ending read the EYRE AFFAIR- one of the most imaginative novels out there.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

Mary wrote: "Oh that's very sad Orinoco. I am going to see if our library has any biographies on the Brontes. It sounds like she had a few fears in life. That can really affect a person physically."

If you have an Ebook, you can find some biographies on Project Gutenberg, for free. Mrs Gaskell's biography of Charlotte is a good place to start. There's also a book by a friend of M. Heger (Charlotte's unrequited love) that is interesting.

[E.]

Mary wrote: "E. wrote: ""Chicks dig jerks.""

True but she picked the rich guy LOL"

I wasn't talking about the character, though. Heathcliff is a terrible, terrible person but somehow he's popular with many female readers.

[Helen]

"Just because you love someone, doesn't mean that you should be with them. Some relationships are just unhealthy."

[Iris]

Cemre wrote: "No, he wouldn't. Their love is not explainable by normal human being ways. Isabella and Heathcliff's relationship is explainable and a good example of "abusers abuse". But this : No. Heathcliff wor..."

I agree

[Erma]

One of the lessons I learned (or rather reinforced) was empathy. That seems like one of the strongest emotions I felt that I can still remember from reading this long ago.

[Sheillagh]

I would say that this book is a love story and also a difference in class story. What I thought came through was not to betray your heart, to love who you love and not worry about what society's opinion is. Catherine's decision to marry Linton, instead of Heathcliff because she said it would degrade her, led to destruction of all involved.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

but the thing with Cathy literally takes place in a different planet.

Literally? Really? I didn't realise that Wuthering Heights was sci-fi, though it's pretty alien to me....

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

I couldn't resist, Cemre...people use that word to death and the mental image it gave me cracked me up. Thanks, I needed a good giggle. (I'm an ESL teacher, words and their meanings are my job.)

[Alex]

Sorry for asking, but what means a ESL teacher?

[Geoffrey]

English as a Second Language. Orinoco teaches students English who are not native speakers.

[Smriti]

Boring..

[Anya]

You need balance in your life, and you need multiple sources of happiness, or once you loose your happiness, you loose everything and can't see anything but what you once had.

[Anya]

After thinking longer, I realized that Wurthering Heights might have had more to do with time, and not second-guessing yourself. If Catherine had done as she had wanted, without letting greed get in the way, she would have stayed with Heathcliff, not married for money and status. Love can often be a one-time thing, so you shouldn't let it go thinking you can easily find more.

[Lorrane]

Love is unconditional & if one do not get love it doesn't mean one should destroy other people life.

[Yefim]

Child abuse produces really messed up people who tend to abuse others.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

Lorrane wrote: "Love is unconditional & if one do not get love it doesn't mean one should destroy other people life."

True but unfortunately if one doesn't get love that makes it harder to know how to give it.

[Yoyo]

MJ wrote: "I got "Choose your neighbors wisely"."

good

[thekitkath]

I got: Don't waste your time or you'll end up dead and crazy or dead and alone Hahaha

[Michele]

If you don't like a book you don't need to read it all the way through. Let your book club know why you don't think every old book written by a young woman should be considered a "classic".

[selene]

I think it really accentuated just how hate is just as powerful a feeling as love, especially if harbored for so many years. And how seeking revenge doesn't always bring the positive relief of closure one may expect, because all you're left with is alone and with less than you had from the start.

[louise m.]

Perhaps: revenge will bite you in the ass? And that if a man is desperate and angry he really cares about you, so pick that guy ... sarcasm on the last one.

[louise m.]

selene wrote: "I think it really accentuated just how hate is just as powerful a feeling as love, especially if harbored for so many years. And how seeking revenge doesn't always bring the positive relief of clos..."

that's true