On The Search For The True Self In Wuthering Heights

Emily Bront? is one of the most celebrated British writers in the nineteenth century,who earns her reputation in English literature by her only novel Wuthering Heights.Although possessing great talent for imagination and literary creation,Bront? only receives a widely-acknowledged affirmation as a preeminent novelist after her death,which is associated with the fact that Wuthering Heights is to some extent a controversial work.Some critics find it extremely radical and inconsistent with the conventional morality,and it challenges the universal value of Victorian society.However,Bront? creates this novel with no intention of catering to the public and clearly illustrates the interaction between personal development and social expectation.She deliberately and boldly exposes the dark side of human nature to prove that the mental condition is subject to both social demands and personal desires.Under this circumstance,it is necessary for people to hold on to their true selves to gain the real happiness of their lives.The processes of realizing the true selves in two generations are explored in this thesis.The twists and turns of Catherine and Heathcliff constitute the first part of the novel,reflecting their most intense emotion and possessive relationship.Originally,they regard wealth and status as indispensable things in establishing a happy and steady relationship.Therefore they put them in a prior position instead of being true self.However,their love still ends with agony and death.Only when they are dying can they get some relief with the regain of true selves.In contrast with the distorted love of the first generation,Cathy and Hareton as the representatives of the second generation makes up for the ancestral regret.Undoubtedly,Cathy and Hareton's love and marriage is the continuation and sublimation of that of the first generation.They have a milder and healthier relationship and they are aware that love and knowledge play the most significant part in life.And that's why they can successfully realize their true selves and live a tranquil and happy life.It can be concluded that they achieve the goal which Catherine and Heathcliff fail to reach.And that is also the solution to happiness in the patriarchal society.This thesis analyzes the process of seeking for true selves among four main characters in Wuthering Heights and explains the various means they take to achieve this goal in the light of Adler's Individual Psychology.With the exploration of struggling processes of realizing true selves in two generations,it seems that what Emily Bront? really intends to convey is the importance and necessity of sticking to the true self under any circumstances.Because only when people find and realize their true selves can they get to know their personal flaws,understand what is worthy to pursue,and overcome all the social obstacles to live in happiness.And that is exactly the purpose and value of this thesis.