Many people view social class as a social evil. However, there are others who believe that the individual human behavior of searching for social status is what starts the process of a society fracturing into two or more distinct classes. Often times, one is completely satisfied and fulfilled with what he or she has become accustomed to or acquainted with. Usually, it is not until after one has been exposed, through some life experience, occurrence, or observation, that he or she comes to a realization that there are substantial differences present between any two individuals, families, or any groups of people in any environment. Most of the explanation of human behavior lies in life experiences, and these experiences are related to the ways in which human beings meet their needs. “All our behavior-thoughts, feelings, and actions- is directed toward keeping ourselves alive, intact, and functioning, as well as toward improving our life situation” (Lindgren 31). Although specific incidents influence the individual’s thoughts and the way they each view their positions in the hierarchy of status in Wuthering Heights, it is natural human behavior that causes these individuals to quickly discover the differences between themselves and those with whom they interact with on a daily basis. In WutheringHeights, the Linton family, Heathcliff, and Catherine are all directly influenced by specific occurrences which cause them to individually create a stratification of social class, even within the isolated and secluded environment of Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange.
In the story, the Linton family is obsessed with luxury and glamour. Although there exists no real or substantial difference in the amount of wealth amongst those at Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, there is a huge difference in the way they choose to live their lives. While the children from Wuthering Heights are out playing in the moors and exploring the wild environment which surrounds them, the Lintons are inside: safe, spoiled, and cowardly. In his book titled Psychology and Human Performance, Gagne writes that “The important thing about social strata is that people identify themselves and others with certain social classes, and this identification influences their behavior and attitude” (301). The Lintons live out their wealth and social class to extremes, always following strict order of conduct and living structured and civilized lives. When Henry Clay Lindgren writes about A.H. Maslow’s system of “basic needs”, he describes the fourth level to consist of “needs that relate to maintaining satisfying relationships with oneself and others- to be valued, accepted, and appreciated as a person; to possess self-esteem and self-respect, and to be esteemed and respected; to have status; and to avoid rejection or disapproval” (31). Many specific events within the story lead the Linton family to believe they are, in one way or another, superior to the Earnshaw family. In this way, the Linton family meets its needs of having status. When Mr. Earnshaw brings home an orphan child, Heathcliff, the Linton family once again is exposed to the many differences between themselves and those at Wuthering Heights. The Lintons looked down upon and ridiculed the Earnshaw family, including the children, for bringing an orphan, someone of much lesser status than all others within the close and secluded lives at Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, to be a part of their supposed upper class lifestyle. This is one differentiating factor that enables the Lintons to believe they are superior. Also, when the entire Linton family is exposed to Heathcliff and Catherine’s wild behavior, the Linton family begins feeling sophisticated and superior. Later, when Catherine is changed for the better; that is she is made to be more like the Linton children, more proper, reserved, and quiet, the Lintons take pride in her “improvement”. Dr. Martha Kinkaid writes that “being a role model or someone a child looks up to definitely boosts self esteem” (49). The fact that Catherine chooses to live like those at Thrushcross Grange gives the Linton family reason to believe that their way of life has something more to offer than that of those at Wuthering Heights.
The orphan in the story, Heathcliff, is brought up with Hindley and Catherine. James L. Schaller believes “An emotional orphan who is criticized by a spouse, a friend, a lover, or an employee is likely to react with hostility or withdrawal. This is because the people closest to us shoot at closer range” (1). He often feels different, more secluded from the family. He accepts his status as lower because of his orphan heritage. Although he strives to improve, receives an education, and is treated as a part of the family by Mr. Earnshaw and Catherine, Hindley and his abuse towards Heathcliff are constant reminders that he is not a part of the high social class which the people at both Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange belong to. When the Lintons turn Heathcliff away in the middle of the night, yet choose to keep Catherine, treating her like a queen, and tending to her injury for five weeks, this is another instance in which Heathcliff feels he is inferior. Later, when the Lintons come for dinner and insist Heathcliff have no interaction with the entire Linton family, especially the children, this makes him feel even more like an outsider. Although all of this forces Heathcliff to accept his status as beneath everyone else, there is one deciding factor that causes him to believe he is inferior to all. When Heathcliff overhears Catherine’s decision to accept Edgar’s proposal and choose him over Heathcliff, Heathcliff is once again reminded that simply because of his orphan past, regardless of his hard work and effort, he will never be good enough, even for the love of his life. The mere fact that Catherine chooses to pursue the lifestyle offered at Thrushcross Grange, rather than live the wild and courageous life at Wuthering Heights, makes Heathcliff feel inferior to the Lintons and to Edgar once again.
In the story, Catherine is aloud to run free through the moors with Heathcliff and is brutally punished for behaving wildly. She has no mother figure, and eventually, she loses her father as well. When Heathcliff is brought into the Earnshaw family, in the beginning, Catherine automatically feels superior to him. All of the Earnshaw children initially see Heathcliff as dirty and strange. However, eventually, Catherine begins to treat Heathcliff like her own brother and friend. Through discovering the wild moors and playing around, they discover that their personalities have much in common. It is not until Catherine and Heathcliff are exposed to the life at Thrushcross Grange, that Catherine recognizes the difference between herself and the Linton family. When Lintons turn away Heathcliff, yet keep Catherine, she feels superior to Heathcliff for the first time. The fact that she is fascinated and drawn to the luxurious and glamorous lifestyle while her playmate, Heathcliff, is repulsed by it, shows one difference in their characters. Also, Catherine chooses to pursue that lifestyle rather than accept the life that she would have lived at Wuthering Heights. This shows that possibly she felt inferior to the Lintons, and wanted to improve her status by becoming more like them, while at the same time, she felt superior to all those, especially Heathcliff, at Wuthering Heights, and longed to get away from it. Edwin Fleishman describes the process of learning and discriminating through experience. In one experiment using rats, he observed a rat make decisions based on experience. A white rat was repeatedly placed in a box and was given an option of either a white door, which contained food as a reward, or a black door, which contained nothing. Eventually, the rat tended to go directly to the white door where the food was, while completely avoiding the black door. Where as initially the rat had little or no response to the different colored doors, through the sudden discovery of food, the rat quickly realized that, in it’s opinion, the white door simply had more to offer and thus, the rat was more attracted to it and repulsed by the black door. Similarly, Catherine is treated like a queen while at the Linton’s house and is attracted to the lifestyle at Thrushcross Grange over that of Wuthering Heights. She chooses Edgar, although she truly loves Heathcliff. She makes all of these decisions based on her belief that the life of those at Thrushcross Grange has something more to offer than that of all those at Wuthering Heights.
Each of these characters are examples of how one specific and life altering event can cause people to create an individual belief about their personal statuses. This event usually causes people to place themselves within a certain strata. The human desire for status and these “eye-opening” occurrences force people to compare themselves to others. They eventually come to a truth that they are either better than or beneath others in their direct environment. Within the lives of each of the Wuthering Heights characters mentioned here, one main incident caused them to decide about their status and to position themselves within a social class that is somewhat visible in the story of WutheringHeights. Segmenting into several distinct classes within a group of people, especially as small of a group as those at Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, is a process that begins at a different point in several people’s lives. The stratification is not something that naturally exists. Social class initially makes its way into the lives of all those at Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange within the minds of the individual characters of the Linton Family, Heathcliff, and Catherine. Most people view social class as a social evil, yet it is clear that the fault for social stratification lies solely on the individual, not society.
Works Cited
Bronte, Emily. WutheringHeights. New York: Bantam Books, 1974.
Dawson, Terence. “The Struggle for Deliverance from the Father: the Structural Principle of ‘Wuthering Heights’.” Expanded Academic ASAP. Modern Language Review. April 1989. Cerro Coso Community College. 28 April 2004
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Fleishman, Edwin, and Gagne, Robert. Psychology and Human Performance. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1959.
Kinkaid, Martha. “Just Like Me?” Life 13 December 1994: 48-49.
Lindren, Henry C. “The Development of Personality: the Self.” Psychology of Personal and Social Adjustment. Robert Stewart. September 1992. Bakersfield College. 28 April 2004 .
. James L. Schaller. Orphan Feelings: Moving Beyond Our Fears and Loneliness. Professional Medical Services of Naples. 29 April 2004 .
