Big question to Wuthering Heights

There are many ideas and images in Wuthering Weights that connect to evil, if humans are inherently evil and why we are so attracted to evil. Many of the characters in Bronte’s book are twisted and act in mean or vengeful manners, they are either born good or bad. The actual place, Wuthering Heights can be seen as an evil and dark place which overshadows the more lighter and happier Thrushcross Grange. Whenever there is evil, there is always good right on its heels, just like Yin and Yang there can either be conflict or harmony. Themes like revenge, self destruction, selfishness, betrayal and obsession add to the more evil part of the book and ultimately shape who the characters are and how the story ends.

The most evil character of them all is Heathcliff. He has been through hell, scorned, shamed, betrayed and obsessed with Catherine till he ends up destroying himself. In many pieces of literature the villains are looked at as completely different and sometimes lower than the good guy. In Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff is constantly looked down upon because he is of different color than everyone else. Catherine ends up picking Edgar because of his money and social status which is a point of no return for Heathcliff. Heathcliff then comes back to Wuthering Heights a few years later to seek revenge on Catherine and Edgar. One quote that stuck out in the book was when Catherine was talking to Nelly and she says, “Heaven did not seem to be my home; and I broke my heart with weeping to come back to earth; and the angels were so angry that they flung me out into the middle of the heath on the top of Wuthering Heights; where I woke sobbing for joy.” When she says “heaven did not seem to be my home,” I feel that deep inside, she knows that she is not a good person, she may not be as evil as Heathcliff but she is still a pretty bad person. She also talks about how she wanted to go back to Wuthering Heights, her home. From the beginning of the book, Wuthering Heights is portrayed as a dark and sinister even a hellish place and when Catherine says she wants to go back there instead of heaven, one might think that she wants to go back to the dark. Evil is attracted to more evil. Personally I like Heathcliff, he comes back to Wuthering heights to seek revenge on those who kept him down or kept Catherine and him apart. Heathcliff encourages Hindley’s alcoholism and gambling which ultimately is the ruin of him then puts Hareton as a stable hand then marries Isabella Linton to gain access to Thrushcross Grange. He is a twisted and wickedly intelligent villain. After reading this book I gained more insight into my question of “are humans inherently evil or good.” I feel that some humans are definitely born good or evil but there is no way to prove it so therefore I feel that life events that happen to a person can become factors of how that person will turn out. Someone can choose themselves if they let the the events affect them negatively or positively and what to do about it, Heathcliff decided to take the negative route while most other people will take the positive route in their lives. What will you choose?

Oedipus and evil

There is not much to go with Oedipus and evil but there are a few things that could be interpreted as having an evil or twisted side. Oedipus is not an evil or bad man, he is quite the opposite although he kills his father and marries his mother. He was blind to the truth, but then could the truth sometimes be evil? I am aware of the quote of "truth will always prevail over the forces of evil" but is that always true? Can evil take the role of truth and end up twisting what is true? Why do we imply that truth is always good and lies are always bad? The Sphinx is also portrayed as an evil creature who eats the people that cannot answer its questions but is the Sphinx actually evil? They are creatures of knowledge and only ask questions, if you cannot answer it then it eats you. Is it really that evil? or does it encourage you to learn and be intelligent? There are also the gods and fates in Oedipus which can be interpreted as evil. The gods let Oedipus suffer throughout the story while they sit back from afar and watch. Can gods be evil? To let people suffer and go through hell or do they actually deserve it?