“Nelly, I am Heathcliff. He’s always, always in my mind: not as a pleasure, anymore than I am a pleasure to myself, but as my own being.”
Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte.
In December 1847, publisher Thomas Newby published “Wuthering Heights”, a part of three-volume book, the story contained the first two volumes and “Agnes Grey” consisted of the third volume. The book failed, it was unlike anything that had been read before, critics did not know what to make of it—one critic claimed it to be a “disagreeable story” while others claimed it to be strange, mad and confusing.
The book was credited to one “Ellis Bell”, Bronte chose a male pseudonym to hide her femininity. She was credited as the author a few years later, but Bronte was already dead by then, she had died on December 1848. In her lifetime, Bronte knew nothing about the success that Wuthering Heights would ultimately get, she died thinking that the book was a failure.
Emily was known to be shy and reserved, she led her life very quietly with least contact with the outside world, it was sheer luck that her writings were discovered by Charlotte.
Rather than shedding a light, Wuthering Heights darkens the mystery around Emily Bronte—a woman who most probably never witnessed romantic love is credited as the author of one of the most haunting love stories of all time. Some call it imagination, some a spiritual experience.
In her own way, Emily Bronte changed the way women authors were seen in the literary world. She inspired and paved the way for women authors of coming generations. So as we celebrate Emily Bronte’s 201st birthday on July 30, here are some facts you might not know about the ever-elusive and mysterious author of Wuthering Heights.
• Emily Bronte’s childhood: Paving the way for her creative genius
Emily spent almost her entire life in her home, whenever she would visit went someplace else, she would become homesick and ultimately would come back. Even though she minimum life experiences and adventures, she had high imaginative power. The family was not wealthy, lived a secluded life and the children passed their time creating tales.
Reading and other Arts were encouraged in the household and all of the children were well-read. They were also good artists, their paintings are well known now and they often created their stories on small bits of paper, it is extremely difficult to read them—they were almost creating a secret world unknown to others.
• Gondal: A fantasy country created by Emily and Anne
When Emily and her siblings were growing up, they played a game of creating imaginary settings with fictional characters. The game started off when 12 wooden soldiers were given to Branwell from their father. Each sibling took a soldier, named it and created a backstory for them. However, when Emily and Anne were neglected from the games, they decided to create their own island and named it Gondal.
It was an ambitious task, Emily and Anne had created a country, they even had its location—islands in North and South Pacific. If the material had survived, we would have received one of the earliest tales of fantasy universe, however, most of the material is destroyed and we are only left with some diary entries and poems.
• Emily Bronte: The poet
Although now mostly remembered for the only novel she created, Emily Bronte was also a brilliant poet. In 1846, a year before Wuthering Heights was published, a collection of poems called, “Poems by Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell” was published. It consisted of poems written by each sister, they used pseudonyms, each sister retaining the first letter of her name. The collection sold only two copies despite getting good reviews but most of Emily’s poems are widely read now.
They provide an insight into the mysterious life of the author and through the years, people have tried to decode Bronte through her poems.
• Emily and Charlotte’s time in Belgium
In 1842, Emily along with Charlotte visited Brussels to study language at the ‘Pensionnat Héger.’ The sisters were very different from the rest of pupils, particularly Emily, she was anti-social and very possessive of Charlotte. Extremely homesick, she longed to return home. Her time, however, was well spent—she learnt to play piano and became a music teacher. Their trip was cut short when the news of her aunt’s death reached them and they returned home.
• Wuthering Heights: A melodramatic masterpiece
Wuthering Heights is a strange book. When it was first published in 1847, the critics and the audience were shocked at the sheer brutality of the main characters. Today, however, Heathcliff and Catherine have become immortal, seeping deeply into the human conscience.
Now essentially reduced to a love story, Wuthering Heights also narrates the story of revenge, uncontrollable passion, the helplessness of women and children and explores the social divide that existed in Victorian England.
The jury is still divided over the fate of these characters, however, it is a fact that Wuthering Heights is one of its kind, there is nothing else quite resembling it.
• Death by Tuberculosis
Death was nothing unnatural in the Bronte household—Emily’s two elder sisters had died when they were young. Anne Bronte died on May 28, 1849, Branwell died on September 24 in the same year. At Branwell’s funeral, Emily developed a cold and her health worsened.
Despite her failing health, she remained resilient, never agreeing to see a doctor. On December 19, 1848, Emily died at about 2 in the afternoon leaving behind one novel and a few poems.