Wuthering Heights

I got interested in Wuthering Heights after I read a psychological essay on human relationship that mentioned a wonderful book called The Outsider by Albert Camus, which I had read a decade earlier, and in the same breath - make that the same line, The Wuthering Heights. If the writer thought that The Outsider was able to convey much about human emotion, or rather the lack of it in its main character, I guess he must have thought highly on the way human behaviour was portrayed in Wuthering Heights - however queer they may be; much as you can't say you love someone and at the same time hated that person, and really mean it.

If I had considered The Outsider as a classic that won the author a Nobel prize for Literature, then surely I would love Wuthering Heights too.

But Wuthering Heights was beyond me initially. Much like I could not comprehend The Outsider in 1981 while doing English Literature at Leederville Technical College in Perth. How would a boy so immersed in Ramayana, Ranjau Sepanjang Jalan and other Hamka's novel comprehend Albert Camus' complex human relationships so foreign to this boy's upbringing.

Nonetheless, the passage of time has allowed me to immersed myself into the life of Monsieur Mersault.

Wuthering Heights was more painful process for me I guess. Book after books on Wuthering Height I had bought, but I simply could not get beyond the first chapter. I bought the DVD of the 1992 movie adapted from the novel by Emily Bronte. It is so dark, and complex too that I simple could not get my mind to weave through the movies.

But in the end, after years of trying to comprehend I managed to do it through a abridged version I found in Saigon while I was browsing at a bookshop. I have in my collection 3 versions of the books; the same number of books I have on Sitti Nurbaya, and the DVD movie version starring one Juliette Binoche who gave a strong performance in the 1992 movie.

It is a love story, but no, this is no Romeo and Julliet story. It is a love story with a twist. In the end it is much more than a just a love story. And I thought I should let the preface tells you the story that has captivated me for much of my life.

EPILOGUE

The wind is so strong on the Yorkshire moors. There are few trees, and fewer houses, to block the its path. There is on house, however, that does not hide from the wind. It stands out from the hill and challenges the wind to do its worst. The house is called Wuthering Heights.

Love is not always a happy experience. Nor do people who love each other always treat each other gently. We are familiar with stories where two lovers are kept apart by outside forces - sometimes by their families, sometimes by customs of their society.

In Wuthering Heights, the main force that keeps the lovers apart is themselves. The characters in this story, just like real people, have weaknesses - and their weaknesses lead them to unhappiness. They are proud and selfsh; they often have mixed feelings and are unable to make up their minds. For that reasons love often fails, but rarely as passionately and dramatically as in this story.

Move over Romeo and Julliet - here comes Heathcliff and Catherine.

Here is the original video from the song of the same name by Kate Bush, released in the 70s, obviously inspired by the novel by Emily Bronte.

Out on the wiley, windy moors

Wed roll and fall in green.

You had a temper like my jealousy:

Too hot, too greedy.

How could you leave me,

When I needed to possess you?

I hated you. I loved you, too.

Bad dreams in the night.

They told me I was going to lose the fight,

Leave behind my wuthering, wuthering Wuthering heights.

Heathcliff, its me--cathy.

Come home. Im so cold!

Let me in-a-your window.

Heathcliff, its me--cathy.

Come home. Im so cold!

Let me in-a-your window.

Ooh, it gets dark! it gets lonely,

On the other side from you.

I pine a lot.

I find the lot Falls through without you.

Im coming back, love.

Cruel heathcliff, my one dream, My only master.

Too long I roam in the night.

Im coming back to his side, to put it right.

Im coming home to wuthering, wuthering, Wuthering heights,

Heathcliff, its me--cathy. Come home. Im so cold!

Let me in-a-your window.

Heathcliff, its me--cathy. Come home. Im so cold!

Let me in-a-your window.

Ooh! let me have it. Let me grab your soul away.

Ooh! let me have it. Let me grab your soul away.

You know its me--cathy!

Heathcliff, its me--cathy.

Come home. Im so cold!

Let me in-a-your window.

Heathcliff, its me--cathy.

Come home. Im so cold!

Let me in-a-your window.