Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights is Emily Brontë's only novel.

It was first published in 1847 under the pseudonym Ellis Bell.

The name of the novel comes from the Yorkshire manor on the moors on which the story centres. (As an adjective, wuthering is a Yorkshire word referring to turbulent weather.)

The narrative tells the tale of the all-encompassing and passionate, yet thwarted love between Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw, and how this unresolved passion eventually destroys both themselves and many around them.

Wuthering Heights's innovative structure, which has been likened to a series of Matryoshka dolls met with mixed reviews by critics when it first appeared.


Wuthering Heights has also given rise to many adaptations and inspired works, including films, radio, television dramatisations, musicals and songs (notably the hit Wuthering Heights by Kate Bush) and opera.