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Characters and Setting in Wuthering Heights
is a combination of the two estates: warm and civilized, yet not without violent temperament.
Without a doubt, Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, along with the people who dwell in them, represent two entirely contrasting mentalities and states of mind: one of unrestrained passion and dark broodiness, the other of politely refined affection and soft tenderness. Heathcliff's love for Catherine is tinged with danger and violence; Edgar loves Catherine with gracious tranquility, and Catherine returns affection to each of them accordingly. The Grange is a symbol of civilization, warmth, and goodness; the Heights is a symbol of wildness, cruelty, and evil. Such utter difference between the environments and climates of the two households symbolizes the distinction between the temperaments of their inhabitants. Not surprisingly, this contrast results in the pain, anguish, and discontent suffered by the protagonists; yet ultimately, the violent passion that is like the howling winds of Wuthering Heights and the tender love that reminds one the sweet air at Thrushcross Grange come together, through the marriage of Catherine and Heathcliff's respective offspring, never to separate again. Through extensive descriptions of the characters' dwellings and its surroundings, Bronte helps the reader gain insight into these characters.