Dr Melissa Fegan

Readers and critics have been intrigued - and disturbed - by the characters of Wuthering Heights since its publication in 1847. Heathcliff and Catherine, the tormented and enigmatic lovers at the centre of the novel, have justifiably been the focus of critical attention. Yet the novel is peopled with a large cast of idiosyncratic characters, each of whom plays a significant role in the plot. This novel, with its references to physiognomy and monomania, its interest in dreams as revelations of the unconscious mind, and its recognition of the importance of origins in character-formation, reflects important developments in the conception of character and psychology in the nineteenth century.