Heathcliff
Heathcliff is a fictional character from Emily Brontë's novel *Wuthering Heights* (1847)—a brooding, vengeful orphan whose obsessive love for Catherine Earnshaw drives the plot.
The name has become shorthand for a dark, passionate, romantically tortured figure: He's got that Heathcliff energy—intense and a little dangerous.
Also the name of an orange cartoon cat from the 1980s comic strip and animated series.
Yorkshire gothic novel
- LintonSettlement near a flax field
- antiheroMorally ambiguous main character
- protagonistStory's central figure
- antagonistOne who opposes another
Emily Brontë · Catherine · Victorian · tragic · complex · enigmatic · tormented · orphan
Subdued, lasting sadness
- gloweringStaring with displeasure
- sullenSilently bad-tempered
- moroseSullenly ill-humored
- darkAbsence of light
smouldering · intense · pensive · moody · sombre · dour · introspective · withdrawn
- obsessionPersistent, intrusive preoccupation
- devotionDeep, loyal commitment
- loveIntense fond attachment
- longingIntense, persistent desire
yearning · desire · ardor · consuming · all-encompassing · soul mate · undying · tortured
Punishing a wrongdoer
- retributionPunishment for wrongdoing
- crueltyDeliberate harm-causing disposition
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
- inheritanceProperty received from ancestors
degradation · Isabella · plotting · patience · calculated · systematic · ruthless · merciless
Wuthering Heights
Yorkshire gothic novel
- LintonSettlement near a flax field
- antiheroMorally ambiguous main character
- protagonistStory's central figure
Emily Brontë · Catherine · antagonist · Victorian · tragic · complex · enigmatic · tormented · orphan · foundling
melancholy
Subdued, lasting sadness
dark · smouldering · intense · pensive · moody · sombre · dour · introspective · withdrawn · silent
Catherine
- obsessionPersistent, intrusive preoccupation
- devotionDeep, loyal commitment
- loveIntense fond attachment
longing · yearning · desire · ardor · consuming · all-encompassing · soul mate · undying · tortured · doomed
revenge
Punishing a wrongdoer
- retributionPunishment for wrongdoing
- crueltyDeliberate harm-causing disposition
- manipulationUnderhanded control of others
inheritance · degradation · Isabella · plotting · patience · calculated · systematic · ruthless · merciless · spite
moors
Uncultivated peaty highlands
primal · rugged · harsh · elemental · nature · storm · wind · crag · desolate · raw
- 80s NostalgiaCabbage Patch Kids, Care Bears, G.I. Joe, He-Man, Masters of the Universe
- Cartoon AnimalsSnoopy, Garfield, Odie, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck
- Comic CharactersSuperman, Batman, Spider-Man, Wonder Woman, Captain America
- comic stripsPeanuts, Garfield, Calvin and Hobbes, Blondie, Doonesbury
- Fictional CatsGarfield, Felix, Sylvester, Tom, Cheshire Cat
- literary charactersSherlock Holmes, Scout Finch, Elizabeth Bennet, Macbeth, Huck Finn
Heathclifflanded gentry
Landowning class living on rents
legitimate heir · aristocrat · privileged class · Mr. Darcy · gentleman