Comparison of the novel Wuthering Heights with one of its Film Adaptations - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages... Judging from the popularity, the novel has been transformed into a movie numerous times. The story is narrated by two characters: Nelly Dean and Lockwood. But each movie has some differences especially when it comes to the narration or the perspective shown in each movie. For instance, in some of the movies Catherine’s ghost does not appear, which is a rather drastic change.
Other than the settings, the nature of characters has also been changed. Catherine is not that selfish and spiteful in the movie as she is in the novel. In the movie, it seems as if she is a pitiful and passive character. However, it is actually because of her nasty and selfish nature that she takes such a drastic decision of marrying Edgar Linton. In the movie it seems that she is a vulnerable victim of nature and the society.
In the book Heathcliff listens to Catherine saying that marrying him would degrade her and her family. Heathcliff is wounded by this admission and so he goes away. In the movie Heathcliff just goes away without even hearing anything. So instead of recklessness, which is significant in both the characters in the book, it seems more of a childish attitude in the movie. Childish, they never are. They are arrogant, passionate and reckless. Hence, the very depiction of characters has been deviated from, thus, sucking the life out of them. So when they try to act silly, they look awkward and this extinguishes the flame of passion and desire. Considering the age of the characters in the movie it creates more of a funny situation in the viewer’s eyes. However after reading the novel one feels angry and livid at the turn of events and the tragic incidents. Another major difference in the novel and the movie is the death scene. In the novel Heathcliff never gets to see Catherine’s body. But in the movie, Heathcliff digs up the grave and hugs the body. This gives a totally unreal quality to the storyline. Moreover, in the novel when Heathcliff is not able to see Catherine’s body, it adds to the tragic element and the readers also feel bad about it. But the ...Download file to see next pagesRead More