For Tuesday 11/29 have read through chapt 23 (p 234 in Signet) (per 1)
For Wednesday 11/30 have read through chapt 27 (p 264) (per 6)
For Thursday 12/1 have read through chapt 31 (p 288)
For Friday 12/2 finish the book.
Monday 12/5 discussion on whole book
Block day: Write in class on book
Wuthering Heights Socratic Seminar Questions
1. Some critics contend Brontë intended Wuthering Heights to be a cautionary tale about
the dangers of loving too excessively. Does the novel communicate that message?
Explain why or why not.
2. Wuthering Heights is party a story of revenge. Is Heathcliff justified in the actions he takes? Do you excuse or justify his treatment of Isabella, his son Linton, and young Cathy? Despite Heathcliff’s vengeful acts, does he remain sympathetic to the reader? Does he achieve revenge at the end of the novel? Why or why not?
3. Does Heathcliff show strength or weakness in his actions throughout the novel, beginning in childhood? Who does Heathcliff blame for his situation? How does he protest? Does he ever accept responsibility for his actions? Does he accept responsibility for the death of Catherine? Is he responsible for her death?
4. Analyze the function of the second generation of characters, and identify the correlations between characters of the first and second generations. In what way do these characters continue or resolve the conflicts of their parents?
5. Identify the characteristics of the two households, Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross
Grange. What does each home seem to represent? How do the characteristics of the homes extend to the characters that reside within them? What about the heather between the two houses?
6. Who is the most admirable character in the novel? Who is the least admirable? Why?
What are the most powerful symbols in Wuthering Heights? What elements of the supernatural did you find the most affective? How do these symbols affect meaning in the novel? Discuss Romanticism and the Gothic genres.
7. How do symbols contribute to the meaning of the work as a whole?
8. Consider the work as psychological novel. What part of the mind might different characters be associated with? How is the psychological development of Cathy 2 different from Cathy 1?
Overarching Question to Consider:
What conceptions about the human condition did the experiences Heathcliff and Catherine give you, as a reader? Did Hareton and Cathy learn anything from the tragedy of Heathcliff? Did Lockwood and Nelly come to any conclusions about Heathcliff and Catherine? What makes Wuthering Heights a “good book?”