A Horneyan Interpretation Of Heathcliff In Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights is Emily Bronte’s outstanding masterpiece which has attracted the serious attention from the critics and scholars all over the world.Many of the critics and scholars have interpreted the image of Heathcliff which has remained as the hottest topic.Although some scholars have discussed Heathcliff’s abnormal behaviors from several different perspectives,few of them have undertaken to interpret them from the psychological perspective which may help reveal a somewhat different image of Heathcliff.By reasons as such,this research attempts to study the image of Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights by applying Karen Horney’s psychological theory of neurosis.According to Karen Horney,the theory of neurosis has great significance for the prevention and treatment of neurosis.As a social psychologist,Horney attaches much importance to the negative effects of living surroundings on the development of one’s mental health.She holds that complicated sociocultural environment generally brings a sense of anxiety and insecurity to those people who live in it.If these people fail to get real warm and love from their families,the neurosis can easily be triggered.Under that circumstance,people develop a series of defensive strategies.As a result,in interpersonal relationship,they compulsively make themselves either move toward people or against people or away from people.However,no matter which tendency would predominate,the other two tendencies would still exist and continuously interfere it.Hence,they would fall into a big inner conflict.In intrapsychic relationship,people use the method of idealization to create an imaginary balance,acquiring a psychological superiority.Besides,they would further adopt externalization or some other ways to maintain their idealized image.The step-by-step redemptive strategies make them gradually alienated from themselves as well as from others.Hard as the whole process is,due to the improper coping strategies,various bad consequences would come into being.Without correct guidance,this kind of people tend to head for destruction in most cases.Based on Karen Horney’s neurotic theory,this thesis aims to reinterpret Heathcliff’s image by exploring his complicated inner world as is presented in Wuthering Height.As a waif on the Liverpool street,Heathcliff does not get warmth from outside world.When he comes to Wuthering Heights,the sense of insecurity makes him firstly take the strategy of compliance.He tries to satisfy the needs of others and represses his own inner hostility.After being betrayed by Catherine,he takes the strategy of aggression to launch a set of revenges on people,especially on Hindley Earnshaw and Edgar Linton.Besides,he also takes the strategy of detachment as his dominant strategy,which is mainly embodied in the last period of his life.In intrapsychic strategies,Heathcliff considers himself as a great lover.Through the idealized image,he not only unifies his complicated personality,but also gets a sense of superiority from it.In order to further defend this idealized image,he externalizes both responsibilities,blames and his own feelings,which makes himself more and more alienated from and afraid of other people.At the same time,the strategy of externalization worsens the conflicts between the original external environment and Heathcliff himself.He falls into more severe conflicts.In the process of Heathcliff’s attempts at solutions,some bad consequences like fears,sadistic trends,and hopelessness are embodied with different degrees in different periods of time.At last,like the common result which Horney finds most neurotic people have,Heathcliff steps onto the road to self-destruction.Through the study of Heathcliff’s inner world from the perspective of Karen Horney’s neurotic theory,on the one hand,this thesis is helpful for readers to get a deeper understanding of Heathcliff and the Victorian society at that time.On the other hand,the thesis provides another example for neurosis theory.Besides,it is endowed with practical meanings.It may bring spiritual inspiration to people,especially those who are suffering great psychological pressure.