Few novels spark as much debate about love and passion as Wuthering Heights. Published in 1847 by Emily Brontë under the pseudonym Ellis Bell, the novel has long been described as one of the greatest love stories ever written.
A new film adaptation directed by Emerald Fennell, starring Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff and Margot Robbie as Catherine, even markets the tale as the “greatest love story of all time.” But would Heathcliff himself agree?
In the novel, Heathcliff openly rejects the idea that he is a romantic hero. After marrying Isabella Linton, he sneers at the notion that she imagined him as a chivalrous lover. His obsessive bond with Catherine Earnshaw is intense, destructive and enduring — but hardly tender or stable.
The confusion may lie in how we define “romance.” According to the Romance Writers of America, a romance novel must centre on a love story and end optimistically. By that definition, Wuthering Heights falls short. Catherine dies halfway through the book. Heathcliff spends the remainder consumed by grief and vengeance. The narrative shifts to the next generation, diluting the claim that theirs is a central love plot.
Yet the novel is undeniably Romantic — with a capital R. Deeply influenced by the Romantic movement, it prioritises emotion, passion and the sublime power of nature over reason. Set against the wild Yorkshire moors, the story explores love as destructive force rather than comforting partnership.
Modern romance readers often seek intimacy, healthy dynamics and emotional satisfaction. Heathcliff and Catherine’s relationship offers none of these. Instead, their bond resembles what today might be called “dark romance” — intense, illicit and toxic.
Ultimately, whether one labels it romantic or not, the novel’s power lies in its raw emotional excess. Heathcliff and Catherine may destroy each other and those around them, but it is precisely this ferocity that has kept Wuthering Heights alive in literary imagination for nearly two centuries.
