Heroism vs. Villiany
One motif that is seen in both Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights and Shakespeare’s Hamlet is the motif of revenge. In both novels, the revenge is enacted by a Byronic hero, a main character that is emotional, scarred, and not always operating under the right motives. Despite these similarities, Hamlet is a tragedy and Wuthering Heights is a bitter fight. But why? The way society sees revenge is impacted by why the character is enacting the revenge, and this view changed how the novels have gone down in history.
Although they are wildly different, in both novels, the set of events are quite similar. Both men have caused deaths (Hamlet, directly; Heathcliff, indirectly), both have thrown themselves into the graves of their lovers, and in the end, both died. In fact, at the end of both novels, nearly everyone in the novel is dead. But it is not the side characters that present the difference of perception in each novel, it is in fact, the revenge each man seeks.
Heathcliff, in his novel, is seeking revenge solely himself. He feels as if he has been wronged, saying, “I want you to be aware that I know you have treated me infernally—infernally! . . . and if you think I can be consoled by sweet words, you are an idiot: and if you fancy I’ll suffer unrevenged, I’ll convince you of the contrary, in a very little while!” Often times, revenge for oneself is seen as a narcissistic trait. As seen in the Psychology Today article ‘The Psychology of Revenge and Vengeful People’, “”Both the narcissist’s inflated social confidence and the narcissist’s sense of entitlement could produce a desire to retaliate against wrong-doers and could reduce constraints on acting on this desire.” This quote nearly directly parallels what Heathcliff is saying to Catherine in this scene. Heathcliff can clearly be seen as a narcissist. He kidnaps his niece, beats his wife and son, and emotionally manipulates Nelly on many occasions. Narcissists are also known for their abuse, mentally and physically. Thus, we can conclude that Heathcliff is enacting revenge only for himself, and the reason he is doing so is mostly attributed to his being a narcissist.
Hamlet, on the other hand, is seeking revenge for his father, who has been murdered by his uncle Claudius. In fact, it can be argued that, although Hamlet believes that he is enacting revenge, he is actually ‘avenging’. According to Writing Explained, to avenge is to “inflict a punishment or penalty for an injury or a wrong”, while revenge is “the act of taking vengeance for injuries or wrongs; retaliation”. The key difference between these two is the word ‘retaliation’. Hamlet is not retaliating against his uncle for a personal wrong. He is doing it because the ghost of his father asked it of him, as one can see in the lines from ACT I SCENE V, “So art thou to revenge, when thou shalt hear, I am thy father’s spirit, Doom’d for a certain term to walk the night,… Revenge his foul and most unnatural murther.” His father is asking for revenge. Hamlet is avenging him. Furthermore, because of how Hamlet acts and his soft demeanor, it is even more of a tragedy that he dies. It is stated perfectly in Bachelor and Master’s article ‘Shakespeare’s Hamlet as a Great Tragedy’, “As he is a person with a high degree of moral sensitivity and a philosophic bent of mind, he thinks about whether evil can undo evil and not remain evil.” Hamlet does everything with deep thought first. His famous ‘to be or not to be’ monologue is sparked by the death of his father and wondering whether dying is truly better than living with evil. We can infer, in this particular case, that Hamlet’s ‘revenge’ is driven by his moral code and his empathy.
Although the difference between empathy and narcissism has been a clear cut discussion for nearly all of time (dating all the way back to the Greeks, with the tales of Echo and Narcissus), it is not only this personality difference that impacts the view of the men. The particular difference between Heathcliff’s and Hamlet’s intentions as ‘revenge’ and ‘avenge’ are impacted by societal views. How do the readers, as a part of society, see each word with a tainted view? Revenge is seen as a selfish action; harmful, bitter, and encouraged by hatred. And this is due to what it does psychologically to our brains. According to Science of People’s ‘The Psychology of Revenge; Why It’s Secretly Rewarding’, “Even though the first few moments feel rewarding in the brain, psychological scientists have found that instead of quenching hostility, revenge prolongs the unpleasantness of the original offense.” As a society, this is understood, and it is why we look at revenge the way we do. Vengeance, however, is seen as an act of justice, as opposed to an act of selfishness. Justice is the act of doing what is just, and just is what is morally right. Justice, as a verb, is used to enact punishment on those who have wronged others. In Hamlet, Hamlet’s ‘revenge’, or his act of avenging his father’s death for the sake of his father, is seen as justice. In society, justice does not equate to vanity as revenge does. Justice on another’s behalf is seen as selfless, as opposed to justice on onself’s behalf. The reasons for their revenge doesn’t even impact their goals in the reader’s eyes, because it is simply the act of perceived selfishness versus selflessness that changes how the overall story is seen in the end.
In Wuthering Heights and Hamlet we see two men who are out for revenge, but their overall personalities and reasons for said revenge is what decides whether the novel is one of overcoming great evil, or a tragedy. Although Hamlet did reasonably worse things to fewer people, because he was trying to fulfil a duty, he was a hero. Heathcliff gave into his narcissism and enacted his revenge only for himself, becoming a villian in his respective story. This idea is a lens that we can use to evaluate all kinds of literature and real-life scenarios. Is the person we are looking at a hero because of duty, of selflessness, or simply because they did what they had to do? And why is the villain a villain? Is it due to personality, or is it due to how selfish we believe the person to be? I believe that when we can really discover these differences, we can have a true understanding for situations and their perpetrators.
Citations
“Avenge vs. Revenge: What’s the Difference?” Writing Explained, 15 June 2015,
writingexplained.org/avenge-vs-revenge-difference.
Brontë Emily, and Evelyn Attwood. Wuthering Heights. Black and White Classics, 2014.
Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Pestwick House, 2005.
“Shakespeare’s Hamlet as a Great Tragedy.” Bachelor and Master,
“The Psychology of Revenge (and Vengeful People).” Psychology Today, Sussex
Publishers,
-and-vengeful-people.
“The Psychology of Revenge: Why It’s Secretly Rewarding.” Science of People, 10 Dec.