Who is the main narrator in Wuthering Heights?

Reading classic literature provides plenty of benefits to the reader such as a better understanding of other people’s feelings and thoughts and the consequences of their actions. Often, the perception of those benefits directly depends on the narrator of a book. Emily Bronte’s novel Wuthering Heights narrated by two characters, Mr. Lockwood and Ellen (Nelly) Dean, shows how different storytellers affect the process of reading. Mr. Lockwood’s description of the events as an outsider allows the reader to see the story from a different point of view but also interferes with the perception of the book and makes the audience question his reliability.

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At first, Mr. Lockwood’s presence in the story seems to not be important since it could have been narrated only by Nelly as someone close to the main characters. His character is designed to connect with the audience at some point as “a person who is aquatinted with reading and writing” bringing the similarities in his personality and the reader (Ezzaoua 42). As Nelly takes the place of the main narrator, Mr. Lockwood is called up to keep curiosity to the story, “I feel I shall not rest if I go to bed; so be good enough to sit and chat an hour.” (Bronte 42).  Although Mr. Lockwood does not have any effect on the main story, his comments influence the feelings of the reader.

As Mr. Lockwood narrates the story by writing in his diary, he has the opportunity to ponder and logically express his opinions. Nelly, on the other hand, has a “heavily dramatized narrative” as she speaks, making “the impact more powerful than Lockwood’s narration” (Bensoussan 4). However, as a direct participant of the events, Nelly in her memories may exaggerate or belittle certain moments thus making her narration doubtful. Mr. Lockwood’s narration makes the reader not only empathize with the characters but also question their personalities, “Possibly, some people might suspect him of a degree of under-bred pride” (Bronte 8). The way he deliberately describes everything in his diary makes the reader look at the story from different points of view.

On the other hand, Mr. Lockwood himself can be biased and judgemental, as he is just a spectator. These features of his do not make the reader sympathize with him, but they show that “the narrators … frequently err in their interpretations” (Ebert 8). The fact that he is an outsider to the story and describes what he sees without having a personal attachment to other characters should make the reader believe that his words are truthful. Nevertheless, the situation is the opposite because of the same reasons; the way he sometimes jumps to conclusions or changes his mind brings controversy to his character and the events happening. For most of the story, Mr. Lockwood is a bystander without empathy or character development, which makes the reader doubt his thinking.

In conclusion, while Mr. Lockwood may not be the most reliable narrator, as he just retells someone else’s story, his presence is crucial. Without Mr. Lockwood’s narration, the story may not be as comprehensive and may lack diversity in the way the reader perceives the story and thinks over the details. He, as well the reader, does not participate in the main events, but he is curious and observant, and his narration brings a certain amount of suspense to the way the story is build and increases interest to it.

Works Cited

Bensoussan, Natacha. “The Narrative Structure of Wuthering Heights: An Examination of Nelly Dean and Lockwood.” Ellipsis, vol. 44, no. 24, 2017.

Bronte, Emily. Wuthering Heights. Ignatius Press, 2008.

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Ebert, Lisa. Ambiguity in Emily Brontë’s” Wuthering Heights”. Ferdinand Schöningh, 2020.

Ezzaoua, Omar. “On Double Narration in Wuthering Heights.” Studies in Literature and Language, vol. 22, no. 1, 2021, pp. 38-49.

Mr Lockwood is the frame-narrator in Emily Brontë's 1847 novel Wuthering Heights,[1][2][3][4] and the recorder of the main narrative, which is related to him by Nelly Dean.

Lockwood is an English gentleman who arrives on the Yorkshire moors for a retreat from city life. The narrative is propelled by Lockwood's interest in Heathcliff, his landlord at Thrushcross Grange.

Wuthering Heights begins as Lockwood arrives at Thrushcross Grange, an estate in the moorland that he is renting from Heathcliff. Heathcliff, at the time Lockwood arrives, owns both Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, two neighbouring estates. Early in the book, Lockwood visits Wuthering Heights, where he is shocked by the behaviour of Heathcliff and the other residents of the manor.

Lockwood nevertheless pays a second visit to Wuthering Heights, when, due to the weather, he is forced to spend the night. Without proper lodgings available, Lockwood is taken to a small room by a servant, who instructs Lockwood to not let Heathcliff know that he is there. During the night, Lockwood reads a book wherein he finds the names "Catherine Earnshaw" and "Catherine Linton" written repeatedly. In the course of the night, Lockwood sees a spectre of Catherine; he relates,

The intense horror of nightmare came over me: I tried to draw back my arm, but the hand clung to it, and a most melancholy voice sobbed,
"Let me in — let me in!"
"Who are you?" I asked, struggling, meanwhile, to disengage myself.
"Catherine Linton," it replied, shiveringly (why did I think of LINTON? I had read EARNSHAW twenty times for Linton). "I'm come home: I'd lost my way on the moor!"
As it spoke, I discerned, obscurely, a child's face looking through the window.[5]

Upon waking, Lockwood recounts the vision to Heathcliff, who orders Lockwood to leave Wuthering Heights. Before he leaves, Lockwood observes Heathcliff enter the bedroom and attempt to speak to the ghost of Catherine: "Come in! come in!" he sobbed. "Cathy, do come. Oh, do — once more! Oh! my heart's darling! hear me this time, Catherine, at last!"[6]

Upon returning to Thrushcross Grange, Lockwood inquires about the history of Heathcliff and Wuthering Heights with Nelly Dean. While Lockwood is bedridden with an illness, Nelly recounts to him the story of Heathcliff, the Earnshaws of Wuthering Heights, and the Lintons of Thrushcross Grange. Nelly's retelling makes up the bulk of the novel.

The novel concludes as Lockwood returns to Wuthering Heights to notify Heathcliff that he wished to terminate his lease of Thrushcross Grange. Upon arriving at the Heights, Lockwood discovers that Heathcliff had died, and that Heathcliff's niece, Cathy, and nephew, Hareton, are to be married. Lockwood, upon seeing them together, feels regretful that he missed a possible chance at romance with Cathy.

The final scene of Wuthering Heights shows Lockwood passing by the graves of Heathcliff, Catherine, and Edgar Linton at the local kirkyard and commenting on the tranquility of the scene.

Brontë, Emily: Wuthering Heights (Oxford World's Classics, 1998).

^ Worth, George J. (1958). "Emily Brontë's Mr. Lockwood". Nineteenth-Century Fiction. 12 (4): 315–320. doi:10.2307/3044427. ISSN 0029-0564. JSTOR 3044427.
^ Frangipane, Nicholas (2 January 2016). "Lockwood the Liar: a Call to Reconsider Wuthering Heights as a Metafictional Work on the Limits of Narrative". Brontë Studies. 41 (1): 29–38. doi:10.1080/14748932.2015.1123914. ISSN 1474-8932.
^ Shannon, Edgar F. (1959). "Lockwood's Dreams and the Exegesis of Wuthering Heights". Nineteenth-Century Fiction. 14 (2): 95–109. doi:10.2307/3044162. ISSN 0029-0564. JSTOR 3044162.
^ Fine, Ronald E. (1969). "Lockwood's Dreams and the Key to Wuthering Heights". Nineteenth-Century Fiction. 24 (1): 16–30. doi:10.2307/2932349. ISSN 0029-0564. JSTOR 2932349.
^ Brontë, Emily. Wuthering Heights. p. 20.
^ Brontë 1998, p. 24.