Emily Brontë Reappraised

Emily Brontë occupies a special place in the English literary canon. And rightly so: the incomparable Wuthering Heights is a novel that has bewitched us for almost 200 years, and the character of Heathcliff is seen by some as the ultimate romantic hero—and villain. But Emily herself remains an enigmatic figure, often portrayed as awkward, volatile, as a misanthrope, as “no normal being.” That’s the conventional wisdom on Emily as a person, but is it accurate, is it fair?

In this biography with a twist, Claire O’Callaghan conjures a new image of Emily and rehabilitates her reputation by exploring the themes of her life and work—her feminism, her passion for the natural world—as well as the art she has inspired, and even the “fake news” stories about her. What do we really know about her romantic life, for example, or about who and what inspired her characters and stories?

What we discover is that Emily was, in fact, a thoroughly modern woman. So now, two centuries on, it’s time for the real Emily Brontë to step forward.