Children in ‘WH’ and ‘ATSS’
LOAS:
1- Victims of discrimination
2- Inherited beliefs, used as tools to strengthen social injustices (+
Linton used to reverse in being used for property gain? Regardless a
tool for social movement) - discrimination/sexism- Linton (class-
bullying Hareton + used for property gain) and Zalmai (embodies
patriarchal values)
3- Symbols of hope and growth- Aziza- ‘Laila notices how her stutter is
lessening’, Zalmai accepting Tariq- ‘Aziza is holding his hand. Zalmai
isn’t, but he is standing close to Tariq, leaning one shoulder on
Tariq’s hip.’ ‘he is reaching for Tariq’ when he starts crying, ‘that he
is beginning to accept Tariq both eases and breaks Laila’s heart.’
In both ‘Wuthering Heights’ and ‘ATSS’, children are framed in terms of
their social standings, which Bronte and Hosseini present as a regressive
ideal in the manner in which both Mariam and Heathcliff are made to
endure suffering in their discrimination despite being children, as they are
both isolated from their respective families on the grounds of social
standing. From the very beginning of ‘WH’, Heathcliff is constructed in a
subtly racist discourse as belonging to a dirty, primitive class. His
introduction as a ‘dirty, ragged, black-haired child’ immediately sets this
up, as his ‘dark-skinned’ complexion seems intertwined with the notion of
dirtiness and lower social standing- the mention of ‘child’ demonstrates
how such prejudice is imposed even on the innocent, reflecting the
prevalence of class-based othering in the rigid social hierarchy of Victorian
England. Bronte further establishes this prejudice through Mr Earnshaw
saying “you must take it as a gift of God; though it’s as dark almost as if it
came from the devil.” The use of “it” in describing Heathcliff dehumanises
him as an object rather than a child, again showing how youth and
innocence is rendered obsolete in the face of such entrenched social and
racial bias. Furthermore, the theological association of dark with the side
of the devil and light with the side of God is particularly poignant given its
use in the justification of racism and imperialism at the time of Bronte’s
writing, in regards to the conquests of the British Empire in the 19th
century. The inequality of Heathcliff’s mistreatment in the Earnshaw
household, therefore, could be viewed as a microcosm of colonial racism,
showing the extent to which it pedalled suffering and degradation
regardless of age. This sense of degradation is furthered by Cathy
"spitting at the stupid little thing", further stripping Heathcliff of his
identity as a child in being a “thing”. The extent of his suffering is clear as
Heathcliff becomes ‘hardened perhaps, to ill treatment’, as he is made to
LOAS:
1- Victims of discrimination
2- Inherited beliefs, used as tools to strengthen social injustices (+
Linton used to reverse in being used for property gain? Regardless a
tool for social movement) - discrimination/sexism- Linton (class-
bullying Hareton + used for property gain) and Zalmai (embodies
patriarchal values)
3- Symbols of hope and growth- Aziza- ‘Laila notices how her stutter is
lessening’, Zalmai accepting Tariq- ‘Aziza is holding his hand. Zalmai
isn’t, but he is standing close to Tariq, leaning one shoulder on
Tariq’s hip.’ ‘he is reaching for Tariq’ when he starts crying, ‘that he
is beginning to accept Tariq both eases and breaks Laila’s heart.’
In both ‘Wuthering Heights’ and ‘ATSS’, children are framed in terms of
their social standings, which Bronte and Hosseini present as a regressive
ideal in the manner in which both Mariam and Heathcliff are made to
endure suffering in their discrimination despite being children, as they are
both isolated from their respective families on the grounds of social
standing. From the very beginning of ‘WH’, Heathcliff is constructed in a
subtly racist discourse as belonging to a dirty, primitive class. His
introduction as a ‘dirty, ragged, black-haired child’ immediately sets this
up, as his ‘dark-skinned’ complexion seems intertwined with the notion of
dirtiness and lower social standing- the mention of ‘child’ demonstrates
how such prejudice is imposed even on the innocent, reflecting the
prevalence of class-based othering in the rigid social hierarchy of Victorian
England. Bronte further establishes this prejudice through Mr Earnshaw
saying “you must take it as a gift of God; though it’s as dark almost as if it
came from the devil.” The use of “it” in describing Heathcliff dehumanises
him as an object rather than a child, again showing how youth and
innocence is rendered obsolete in the face of such entrenched social and
racial bias. Furthermore, the theological association of dark with the side
of the devil and light with the side of God is particularly poignant given its
use in the justification of racism and imperialism at the time of Bronte’s
writing, in regards to the conquests of the British Empire in the 19th
century. The inequality of Heathcliff’s mistreatment in the Earnshaw
household, therefore, could be viewed as a microcosm of colonial racism,
showing the extent to which it pedalled suffering and degradation
regardless of age. This sense of degradation is furthered by Cathy
"spitting at the stupid little thing", further stripping Heathcliff of his
identity as a child in being a “thing”. The extent of his suffering is clear as
Heathcliff becomes ‘hardened perhaps, to ill treatment’, as he is made to
