Nature vs Nurture Analysis in 'Wuthering Heights

It Is In Their Nature...Or Is It? A person will develop a certain set of characteristics over the course of his life. Numerous scientific debates have ensued on whether his personalities are influenced by the environment around him or if he is already instilled with his personality when he is born. The debate, also known as the nature versus nurture debate, is very popular among scientists and could possibly lead to how and why people act based on their childhood or family genes. The argument can apply to the cases of Hareton Earnshaw and Heathcliff from the book Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. They both had similar backgrounds growing up but ended up completely different, one vowing for revenge on everyone he meets while the other eloping with his true love and finding happiness. Heathcliff and Hareton may seem similar at first, but throughout the novel their major differences appear as they

Heathcliff allowed himself to be engulfed in all of the rejection and hatred he was surrounded by and gave into the way he was nurtured as a boy instead of what he could have become if he had listened to himself and not all the other aspects of his outside life. Hareton, on the other hand, listened to himself and did not get consumed by all the hatred and darkness he was raised in; he learned to be kind and loving towards Cathy without hurting everyone around her. Heathcliff also hated Hindley, the man who brought all of the emotional and physical abuse in his life, while Hareton loved Heathcliff, even though Heathcliff was Hareton’s “Hindley”. Hareton also felt sorrow for Heathcliff when he died, “weeping in bitter earnest,” while Heathcliff felt no remorse or sadness whatsoever, even for the people he had wronged (Bronte 324). Hareton and Heathcliff were majorly different as Hareton embraced his good side and Heathcliff got wrapped up in his damaged