t us portray the outcomes to our liking. When Lockwoods nightmare scene is at its climax, he is able to get rid of the terrifying figure when (he) snatched (his hand) through the hole, (and) hurriedly piled the books up in a pyramid against it. [p. 30]. Once again, this reference of books was simple, however, we can view this as Bronte telling the reader the true power of books, and how they have to ability to give us a sense of comfort . Moreover, the section where an ailing Catherine says, What in the name of all that feels, has he to do with books, when I am dying? we are shown how Edgar retreats to his books whenever times got tough, as well as the voice of Catherines ego.Books once belonged only at Thrushcross Grange. For the older Cathy and Heathcliff they were objects of repression because as children, they threw religious books into the fire in an act of rebellion. As for Edgar, reading was a way to escape from problems by shutting himself up with his books when Cathy fell into a fit. Suddenly books have become a means through which love can flow. Books take on an important role in the development of the relationship between Hareton and Catherine. In the latter stages of the novel, Heathcliff had destroyed Catherines books, which was why she could not respond back to Nelly. Hareton had all the other books in the house because he had been trying to read. However, Catherine mocked him for his clumsy attempts at self-education: "Those books, both prose and verse, were consecrated to me by other associations, and I hate to hear them debased and profaned in his mouth!" Poor Hareton fetched the books and threw them into her lap, saying he didn't want to think about them any longer. She persisted in her mockery, reading aloud in "the drawling tone of a beginner," following which he slapped her and threw the books into the fire. Hareton's illiteracy is the most evident result of Heathcliff's treatment of him, intended to reduce hi...
