The Narrative Voice of Middlemarch and Wuthering Heights

During the nineteenth century, the novel as a form underwent a radical development and authors of prose fiction began to allow their creativity to intertwine with realist conventions. Authors such as Charles Dickens and George Eliot created a new kind of imaginative prose writing, which straddled the cusp of imagination and reality. Prior to this, the conventions of the novel were far more historical and factual than the novels of the nineteenth century – many authors at this point seemed to find it difficult to refrain from drawing their own experiences into their work - and the novel as a form was considered by many to be a very middle class idea, as the rise of the novel coincided with the mergence of the middle-class in British†¦show more content†¦Both novels comprise of a complex narrative structure, and are narrated from the third person perspective, however this is technique is utilized differently in each story. Whereas Wuthering Heights is narrated from the (unreliable) perspectives of two characters in the story; Lockwood and Nelly Dean, the narrator of Middlemarch is a highly intelligent omniscient (unnamed) narrator which allows each character in the story to be examined and presented in great depth – a kind of ‘licensed trespasser’ and becomes a transparent presence. She allows the reader a window into the novels events, yet she does not place herself in the way. However different they may be in form and content, both texts share a multi-perspective narrative, and the events which occur in these fictional worlds are presented and conveyed on different levels and from various perspectives. In this essay, I will discuss the idea of the omniscient narrator in relation to Middlemarch and Wuthering Heights. In Middlemarch I feel that she is an important and necessary device and without her, readers would not gain such a rounded perspective. In Wuthering Heights however the unreliable narration is told from multi-laye red perspectives and provides readers with a biased view of the events which unfold throughout the novel, and I will explore why this can be problematic. Whilst Middlemarch’s narrator has been defined as a third-person omniscient narrator, many critics have hadShow MoreRelatedEssay Prompts4057 Words   |  17 PagesExplain how the author’s treatment of this question affects your understanding of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary. You may select a work from the list below or another novel or play of comparable literary merit. Alias Grace Middlemarch All the King’s Men Moby-Dick Candide Obasan Death of a Salesman Oedipus Rex Doctor Faustus Orlando Don Quixote A portrait of the Artist as a Young Man A Gesture