Wuthering Heights, written in 1847 by Emily Brontë, may seem to some like a tragic, abusive, and awkward love story between Catherine and Heathcliff. This notion is brought higher by the plot of the 1939 movie, directed by William Wyler. So much is written about the adults, both the book and the movie, that people fail to realize what made them the adults they became. The book goes into more detail about the lives of child Catherine (Sarita Wooten) and Heathcliff (Rex Downing), while the movie gives a brief introduction.
Child Cathy in the book was described as a wild child. Even as a young girl she seems to already be going through her teenage rebellious years. Although Cathy is so little, the reader portrays her as a little devil because of the language and tone Brontë uses. Movie child Catherine seems sweet and carefree. At times she is innocent of the world around her, escaping everything to play with her friend and adopted brother Heathcliff. She is not a great listener or the perfect little lady, but more of just a regular child who can get into trouble.
Heathcliff got into trouble in both the book and the movie. The audience of the movie, though, experiences pitying catharsis toward the young lad. In the book, he is portrayed as an orphaned gypsy boy with the devil inside him. He can do nothing correct, except in the eyes of his father, which causes him even more grief. The reader does pity Heathcliff, but not to a very high extent because the boy is just too mean and becomes more bitter each year. Young Heathcliff in the movie is angry and full of hate filled revenge, but Rex Downing's soft boy voice tones it all down. He also smiles quite a bit when around Catherine and even calls her his “queen.”
Together with the book and movie of Wuthering Heights there are four children: a devil girl, a free spirited girl, a gypsy boy, and a poor unloved boy. All play their respected parts well for the setting they are in. The characters in the book are good for the book and accomplish one of the themes of revenge very well. The movie characters play their parts very well and accomplished the feeling of doom and beautiful love. None are greater than the other, and are both works of art from the author and director.