Wuthering Asgardians

So, as I rambled about here, I recently finished reading Wuthering Heights. 

I only read it at the begging of a dear friend, and I read it reluctantly because I knew it would be a sad story. It was a hard-going, and I desperately tried to like it, but so far, this book and I are not friends. We're more like frenemies: I tend to throw my paperback across the room in fits of sheer frustration, but I quickly pick it up and reverently place it back on the bookshelf. (I'm fairly certain my books have feelings.) 

What I'm trying to say is that WH has affected me quite strongly, and it's taken me a few weeks to sort out my feelings about the book. I can rant for 30 minutes about how selfish Cathy and Heathcliff are, but I would still recommend the book for everyone to read. I guess that's the sign of remarkable writing.

Well, in the midst of my mental muddlement, I went to a movie night that consisted of Winter Soldier, Pride & Prejudice, and Avengers. Which is how this little gem happened:

"I ship Bartonoff. I don't ship Barton-Rogers." "Hang on..." #MarvelAfterMidnight
— Joanna P. (@needlesong92) October 12, 2014

 (The sparkling grape juice was malfunctioning.)

Anyways, we got to this scene in Avengers...

"When I first came to earth, Loki's rage followed me here and your people paid the price. And now again." 

-Thor

...and I had an Aha! moment. I don't know if it was the bubbly talking, or maybe it was because it was 1 a.m., but I suddenly realized that Thor and Loki's relationship had a whole lot in common with Cathy and Heathcliff's relationship.

No, don't laugh; just hear me out here. See, I think Heathcliff and Loki are pretty similar.

Both were born into a lower, 'unacceptable' class of society. Both were adopted into a higher class of society. Both Old Mr. Earnshaw and Odin raised their adopted sons implying that they would always be treated as equals. Upon realizing the opposite, both sons became consumed with hatred and bitterness and spent the rest of their respective lives expressing that.

 [apparently they also both have hair that gets all fabulous and wavy when they're mad....]

I think Thor and Cathy have a good bit in common as well.

Both were favored children, and grew up somewhat spoiled. Both were kind and goodhearted. Both of them loved their respective 'siblings' more than anything, and didn't care about class distinctions. (Obviously, Cathy's love changed just a bit. ;-) ) They also both had very noble intentions, and they were both bullheaded.

Furthermore, I think we would all agree that both relationships are anything but peaceful. Which is why the 'Loki's rage' scene flipped the 'hmm' switch in my brain.

But this is where I differentiate between the two: the reason I am so aggravated with Cathy and Heathcliff, and why I hold out more hope for Thor and Loki.

I sum up Cathycliff with this: Cathy and Heathcliff loved each other, and then both hurt each other, and then hated each other. I don't care what either of them did when Cathy was dying, I really believe they both died hating each other (or at least loathing each other). In my opinion, Heathcliff took the first step in ruining he and Cathy's relationship. Cathy thought she was being all noble and stuff by marrying Edgar Linton (so she could 'take care' of Heathcliff). Understandably, Heathcliff resented this misguided kindness. But he let this slight eat at him for the rest of his life. He never gave Cathy any chance at forgiveness. And Cathy resented Heathcliff's resent. She refused to change her attitude because she always believed she was doing the right thing, and Heathcliff was always wrong.
 
On the other hand, I believe that Thor and Loki grew up as loving siblings, but Loki changed his tune when Thor [almost] gained the throne, while Thor tried to keep up the kindly brotherly relations. Loki, though, spends the majority of 3 movies completely blind to Thor's caring about him.  He nearly kills him in Thor, totally ignores him in Avengers, and finally sort of starts to come around in TTDW. But Thor? Pfft. No matter what stunts Loki pulls, he still loves Loki, and still treats him as a brother. This little theory proves my point:

Now, to be fair, I don't hate Cathycliff. I so badly wanted it to end well. I mentally denied the inevitable all the way up to the conclusion. I really believed their love, at first, but afterwards all I could see was their selfish actions. (And that's why I get so fed up with people who watch the movies and think everything C and H do is for 'love.' Bah-flipping-loney.)

Thor/Loki, though, has more potential, I think. Like I said, in TTDW, Thor's goodwill seems to have finally gotten through to Loki, at least a little bit. He shields Jane and tries to take the black hole grenade for her while they're in Svartalfheim, and then he at least acts like he sacrifices himself for Thor. I'm still frustrated with MCU for faking that, but, hey, even Loki's return supports my point. He could have said anything as 'Odin' to Thor, but he chose to support Thor's wishes. (Don't get me wrong: I don't think Loki has really changed his nature, but I think he finally sees that Thor still truly loves him as a brother.)

So, you see? The more I compared the two pairs, the more I saw similarities. But the more I saw similarities, the more I saw the big difference. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that if we're taking lessons from fictional relationships, then here's a couple lessons we can take: 

Hate hurts everyone: not just yourself, and not just your enemy.

Forgiveness, while it can't undo past wrongs, can help mend a good relationship.