A-Level English Literature trip to Haworth

Inspiration at the home of the Brontës

Ask any book lover to list their favourite novel about love and passion and the chances are that Emily Brontë’s gothic novel Wuthering Heights would score pretty highly. The evocative, melancholy and sorrowful tone embedded in the love story between Cathy and Heathcliff is one that has stood the test of time.

So it was a rather special treat for our Year 12 and 13 A Level English Literature students to be taken on a three day trip to Haworth, Yorkshire – home of the Brontë sisters –last week. After a long journey up the motorway, the students were given time to settle into their hotel before visiting the BrontëParsonage Museum for an evening talk, where they received an interesting introduction to the Bronte family history and how much of this – e.g. role of the church, loss of their mother – found its way into the sisters’ imaginative writing.

 The following day students were up early to enjoy a thorough tour around the Brontë Parsonage Museum and were able to explore where the Brontë sisters lived – even the room and sofa on which Emily Bronte is thought to have died on! They then enjoyed another detailed talk that specifically focused on the novel Wuthering Heights, one that is included in the ‘Love through the Ages’ part of the A Level English Literature curriculum and something that the students will have to write about in their final exams. It was a real privilege to talk about the characters, themes, relationships and interpretations of the book in the very place where the novel was first imagined, over 170 years ago!

 After the talk came a robust walk up the moors to experience the surroundings that so inspired Wuthering Height - (note –some female students soon discovered that ‘fashion boots’ and ‘good strong walking books’ aren’t always one and the same, especially in heavy mud!). Once at the top, the students shared some of their favourite poems whilst enjoying a packed lunch. The students were then taken to ‘Top Withens’, a ruined farmhouse which is said to have helped inspire the story of Wuthering Heights.

It was a lovely trip that really brought to life Wuthering Heights and the lives of the Brontës. The students absolutely loved it! Our thanks must go to Head of English Faculty Ms Salloo and Assistant Head Teacher Mr Haque for organising and facilitating such a rewarding trip.