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Why Did Heathcliff Kill Himself In Wuthering Heights?

Updated 30 September, 2024
Answer:
The novel ends with the death of Heathcliff, who has become a broken, tormented man, haunted by the ghost of the elder Catherine, next to whom he demands to be buried. His corpse is initially found by Nelly Dean, who, peeping into his room, spots him.
Detailed answer:

Heathcliff is the main antagonist in Emily Brontë's 1847 novel Wuthering Heights. Heathcliff rises in the family who had adopted him and then he was reduced to the status of a servant there. Further, he ran away from Catherine, the young woman whom he loved very much, and decided to marry another.
After the death of Catherine, Heathcliff grows restless towards the very end of the novel and stops eating. Nelly Dean does not believe that he had the intention to commit suicide, but that his starvation may have been the cause of his death. He wanted to be with Cathy in eternal life.
Readers don't know for certain if Heathcliff kills himself in Wuthering Heights. However, it is certain that he appeared to give up in his final days. During this time, he stopped eating, and that is undoubtedly the biggest single contributing factor to his death. Nelly Dean doesn't believe that Heathcliff meant to kill himself, but given Heathcliff's dire mental state and his refusal to eat food, it's possible to conclude it might have been the case.

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