1818-1848
Who Was Emily Brontë?
Author and poet Emily Brontë is best known for writing the 1847 novel Wuthering Heights. Published under the pseudonym “Ellis Bell,” the Gothic romance garnered wide critical and commercial acclaim and became the subject of multiple movie and TV adaptations. She was not the only creative talent in her family, as sisters Charlotte Brontë (Jane Eyre) and Anne Brontë also enjoyed literary success. Emily died from tuberculosis on December 19, 1848.
Quick Facts
FULL NAME: Emily Jane Brontë
BORN: July 30, 1818
DIED: December 19, 1848
BIRTHPLACE: Thornton, Yorkshire, England
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Leo
Early Life and Family
Emily Jane Brontë on July 30, 1818, in Thornton, Yorkshire, England.
Emily was the fifth child of Reverend Patrick Brontë and his wife, Maria Branwell Brontë. The family moved to Haworth in April 1821. Only a few months later, Brontë’s mother died of cancer; her death came nearly nine months after the birth of her sister, Anne. Her mother’s sister, Elizabeth Branwell, came to live with the family to help care for the children.
At the age of 6, Emily was sent to the Clergy Daughters’ School at Cowan Bridge with Charlotte and her two oldest sisters, Elizabeth and Maria. Both Elizabeth and Maria became seriously ill at school and returned home, where they died of tuberculosis in 1825. Brontë’s father removed both Emily and Charlotte from the school as well.
At home in Haworth, Brontë enjoyed her quiet life. She read extensively and began to make up stories with her siblings. The surviving Brontë children, which included brother Branwell, had strong imaginations. They created tales inspired by toy soldiers given to Branwell by their father. In 1835, the shy Emily tried leaving home for school. She went with Charlotte to Miss Wooler’s school in Roe Head where Charlotte worked as a teacher. But she stayed only a few months before heading back to Haworth.
Coming from a poor family, Brontë tried to find work. She became a teacher at the Law Hill School in September 1837, but she left her position the following March. Brontë and her sister Charlotte traveled to Brussels in 1842 to study, but the death of their aunt Elizabeth forced them to return home.
Books and Poetry: Wuthering Heights and “Love and Friendship”
Some of Emily’s earliest known works involve a fictional world called Gondal, which she created with her sister Anne. She wrote both prose and poems about this imaginary place and its inhabitants. Emily also wrote other poems as well. One of her most popular is “Love and Friendship,” which uses plant and flower imagery to compare romantic and platonic love among friends.
Sister Charlotte discovered some of Emily’s poems and sought to publish them along with her own work and some by Anne. The three sisters used male pen names for their collection—Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell. Published in 1846, the book only sold a few copies and garnered little attention.
Again publishing as Ellis Bell, Brontë published her defining work, Wuthering Heights, in December 1847. The complex novel explores two families—the Earnshaws and the Lintons—across two generations and their stately homes, Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange. Heathcliff, an orphan taken in by the Earnshaws, is the driving force between the action in the book. He first motivated by his love for his Catherine Earnshaw, then by his desire for revenge against her for what he believed to be rejection.
Upon its release, Wuthering Heights received polarizing feedback, with many criticizing the immorality of its characters and vulgar language. Because the novel was published under a pseudonym, some incorrectly assumed a man had written it. “The success is not equal to the abilities of the writer; chiefly because the incidents and persons are too coarse and disagreeable to be attractive, the very best being improbable, with a moral taint about them, and the [villainy] not leading to results sufficient to justify the elaborate pains taken in depicting it,” a review from The Spectator opined.
It was only after Brontë’s death that the book developed its reputation as a literary masterwork. In 1850, Charlotte Brontë released a new version of Wuthering Heights, along with sister Anne’s Agnes Grey and selected poems, and included a biographical notice to clarify any authorship confusion caused by their Bell pseudonyms.
Modern Adaptations
Over the past century, film and TV creators have offered their own interpretations of Wuthering Heights.
One of the most well-known is the 1939 film version starring Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon. The William Wyler-directed project received eight Academy Award nominations, including for Best Picture, and the movie was added to the U.S. National Film Registry in 2007.
In 1992, Ralph Fiennes made his film debut portraying Heathcliff in Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, also starring Juliette Binoche. Tom Hardy also lent his talents to an ITV two-part series in 2009 simply titled Wuthering Heights.
Oscar nominee Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi star as Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, respectively, in the latest big screen adaptation of the novel—stylized as “Wuthering Heights”—releasing February 13, 2026. Directed by Emerald Fennell, the film has drawn criticism for its casting because of the actors’ ages—Robbie is roughly twice the age of Catherine in the novel—and complexions. Heathcliff is described in the novel as “dark-skinned,” while Elordi is Australian. “I saw him play Heathcliff, and he is Heathcliff. I’d say, just wait. Trust me, you’ll be happy,” Robbie said of Elordi.
Death and Legacy
Brontë died of tuberculosis on December 19, 1848, nearly two months after her brother, Branwell, succumbed to the same disease. Her sister Anne also fell ill and died of tuberculosis the following May.
Emily was buried in the Brontë family tomb at the St Michael & All Angels Church in Haworth, England, which is now a tourist site.
Interest in Brontë’s work and life remains strong today. The parsonage where Brontë spent much of her life is now a museum. The Brontë Society operates the museum and works to preserve and honor the work of the Brontë sisters.
British-French actor Emma Mackey portrayed a fictional version of Brontë in the 2022 movie Emily, which re-imagines the author’s life in the years before the writing of Wuthering Heights.
Fact Check: We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn’t look right, contact us!
The Biography.com staff is a team of people-obsessed and news-hungry editors with decades of collective experience. We have worked as daily newspaper reporters, major national magazine editors, and as editors-in-chief of regional media publications. Among our ranks are book authors and award-winning journalists. Our staff also works with freelance writers, researchers, and other contributors to produce the smart, compelling profiles and articles you see on our site. To meet the team, visit our About Us page: https://www.biography.com/about/a43602329/about-us
Tyler Piccotti joined the Biography.com staff as an Associate News Editor and is now the News and Culture Editor. He previously worked as a reporter and copy editor for a daily newspaper recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors. In his current role, he shares the true stories behind your favorite movies and TV shows and profiles rising musicians, actors, and athletes. When he's not working, you can find him at the nearest amusement park or movie theater and cheering on his favorite teams.
![victoria beckham poses at movie premiere wearing dark suit](https://hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod/images/victoria-beckham-attends-the-premiere-of-lola-at-regency-news-photo-1759783427.pjpeg?crop=0.421xw:0.303xh;0.300xw,0.0737xh&resize=360:* "Victoria Beckham attends the Premiere of "Lola" at Regency Bruin Theatre on February 03, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.")
