Cliffhangers go back far beyond Bronte through ancient Greek novels to “The Arabian Nights”.
The term “cliffhanger” surely does not go back to the mid-1800s of “Wuthering Heights”. What would be the source of the simile? The earliest the word has been found is 1931 (not yet in the OED), in a reference to a Western serial movie.
Cliffhangers go back far beyond Bronte through ancient Greek novels to “The Arabian Nights”.
The term “cliffhanger” surely does not go back to the mid-1800s of “Wuthering Heights”. What would be the source of the simile? The earliest the word has been found is 1931 (not yet in the OED), in a reference to a Western serial movie.