This study foregrounds the colonial and racial subtexts implicit in narratives of upward mobility that are open only to men. In Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre, Heathcliff and Rochester are characterized as having a desire for accumulation. Both novels expose the unspoken imperialist fantasies that underlie such masculine narratives of class advancement. And having amassed their wealth, both return home to take up a position of mastery. But Rochester and Heathcliff are themselves represented through Victorians images of racial difference. Heathcliff`s actions subsequent to his return can be either, in Mr. Linton`s terms, as a process of stealing, or, in Nelly`s terms, as his having enough money to buy the Heights and the Grange together. Nelly paints the imaginary portrait of Heathcliff as a Chinese prince or Indian prince. She can only project the desires for advancement onto male figures who are free to overcome the limitations of class difference. Similar to the image of the oriental despot, the correlative image of the harem in Jane Eyre conveyed both submission and resistance to dominance. In Jane Eyre, once Jane has been taught to civilize her savage emotions, she can then participate in the scenario of oriental despotism only vicariously through their relationship to Rochester.