Wuthering Heights

As a housekeeper and observer of all the goings-on at Wuthering Heights, Nelly Dean tells Lockwood the entire story, which he records in his journal. She has a deep understanding of what happens from both the Earnshaw perspective and the Linton point of view. Nelly is not supportive of Heathcliff during his childhood days, and her negativity towards him persists as Heathcliff matures, so the reader must remember that his story is told through the eyes of someone who did not like him very much. Her prejudice makes her a less than fully reliable narrator. Nelly’s emotional life is as chaotic as that of other characters in the novel, as she reacts strongly in some situations and more evenly in others, without any obvious patterns that might indicate who or what causes her the most angst.

Catherine, headstrong and rebellious from childhood and all the way through to her death as a young adult, died long before Nelly Dean tells her story to Mr. Lockwood. She and her father are alike in their attachment and fondness for Heathcliff, and in her childhood days, Catherine and Heathcliff were inseparable. When they are temporarily separated, she changes into a more sophisticated person, and her transformation leaves Heathcliff confused and disoriented. Her marriage to Edgar breaks Heathcliff’s heart, as he overhears her explain her rejection of him to Nelly Dean. After Catherine dies, her ghost refuses to return to visit Heathcliff, despite his demands for her to haunt him.

Hindley is Catherine’s older brother, and his behavior towards his adoptive brother, Heathcliff, is brutal and abusive. Despite all the privileges of his upbringing as an Earnshaw, Hindley’s miserable behavior extends to self-destructive bad habits like drinking and gambling, which end up being his ruin. He marries Frances, only to lose her when she dies too young, which only embitters him further. Heathcliff swears revenge against Hindley, and he manages to exact revenge both against Hindley and Hindley’s son, Hareton Earnshaw.

Mr. Earnshaw brings the orphan Heath cliff to Wuthering Heights from Liverpool. He is a dark-skinned boy, and his unusual appearance may be one of many reasons why he is not widely accepted by others, neither in the Earnshaw family nor in their village of Gimmerton. Heathcliff’s potential for violence is matched by his potential for love of Catherine, and the intensity with which he exhibits both characteristics is one of Heathcliff’s most striking features. Heathcliff’s childhood attachment to Catherine haunts him in his adult life, even after her death. Nelly Dean describes his violent ways in detail, but they may be exaggerated due to her dislike of him. Even if the descriptions of his behavior are accurate, he may be an example of the cyclical nature of abuse, where abuse victims later victimize others.

Edgar, of the Linton family who live at Thrushcross Grange, is a gentlemanly and handsome man who superficially—based on class—makes a good match for Catherine Earnshaw. His fair hair and eyes and his sensitivity is in stark contrast to Heathcliff’s dark features and his strength, which destabilizes Heathcliff when he is young and competitive. He is a passive partner to Catherine, which emphasizes his role in the novel as a foil to Heathcliff, whose passion and fierceness go unmatched. When his sister Isabella marries Heathcliff, Edgar disowns her, but he shows unyielding fealty to his daughter,Cathy, despite her defiance and her insistence on disobeying him even on his death bed.

Isabella is Edgar’s sister, and when she becomes fascinated by Heathcliff, Heathcliff takes advantage of her interest in him to punish Edgar Linton. Her jealousy over Heathcliff’s attachment to Catherine may reflect a desire to compete with her childhood rival. She eventually chooses a poorly-advised marriage to Heathcliff over a relationship with her brother, which suggests at least a semblance of genuine infatuation for Heathcliff. She bears a son named Linton Heathcliff while she and Heathcliff are estranged, and soon after, she dies, never having told Linton about his father.

As the only child of Heathcliff and Isabella, Linton arrives to Wuthering Heights frightened of the man who is his father. Born to Isabella during her self-imposed exile in London, Linton has never known Heathcliff. The harshness with which Heathcliff treats his son is reminiscent of the harsh treatment Heathcliff received from Hindley Earnshaw, an unfortunate reminder that history often repeats itself. At first, Cathy Heathcliff dotes on her young cousin, Linton, but Heathcliff’s meddling spoils their friendship, despite his scheming to have the cousins marry. Linton does secure the hand of Cathy but dies not long after. He leaves Thrushcross Grange to his father,leaving Cathy essentially destitute and reliant on Heathcliff.

The daughter of Edgar Linton and Catherine, Cathy has inherited some of her mother’s feisty personality, but she is a gentler version of Catherine, perhaps thanks in part to her close relationship with her father. She never knew her mother, who died on the day she was born. Cathy’s kind treatment of Linton,and later of Hareton,foreshadows the peaceful relationship she eventually enjoys with Hareton that breaks a pattern of ruinous emotional drama instigated by her mother and Heathcliff’s ill-fated love.

The son of Hindley Earnshaw and his unfortunate wife, Frances, Hareton bears a physical resemblance to his aunt Catherine that tortures Heathcliff. Hareton receives only abusive treatment from Heathcliff, but he manages to rise above this injustice and grow up into a resilient and reliable, though uneducated, young man. He and Cathy Heathcliff eventually enjoy a pleasant relationship, completely different to the love affair between Catherine and Heathcliff that dominates the novel.