Lewis James
 The chapter begins with Cathy pretending to be tired
and tells Nellie that she is going to bed. Nellie tries to
find her but realises she as lied and has visited the
Heights. She finds Cathy dismounting her pony
outside Thruscross Grange. Once Nellie confronts her
about her disappearance Cathy tells her about all of
her visits to see Linton. She tells her of how they
would sit and talk about what they would consider to
be their ‘perfect’ day. It then becomes clear to Cathy
that they actually has nothing in common and his bad
health prevents him from enjoying the same things as
her.
On the way out of the Heights she encounters
Hareton. He shows her he is learning to read and
proves it by reading the sign above the entrance.
Cathy then calls him a “dunce” because he cannot
read the date “1500”. Enraged, he interrupts her
meeting with Linton and throws him to the
ground. Linton blames Cathy for his
embarrassment. Once she has confessed this to
Nellie she tells her secret to Edgar who stops
Cathy visiting the heights but agrees to allow
Linton to visit Thruscross Grange.
 Cathy – I think her character develops significantly in this
chapter. We see a very deceiving side of her towards the
start of the chapter when she fakes being ill and escapes.
Then we see her maturing mentally and emotionally when
she realises that maybe she doesn’t love Linton as much as
she once thought because they are such different people
with different interests. She also shows her trademark
naivety when she calls Hareton a “dunce”, she is naive
enough to believe that it won’t offend him and it is okay to
treat him the way Linton does.
 Cathy and Linton – the relationship between the two
characters changes drastically in this chapter. The
conversation about each others perfect day makes it clear
that the relationship is doomed because of their
dissimilarity.
 Nellie – Towards the end of the chapter where
Nellie tells Edgar her secret shows her
manipulative and influential side. It is this trait of
Nellie’s that influences the key events throughout
the novel. Such as the separation of Cathy and
Heathcliff.
 Love – Much like Catherine’s relationship with Edgar,
Wuthering Heights proves that love is not always
genuine and fairy tale like. In this chapter the
relationship between Cathy and Linton also proves
this. Catherine’s attraction towards Linton is just a
pubescent infatuation and doesn’t really understand
the seriousness and diversity of love.
 Manipulation – Cathy manipulates Nellie and makes
her believe that she is not visiting Linton at the
heights. She uses Nellie’s illness to sneak away from
Thruscross grange. This is reminiscent of Catherine’s
behaviour when she was younger and would
manipulate everyone around her to get her way.
 Pathetic fallacy – “ lying from morning to evening on a bank
of heath among the moors, with the bees humming
dreamily among the bloom, and the larks signing high up
over head, and the blue sky, and bright sun shining steadily
and cloudlessly”. “Mine was rocking in a rustling green tree,
with a west wind blowing, and bright, white clouds flitting
rapidly above. The whole world awake with joy”. The first
quote represents Linton as a person, the fact that he
dreams about lying down shows his lack of mobility and
energy. Also he dreams about being in the moors, in this
novel the moors are seen as a depressing place. I think this
shows how the company of Heathcliff and the Heights as a
whole has influenced him. The imagery of his ‘heaven’ also
symbolises death and the way he imagines dying “ lying
form morning to evening”.
 The second quote represents Cathy’s mood and
character. She dreams of “rocking rustling green
trees” this shows complete contrast to Linton
because she wants to be active and enjoy life. I
think her hyperactivity strands from her mothers
early death, therefore Cathy believes she must
live life to the full and do as many things as
possible because her mother didn’t have the
chance. A key section from the quote to sum up
the contrast between them is “The whole world
awake with joy”.
 Symbolism – I believe that Hareton not being able
to clearly read and understand the sign above the
Heights symbolises the younger generations
naivety towards the situation of the elders. The
sign reads “Hareton Earnshaw 1500” this shows
that Hareton is the rightful owner of the heights
and also shows that Hareton is unaware of the
situation between Heathcliff and Hindley.
 Cathy uses her innocence to persuade Nellie not to
be angry with her about lying to her and visiting
the heights. This is reminiscent of Catherine and
how she used to manipulate people with her
innocence and beauty. For example, in volume 1
chapter 5 where Mr Earnshaw is very ill, he says
to Catherine “Why canst thou always be a good
lass, Cathy? And she turned her face up to his,
and laughed, and answered “why cannot you
always be a good man, father?” This shows how
Catherine also used to use her innocence to avoid
punishment.
 I have also seen a comparison with chapter 15. In
this chapter Heathcliff sneaks into Thruscross
Grange to visit Catherine who, much like Linton,
is very close to death. This shows the similarities
and likenesses between the generations but also
how they differ because it is Cathy who is the
visitor this time and it is to The Heights instead of
Thruscross grange.
 “And why should you try to deceive me, by telling a
tale? Where have you been? Speak!.” “to the bottom of
the park” she stammered. “I didn't tell a tale”.
 “Promise not to be angry and you shall know the
truth”. These quotes show Catherine trying to
manipulate Nellie and shows how stubborn she is
because she will not accept that she has done nothing
wrong and does not want to be punished
 “it was not to amuse myself I went” This shows how
Cathy differs from her mother. She is taking other
peoples feelings into account and wants to do
something that will not just benefit her, which is a
change from her mothers selfish behaviour
 “he wanted all to lie in an ecstasy of peace; I wanted all to
sparkle and dance in a glorious jubilee”
 “I said his heaven would be only half alive, and he said
mine would be drunk; I said I would fall asleep in his; he
said he could not breathe in mine”. These quotes show the
difference between the two characters. Cathy is much like
her mother and Heathcliff in that she wants to go out and
enjoy herself and make the most of her teenage years. It
also reflects the lifestyle of Thruscross Grange compared to
the Heights. Happiness vs. Depression.
 “I beat him constantly; and he got cross again, and
coughed” Again this shows the difference between the two
characters but it also shows how Linton's sickness is coming
between them
The End