How does Emily Brontë introduce and develop the character of Cathy and Heathcliff in Chapter 1-16 of Wuthering Heights?
Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff are 2 main characters in Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights” who remain relevant throughout the book, leaving lasting impressions. Both characters are around the same age and grow up together, developing strong personalities that clash and complement each other.
Readers are first introduced to Heathcliff through the eyes of Mr. Lockwood, whose point of view the story is in. When Mr. Lockwood first arrives at Wuthering Heights to announce his arrival to his landlord, Heathcliff, he is received by a cold, grumpy man, whose physical features are vividly and harshly described in the first paragraph
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Readers have learned to expect this behaviour from those with hidden virtue as traditionally, this is how romance novel protagonists are portrayed: dangerous, brooding, etc. however in Heathcliff’s case, he does not reform to be a purely good person, instead his malevolence proves to be a long-lasting trait that persists. Both Heathcliff and Catherine have counterparts in the Linton siblings, their counterparts being the perfect opposite of the other: Edgar is Heathcliff’s counterpart being raised as the perfect gentleman, well mannered and with civilised values but while these traits get Catherine to marry him over Heathcliff, they are ultimately useless and weak. Isabella Linton, Catherine’s counterpart and Edgar Linton’s sister is cultured and much more civilised than Catherine who is wilder and lively, occasionally even cruel. In the first 16 Chapters, we see both characters personality develop: Heathcliff’s fluctuating between romantic and cruel and Catherine slowly going from lively to cold and unable to choose, leading to her health continuously declining until she passes