The narrator, Mr. Lockwood, has recently rented a secluded house named Thrushcross Grange in the desolate moors of Yorkshire in northern England. He visits his landlord, Mr. Heathcliff, who resides a few miles away at a smaller residence called Wuthering Heights, and finds him to be unpleasant and argumentative. Due to a snowstorm, Mr. Lockwood is compelled to stay overnight and has a dream of a ghost identifying itself as Catherine Linton. When he returns to Thrushcross Grange, he asks his housekeeper, Ellen (Nelly) Dean, to enlighten him about the mysterious Mrs.
Thirty years prior, the Earnshaws were living in Wuthering Heights when their story began. Mr. Earnshaw had recently returned from Liverpool and had brought back a gypsy lad named Heathcliff to raise alongside his own children, Hindley and Catherine. Catherine develops a strong bond with Heathcliff, but Hindley despises him due to his father’s favoritism. After Mr. Earnshaw’s passing, Hindley returns home from school with a new wife and demotes Heathcliff to the position of a servant.
Cathy and Heathcliff form a wild partnership on the moors and eventually fall in love. During one of their adventures, they are caught looking into the windows of Thrushcross Grange, where the Lintons reside. Although the Linton children, Edgar and Isabella, are scared of Heathcliff due to his rough nature, they grow fond of Catherine. She is obliged to stay with them for a few weeks to recover from being bitten by their watchdog. When Cathy returns home, she is dressed elegantly and has abandoned her untamed behavior. She mocks Heathcliff’s angry expression, causing him to storm off in frustration.
After his wife dies following childbirth, Hindley’s treatment of Heathcliff worsens due to his grief. At the same time, Cathy and Heathcliff have been having arguments. Consequently, when Edgar Linton proposes to Cathy, she accepts. She confides in Ellen, the housekeeper, that Edgar is handsome, cheerful, and destined for wealth. She believes that marrying Heathcliff would lower her status. Little does she know that Heathcliff has overheard her remark and feels degraded. In response, he runs away. Cathy is devastated upon discovering his departure. Three years later, Cathy and Edgar wed and settle at Thrushcross Grange with Ellen, whom they convince to join them. The young couple enjoys a happy six-month marriage until Heathcliff returns as a wealthy and educated man.
Heathcliff remains at Wuthering Heights with his longtime foe Hindley, who has since become a drunkard. Upon Heathcliff’s visit to Thrushcross Grange, Cathy is overjoyed to see him. The revamped Heathcliff quickly captures the heart of Isabella Linton, which infuriates both Cathy and Edgar, albeit for different reasons. Despite regarding Isabella as foolish and feeble, Heathcliff pursues her as a means of seeking retribution against Edgar and, perhaps, acquiring her wealth. Shortly thereafter, Cathy falls ill.
Delirious from fever, she envisions herself reunited with the young Heathcliff. Meanwhile, as she remains bedridden, he and Isabella run away together. Bibliography:none
