Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights

Emily Bronte

Heathcliff is an orphan boy who is taken to live with the Earnshaw family at Wuthering Heights, in a remote, wild part of Yorkshire. He and Catherine Earnshaw grow to love each other passionately, but Catherine decides to marry her handsome but weak neighbour, Edgar Linton. When she dies in childbirth, leaving a daughter, who is also called Catherine, Heathcliff plans his revenge on both the Earnshaw and Linton families.

In this extract, Heathcliff intends to force young Catherine to marry his sickly son Linton. He persuades the girl to come to his house, Wuthering Heights, with her nurse, Nelly Dean and plans to keep her there until the marriage ceremony can be performed.

We reached the threshold; Catherine walked in; and I stood waiting till she had conducted the invalid to a chair, expecting her out immediately, when Mr Heathcliff, pushing me forward, exclaimed-

‘My house is not stricken with the plague, Nelly; and I have a mind to be hospitable today. Sit down, and allow me to shut the door.’                                                                                                (5)

He shut and locked it also. I started.

‘You shall have tea before you go home,’ he added. ‘I am by myself. Hareton is gone with some cattle to the Lees – and Zillah and Joseph are off on a journey of pleasure. And, though I’m used to being alone, I’d rather have some interesting company, if I can get it. Miss Linton, take your seat by him. (10) I give you what I have; the present is hardly worth accepting, but I have nothing else to offer. It is Linton, I mean. How she does stare! It’s odd what a savage feeling I have to anything that seems afraid of me!’

. . . . .

He drew in his breath, struck the table, and swore to himself.

‘By hell! I hate them.’

‘I’m not afraid of you!’ exclaimed Catherine. …                                                 (15)

She stepped close up, her black eyes flashing with passion and resolution.

‘Give me that key – I will have it!’ she said. ‘I wouldn’t eat or drink here if I were starving.’

Heathcliff had the key in his hand that remained on the table. He looked up, seized with a sort of surprise at her boldness, or, possibly, reminded by her voice and glance of the person from whom she inherited it.

She snatched at the instrument, and half succeeded in getting it out of his loosened fingers, but her action recalled him to the present; he recovered it speedily.

‘Now, Catherine Linton,’ he said, ‘standoff, or I shall knock you down; and that will make Mrs.Dean mad.’

Regardless of this warning, she captured his closed hand and its contents again.

‘We will go!’ she repeated, exerting her utmost efforts to cause the iron muscles to relax; and finding that her nails made no impression, she applied her teeth pretty sharply.

Heathcliff glanced at me a glance that kept me from interfering a moment. Catherine was too intent on his fingers to notice his face. He opened them, suddenly, and resigned the object of dispute; but, ere she had well secured it, he seized her with the liberated hand, and, pulling her on his knee, administrated with the other a shower of terrific slaps on both sides of the head, each sufficient to have fulfilled his threat, had she been able to fall.

At this diabolical violence, I rushed on him furiously.                                       (33)

‘You villain!’ I began to cry, ‘you villain!’

A touch on the chest silenced me; I am stout, and soon put out of breath; and, what with that and the rage, I staggered dizzily back, and felt ready to suffocate, or to burst a blood vessel.

The scene was over in two minutes; Catherine, released, put her two hands to her temples and looked just as if she were not sure whether her ears were off or on.

Match these words from the text with their meanings.

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