Wuthering Heights 16-17

Summary





That night little Catherine is born , two months premature, and her mother dies in childbirth. Edgar begins mourning. On top of the whole mess, he has no heir (girls don't count). Nelly goes out to the garden to break the news to Heathcliff, but he already knows. Still, he begs for all of the grisly details and, of course, wants to know if she mentioned him. Heathcliff doesn't want Catherine to rest in peace. He cannot live without her, and he cries out for her to haunt him. Heathcliff sneaks into the house to say one final goodbye to Catherine in her coffin. As a parting gesture, he replaces Edgar's hair in the locket around her neck with a piece of his own. Instead of being buried in a chapel or with the Linton family, Catherine's body is laid to rest outside, near the moor and peat mould, a decomposed vegetable matter that covers uncultivated land.




Nelly tends to the new baby while Edgar keeps to his room.Isabella shows up, having run all the way from Wuthering Heights in the snow. Nelly tends to Isabella's cuts and bruises. Isabella throws her wedding ring into the fire, though it is clear that she would go back to Heathcliff if he showed even the slightest interest in her.Isabella tells Nelly that she plans to escape from Heathcliff because 'He's not a human being'. Isabella takes over the narrative again, telling Nelly about Heathcliff's recent behavior. One night, Hindley locks Heathcliff out of the house and shows Isabella his gun again, resolving to murder Heathcliff. Isabella shouts out a warning to Heathcliff. Heathcliff bursts into the house and beats the living daylights out of Hindley. The next morning he looks a mess. He broods in the corner, paying no attention to Hindley or Isabella until she provokes him by talking about Catherine. He hurls a knife at her. Six months after Catherine's death, Hindley finally dies too. Going up there to arrange Hindley's funeral, Nelly witnesses two triumphs for Heathcliff, who announces to Hareton, 'Now, my bonny lad, you are mine! And we'll see if one tree won't grow as crooked as another, with the same wind to twist it!'. In other words, Heathcliff plans to run Hareton into the ground by giving him the same treatment he (Heathcliff) received from Hindley. Heathcliff is now master of Wuthering Heights, which Hindley mortgaged to finance his gambling habit.




Analysis 

• Heathcliff doesn't want Catherine to rest in peace. He cannot live without her, and he cries out for her to haunt him. this just shows how obsessed he was with her
• Themes of Violence and Extreme behaviour: Isabella has cuts and tries to escape Wuthering Heights 
• Revenge: Abuses Hindley, Hurls a knife at Isabella 
• Isabella point of view-vital