Wuthering Heights

Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights was published in December 1847 under the pen name Ellis Bell. This literary classic is Emily Brontë’s only novel, and the book is widely appreciated as an exemplary work of British Romantic literature. At the time of publication, most critical reviews of Wuthering Heights were disapproving at best and scathing at worst, so much so that Brontë’s sister Charlotte Brontë, who wrote Jane Eyre under the pen name Currer Bell, was concerned that it might negatively impact the literary brand Charlotte and her sisters were trying to develop. Only the year before, in 1846, with their sister Anne Brontë, author of Agnes Grey under the pseudonym Acton Bell, Charlotte and Emily Brontë had published a joint collection of poetry titled Poems by Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell. Despite the negativity of the early reviews, Wuthering Heights is now celebrated as a unique work of literature, intriguing scholars and fans alike with its complexity and high emotion.

This guide references the 1992 Wordsworth Classics paperback edition.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of child abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, illness, death, child death, graphic violence, addiction, substance use, mental illness, sexual violence, sexual content, bullying, self-harm, disordered eating, gender discrimination, and suicidal ideation.

Language Note: The source material uses outdated and offensive terminology for the Roma people, which this guide reproduces only in quotations.

Plot Summary

Most of the novel is told in retrospective narration by Nelly Dean, the housekeeper of the manor of Wuthering Heights, to Mr. Lockwood, a new tenant of the area. Lockwood frames Nelly’s tale—which is colored with her own perceptions and bias—and presents the account to the reader, also interjecting his own ideas about the characters and events. Lockwood has recently inquired about renting the nearby manor of Thrushcross Grange, which, like Wuthering Heights, is owned by an enigmatic and bad-tempered man named Heathcliff. During Lockwood’s stay in the winter of 1801, Nelly explains how the former owner of Wuthering Heights, Mr. Earnshaw, brought Heathcliff to Wuthering Heights as an orphan boy. Subsequently, Heathcliff spent his childhood with Mr. Earnshaw’s daughter, Catherine, and the pair developed a deep affection for one another. Catherine’s brother, Hindley, resented Heathcliff’s relationship with his father and treated his foster brother with disdain and cruelty. 

After his father’s death, Hindley returned from university with his wife, Frances, and became the sole proprietor of Wuthering Heights. Hindley used his position to treat Heathcliff like a servant, inadvertently solidifying the emotional bond between his sister and Heathcliff. At that time, the well-to-do Lintons owned Thrushcross Grange and had two grown children, Edgar and Isabella. After a dog attack, Catherine stayed at Thrushcross Grange to recover and drew the attention of Edgar. Meanwhile, Frances died during childbirth, leaving Hindley to care for his newborn son, Hareton. In his grief, Hindley became more tyrannical toward Heathcliff.

Catherine was in love with Heathcliff, yet despite her feelings, she planned to marry Edgar, as dictated by class etiquette. Upon learning this news, Heathcliff left the moors for three years. When he returned, he was in possession of mysterious wealth and was committed to enacting revenge against Hindley for the years of abuse. Heathcliff tricked Hindley, who had developed an addiction to alcohol, into losing his rights to Wuthering Heights—which Heathcliff swiftly acquired. Heathcliff then wed Isabella but treated her abusively during their marriage. 

Catherine gave birth to a daughter named Catherine Linton, but the mother fell ill and died. Heathcliff’s behavior became more erratic and violent, and Isabella fled to London. There, she gave birth to Heathcliff’s son, Linton Heathcliff. Over the next 13 years, Edgar and Nelly tried to shield young Cathy from the turmoil that surrounded Wuthering Heights and its owner, Heathcliff. Cathy eventually formed a clandestine friendship with Hareton, who had become gruff and uneducated as a result of Heathcliff’s mistreatment. 

After Isabella’s death, Edgar brought his nephew, Linton Heathcliff, to Thrushcross Grange with the intent to raise him away from the vengeance of Heathcliff. This attempt was in vain, as Heathcliff forced Linton and Cathy to marry so that he himself could acquire the Linton manor, Thrushcross Grange. Eventually, both Edgar and Linton passed away, and Heathcliff reigned as owner of the moors. As the novel opens, he has essentially imprisoned Cathy and Nelly and treats Cathy as a servant. When Lockwood approaches Thrushcross Grange, he meets Cathy in this position. Nelly then imparts to him her version of the events, which causes him to leave the area. When he later returns, Nelly details the blossoming romance between Hareton and Cathy, who intend to wed. Heathcliff has recently died a broken man, haunted by the loss of his true love, Catherine Earnshaw.