Wuthering Heights

Young Cathy grieves her cousin Linton's departure after his sudden removal to Wuthering Heights, though time gradually erases his memory from her mind. Nelly learns from the Heights' housekeeper that Linton lives in isolation, constantly sick, and has become insufferably demanding. Heathcliff barely conceals his contempt for his own son, avoiding him whenever possible and showing visible antipathy to his voice and presence. The boy spends his days wrapped in furs by the fire, demanding special food, complaining about drafts, and quarreling with Hareton when he tries to befriend him. Three years pass, and on Cathy's sixteenth birthday—also the anniversary of her mother's death—she manipulates Nelly into walking farther than permitted on the moors. They accidentally encounter Heathcliff on his land, where Cathy has been hunting for bird nests. Heathcliff, recognizing his opportunity, forces them to visit Wuthering Heights despite Nelly's protests. There, Cathy meets her cousin Linton for the first time since childhood—a pale, delicate, peevish boy who both attracts and repels her. Heathcliff reveals his scheme to Nelly: he wants the cousins to fall in love and marry, securing his control over both the Linton and Earnshaw estates. He manipulates the young people into a secret correspondence, knowing Edgar would never approve. The chapter ends with Cathy enchanted by her romantic cousin and the forbidden nature of their connection, while Nelly dreads the consequences of this engineered reunion.