Wuthering Heights
(Emily Brontë)

First Generation

Heathcliff

The primary character of Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff is an orphan gypsy boy brought home by Mr. Earnshaw. Because of his parentage, he has dark skin and hair, marking him as lower class. Heathcliff and Catherine quickly becomes inseparable, and their doomed loved is the primary cause of tension between all the families. When Heathcliff finds out Catherine is marrying Edgar, he leaves Wuthering Heights for several years. When he comes back, he has a sizeable fortune and carries himself in a dignified manner. His new presence borders on the supernatural. Heathcliff is the most dualistic of the characters, going from extreme love to extreme hate throughout the story.

Catherine Earnshaw (later Catherine Linton)

Catherine is a wild, adventurous spirit and spends her time exploring the moors with Heathcliff and causing all sorts of mischief. She is, however, conflicted, as well. She marries Edgar Linton because of his looks and his wealth, thinking that those things will give her respect in society. Catherine makes this choice knowing that Heathcliff is her true soul-mate, but she loves Edgar as well, though more like a brother. Eventually, the jealousy of the two men throws Catherine into a fit of illness from which she never recovers. After her death, her ghost haunts Heathcliff, slowly driving him mad.

Mr. Earnshaw

Hindley and Catherine's father. A stern man, perhaps like Emily Bronte's father. One day, however, he brings home a gypsy child and names him Heathcliff. For some reason, Mr. Earnshaw has a particular attachment to the boy and thinks of him as better than even his own children. He sets everything up for Heathcliff to receive an education alongside Hindley and Catherine, and constantly compares Hindley to Heathcliff, thereby causing their disagreement with one another. When Mr. Earnshaw dies Heathcliff is reduced back to his lower social status because he was not in the will.

Hindley Earnshaw

Upon Mr. Earnshaw's death, Hindley Earnshaw gains Wuthering Heights as well as the family fortune. He brings his wife to live at the Heights, and she dies soon after given birth to Hareton. The death of his beloved sends Hindley over the edge, and he begins abusing the servants, and especially Heathcliff. He stops Heathcliff's schooling and treats him as a mere servant, where his father had treated him like a member of the household. Hindley becomes an alcoholic and a gambler, and when Heathcliff comes back with his new-found fortune, Hindley borrows money from him and loses Wuthering Heights.

Frances Earnshaw

Hindley Earnshaw's wife. Frances is a silly woman who is always talking and trying to make the best of the situation presented her. Mid-way through her pregnancy, it is discovered that she has consumption. The strain of the birth considerably worsened her condition, and she dies soon afterward, all the while telling the doctor and her husband she is just fine.

Mr. and Mrs. Linton

Edgar and Isabella's parents, and the owners of Thrushcross Grange. When Catherine hurts herself at Thrushcross Grange, Mr. and Mrs. Linton take care of her every need, and shun Heathcliff for being a wild savage. Mrs. Linton, in particular, takes it upon herself to turn Catherine into a proper lady, and is responsible for taming her unruly appearance and manners. Mr. and Mrs. Linton die early in the novel from a fever.

Edgar Linton

The eldest son of the Linton family, Edgar inherits the estate upon his parents' death. Edgar is soft-spoken, polite, and a proper gentleman with blond hair and pale skin. He is almost the same age as Catherine, and after her illness at the Grange he begins visiting her at Wuthering Heights. When Catherine begins to prefer Edgar's company to Heathcliff's, he becomes jealous and angry. He doesn't understand why Catherine would choose such a spineless man over himself. Edgar, however, loves Catherine dearly, and after they are married does everything possible to make her happy. Eventually, he also learns to love his daughter, Cathy.

Isabella Linton

Edgar's younger sister. Like her brother, as a child she is decidedly spoiled, however, unlike her brother, she never grows out of this selfishness while she is at Thrushcross Grange. When Edgar and Catherine are married, Isabella and Catherine have a rocky relationship. When Heathcliff comes back from his extended trip, with a new bearing and new money, Isabella falls for him. She defies her brother's wishes to stay away from the man and marries Heathcliff without his consent. As soon as they are wed, Heathcliff begins treating her horribly and she degenerates at the Heights. Eventually, she escapes and moves away to give birth to her son, Linton.

Cathy Linton (later Cathy Earnshaw)

Catherine's daughter, named after her but called Cathy to differentiate the two. Cathy takes the admiral aspects of both her parents; gentleness and social graces from Edgar, and a curious and wild spirit from Catherine. However, her personality is not as extreme as either of her parents, as her qualities temper themselves out. The most influential person in her life is her father, Edgar. She grows up not knowing about the heights, but when she is sixteen Heathcliff plots to have her married to his son Linton so as to steal her inheritance. They are married, and Linton soon dies. Cathy moves to Wuthering Heights, where ill-treatment by Heathcliff brings out her bad side. She becomes involved with Hareton, however, and after Heathcliff's death is free to marry him.

Linton Heathcliff

Linton is Cathy's exact opposite. While she gained the good qualities of both her parents' personalities, Linton receives the bad. He is weak and whining like Isabella, as well as demanding and cruel like Heathcliff. He comes to Wuthering Heights at thirteen, and Heathcliff is shocked that Linton looks exactly like Edgar. He treats the boy poorly, even though he gives him a good education and a luxurious room. The boy is continually sick, however, and dies soon after marrying Cathy. There is evidence of him defying Heathcliff during his life, which was mostly defined by cowardice. He defied Heathcliff's orders and let Cathy out when she was locked up.

Hareton Earnshaw

Surprisingly, the son of the man Heathcliff hates most (Hindley) turns out to be the most like Heathcliff himself. Hareton stays at Wuthering Heights after his father's death, and so is raised mostly by Heathcliff. Just as Hindley refused Heathcliff an education, Heathcliff doesn't allow Hareton to learn or read. Hareton has a strong spirit and grows into a muscular man with a quick temper. Cathy makes fun of Hareton for not being able to read, and Hareton tries to teach himself. Eventually, he and Cathy fall in love and get married.

Narrators, Servants, and Minor Characters

Mr. Lockwood

The narrator of Wuthering Heights, or rather, the story is set down in his journal. Mr. Lockwood is an outsider, and rents Thrushcross Grange after Catherine and Edgar have both died. He seems awkward and somewhat amiable, and quickly becomes obsessed with learning the strange story of the three families and their descendants. Mr. Lockwood serves to provide an outside perspective to the story, and always knows as much as the reader does.

Ellen Dean (Nelly)

Though the story is penned by Mr. Lockwood, he receives the majority of his information from Ellen, or Nelly. Nelly was raised alongside Catherine, Hindley and Heathcliff as a serving-girl. She stayed at the manor as an adult, first serving at the Heights, and then, when Catherine marries, at the Grange. Nelly is perceptive but oftentimes nosy. She also tries to overlook her own actions in the events of the story she tells Lockwood, especially if they are negative. Overall, however, she is attached to the families of both Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange and makes a (mostly) unbiased observer.

Joseph

The elderly servant of Wuthering Heights. Joseph is a religious fanatic with a thick Yorkshire accent. He pops in and out of the story and is particularly attached to his masters, first Mr. Earnshaw and then Heathcliff.

Zillah

The female maid who replaces Nelly after she moves with Catherine to Thrushcross Grange. Since she has not been working for the family as long, she is not as aware of the character's natures and histories. When Cathy moves to Wuthering Heights, Zillah gives Nelly updates on her behavior.

Dr. Kenneth

The village doctor at Gimmerton; called to Wuthering Heights or Thrushcross Grange when someone is sick. Although Dr. Kenneth does not play a prominent role in the story, often he serves as an important source of information from town, or from the other households.