Catherine Earnshaw is one of the main female characters in the novel by Emily Bronte. The only one who was truly loved by the main character and antagonist of the Heathcliff novel. But Miss Earnshaw married Edgar Linton, further complicating the relationship between Linton and Heathcliff. She is one of the controversial characters in Wuthering Heights.
A family
Katherine Earnshaw lived with her family on the estate. She had an older brother, Hindley. Once their father brought a boy to the house, who very scared the children. They did not accept Heathcliff immediately, but then little Katie became attached to the foundling. They became best friends, often mischievous together. But Hindley was jealous of Heathcliff and never accepted the boy.
Hindley began to oppress the boy more and more. Often, Katherine, who was a companion of Heathcliff, also got it. They grew up as mischievous children, who more than anything else liked to run through heather thickets. The girl was not diligent, she was selfish and spoiled. But she was forgiven for many leprosy, because Katherine had a kind heart.
Meeting with Edgar Linton
Little Katie grew up a real beauty. Meanwhile, Heathcliff was not just attached to her, he loved her with all the ardor of his passionate nature. But not far from Wuthering Heights was the Linton Manor — respected people in the city. The Linton couple had two children - son Edgar and daughter Isabella.
At first, Catherine Earnshaw scorned Edgar and his sister because they were too effeminate. But one day, due to another prank, the girl for some time remained on the "Manor of Starlings". Everyone there treated Katherine as a princess. She was admired, all her whims were fulfilled. And the girl returned home even more spoiled and selfish.
Developing a relationship with Heathcliff
If before Katherine did not notice that Heathcliff was uneducated, clumsy, then, having talked with a well-educated and noble Edgar, she saw all the shortcomings of her friend in children's games. Katherine began to behave more arrogant, sometimes taunting Heathcliff, which was what Hindley was happy about.
But sometimes Katherine forgot about her role as a princess and began to communicate with Heathcliff, as before. But the young man was jealous of the girl for the young Linton, with whom Katie continued to communicate. The girl liked Edgar's courtship, she encouraged him, although she realized that she was most dear to Heathcliff. But because of her pride, Katherine did not admit her feelings for this gloomy young man.
Despite Edgar's upbringing and position, the girl continued to defend Heathcliff from her brother. For her, he was still more valuable than anything in the world, and she was ready to run out of the house again to run along the heather thickets with him.
Katherine's Choice
The girl increasingly communicated with Edgar, and Heathcliff became more and more self-contained and jealous of her. Young Linton was the exact opposite of Heathcliff: he was handsome, well-mannered, and very kind and kind-hearted. But Edgar also had little in common with Catherine herself: her indomitable and bold character was closer to Heathcliff.
But Miss Ernshaw accepted Linton's courtship, because he was a good party for her. Ellen Dean empathized with Heathcliff and tried to help him build relationships with her young mistress. A conversation took place between them, during which Katherine admitted to her that Linton had proposed to her, and she agreed.
Ellen Dean asked the girl about her feelings for young people. Katie honestly replied that she married Linton because he had a fortune. And Heathcliff, although he is dear to her, even though she feels that it is he - her love and she loves him with all the shortcomings that she will not be able to give the girl what she wants.
This selection shows that Miss Earnshaw did not have the inner strength and faith in her lover that other heroes had. She went on about her arrogance and spoilage. It was Katie in many ways who contributed to the fact that Heathcliff became a cruel person. The young man ran away from home, and Catherine, having survived a nervous breakdown, became the wife of Edgar Linton.
Katherine Linton
After some time in a happy life with Edgar, Katherine discovers that Heathcliff is back in town. Mrs. Linton was sure that she still had power over him, so she did not think about the motives for the return of her lover. Although Heathcliffe continued to love Katie, he wanted revenge on the Earnshaw and Linton families for all neglect and for ruining his happiness with Katherine.
Katie, realizing that Heathcliff was scary and dangerous, continued to love him. She is the only one who was not afraid of him, perceived him as an equal and even spoke down to him. It was for her impudent indomitable character that Heathcliff continued to love her. After all, it was Catherine Earnshaw who once showed kindness to a little boy and ran with him through heather thickets.
General characteristics of the heroine
Katherine Earnshaw's character is as complex and controversial as Heathcliff. This heroine miraculously combined a kind heart (the girl never wanted to offend anyone on purpose), the desire to take care and selfishness, spoiledness and mercantile spirit. In the general characterization of Katherine Earnshaw, it should be noted that she was the exact opposite of Edgar Linton.
Her daughter was a character in her father, and this was one of the reasons Heathcliff hated her. The image of Katherine Earnshaw turned out to be one of the most striking and controversial in romantic literature. The reader may rightly be outraged at the arrogance of the heroine towards others, and how she did unfairly with kind Linton. But also Katherine continued to love Heathcliff and dreamed again to run along with him through the heather thickets. It was such a contradictory nature that made the image of this heroine so special.