Overview
Catherine Earnshaw (later Catherine Linton) is a fictional character and the female protagonist of the 1847 novel Wuthering Heights written by Emily Brontë. Catherine is one of two surviving children born to Mr. and Mrs. Earnshaw, the original tenants of the Wuthering Heights estate. The star-crossed love between her and Heathcliff is one of the primary focuses of the novel. Catherine is often referred to as "Cathy," particularly by Heathcliff.
Biography
Cathy Earnshaw is the younger sister of Hindley Earnshaw. Cathy and Hindley are born and raised at Wuthering Heights. The siblings are later joined by the foundling Mr. Earnshaw comes across in Liverpool and later names Heathcliff, after a son he and Mrs. Earnshaw lost in childbirth. Heathcliff and Hindley develop a rivalry, and Catherine and Heathcliff develop a close bond, as they are both wild and unruly. Following the death of Mr. Earnshaw, Hindley demotes Heathcliff to the role of a servant and attempts, with the help of his wife, to limit the interactions between Catherine and Heathcliff.
Catherine and Heathcliff still manage to spend time together, and while the two of them spy on the Thrushcross Grange estate, the residence of the Linton family, Catherine is attacked by one of the Linton's dogs. The Lintons then take in Catherine and nurse her injuries, and Heathcliff is driven out of the estate and back to Wuthering Heights. Upon returning from her time with the Lintons, Catherine has developed more refined manners and become friends with Edgar and Isabella Linton. Catherine becomes spoiled and vicious, often taking it out on her servant and foster-sister Nelly.
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
