Cathy’s Sacrifice
In Wuthering Heights, many characters face difficult situations in which they must either fend for themselves and watch those around them suffer or put their own desires and comforts at risk to help their peers. No character exemplifies this struggle as well as young Catherine Linton, better known as Cathy. Cathy had “a heart sensitive and lively to excess in its affections”, and was the light of the Thrushcross Grange with her loving disposition, which ultimately leads to her making one of the biggest sacrifices in the book (Brontë 185). Cathy’s sacrifice comes through her actions in regards to her cousin, Linton Heathcliff. Linton is a sickly, whiny, manipulative child, who craves any sort of attention, and is willing to put others at risk as to keep himself out of harm’s range. Cathy takes pity on the lad, and even goes as far as to form affections for him, despite his unpleasantness. Cathy mourned to Ellen that her “visits were dreary and troubled”, but the girl “learned to endure” the moods of her cousin because he insisted it brought him joy (Brontë 246). She risked displeasing her father and allowed herself to be verbally abused by the boy in attempts to bring him joy. Cathy, due to her father’s wishes, was forbidden to enter Wuthering Heights, where Linton resided, but was compelled to …show more content…
She would “promise to marry Linton” if only she could see her father, knowing “if [she stayed, her] papa [would] be miserable” (Brontë 264). Cathy knows if she married Linton, she would be forced to live at the Heights and have to suffer Heathcliff’s abuse, but the knowledge of knowing her father is not worried is worth that to her. Cathy is willing to let everything she has ever known- all her luxuries and land- go to Linton, and by extension Heathcliff, for the ability to soothe her dad’s
In Wuthering Heights, many characters face difficult situations in which they must either fend for themselves and watch those around them suffer or put their own desires and comforts at risk to help their peers. No character exemplifies this struggle as well as young Catherine Linton, better known as Cathy. Cathy had “a heart sensitive and lively to excess in its affections”, and was the light of the Thrushcross Grange with her loving disposition, which ultimately leads to her making one of the biggest sacrifices in the book (Brontë 185). Cathy’s sacrifice comes through her actions in regards to her cousin, Linton Heathcliff. Linton is a sickly, whiny, manipulative child, who craves any sort of attention, and is willing to put others at risk as to keep himself out of harm’s range. Cathy takes pity on the lad, and even goes as far as to form affections for him, despite his unpleasantness. Cathy mourned to Ellen that her “visits were dreary and troubled”, but the girl “learned to endure” the moods of her cousin because he insisted it brought him joy (Brontë 246). She risked displeasing her father and allowed herself to be verbally abused by the boy in attempts to bring him joy. Cathy, due to her father’s wishes, was forbidden to enter Wuthering Heights, where Linton resided, but was compelled to …show more content…
She would “promise to marry Linton” if only she could see her father, knowing “if [she stayed, her] papa [would] be miserable” (Brontë 264). Cathy knows if she married Linton, she would be forced to live at the Heights and have to suffer Heathcliff’s abuse, but the knowledge of knowing her father is not worried is worth that to her. Cathy is willing to let everything she has ever known- all her luxuries and land- go to Linton, and by extension Heathcliff, for the ability to soothe her dad’s