Trace the development of the relationship between Heathcliff and Cathy from their childhood through to Cathy's death. How far do you agree that their relationship is a source of "little visible delight" for either character but is instead a destructive passion far removed from the traditional love story?.
Response .
Cathy and Heathcliff's relationship changes throughout the course of the novel as they have good times and bad times and this changes the way that we perceive the characters and the way they perceive each other either bringing them closer together or pushing them further apart. Whilst their relationship does have some aspects of the traditional love story, it has more differences than similarities. The two started their relationship at a young age when Mr Earnshaw took in Heathcliff and treated him like one of his own. This is when he met Cathy, but he wasn't treated in a polite manner when he first arrived. He was referred to as an "it" for a while, showing that the Earnshaw's don't see him as one of them, they don't even see him as a human for that matter, but like an unidentified species. By doing this they probably alienated Heathcliff and made him feel isolated from everyone in Wuthering Heights. Since Cathy was a part of the Earnshaw's, the relationship between herself and Heathcliff didn't begin with fireworks, but as time passed, their relationship improved to the point where Cathy ˜was much too fond of Heathcliff' and that the ˜greatest punishment we could invent for her was to keep her separate from him'. This was the beginning of their friendship and soon to be love affair, but Heathcliff's arrival and close friendship with Cathy was destructive, as Hindley grew jealous and protective. He believed that Heathcliff was taking his place as a brother and the favorite child. You can see this when Mr Earnshaw allows Heathcliff to take the ˜handsomest' horse when both him and Hindley are given them by Mr Earnshaw.
