Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights Chapter VI Summary and Analysis
This chapter marks a turning point in Heathcliff’s life and this is from where the drift between him and Cathy begins. The two grow more reckless because of punishments and sneak out to the Grange one day. They are caught their and while Cathy remains on the Grange for some days, Heathcliff has to leave disgruntled. Mr Earnshaw lectures Hindley for his carelessness and his wife takes the responsibility of Catherine. However, the drift has begin and from this chapter onwards, Catherine is to grow used to a new way of life that does not have place for poor Heathcliff.Â
Hindley was home for funeral and brought his new wife with him. Everyone including the neighbors was talking about her and nobody could know who she was born of and where she came from because Hindley told no one. Everyone imagined she was from a less known and poor family. She was not so attractive but still had a fine complexion and glistening eyes, Nelly Dean had noted. Everything she saw in and around the house amazed her except, the preparations for the burial. Her behavior made her look silly and when she entered her chamber she asked Nelly dean t be with her. Then she asked if the people were gone because black color gave her nausea. She was hysteriac and started crying. When Nelly Dean asked what has the matter she told she felt afraid of death, however, she was herself least likely to die. Despite being thin, she looked healthy but when she climbed the stairs, she breathed hard and quivered at the slightest noise. Moreover, she coughed loudly sometimes. However, Nelly dean did not feel much sympathy for her because she would not sympathize with someone unless he sympathized first.
Hindley had changed a lot in these three years. When he came, he asked everyone to vacate the house and park themselves in the back kitchen. He had grown thinner and now dressed and spoke in a different manner. He would have liked to upgrade the interiors but his wife was already so pleased with the white floor and the large interior space that he felt little need to. His wife was happy at first to see Catherine and gifted her and kissed her. However, she grew tired of her love soon and started remaining irritated. Hindley also became tyrannical behind her and his wife’s hatred for Heathcliff made him recall the guy’s past. He threw him into the servants’ company and got him deprived of every privilege including education. He made him work just as hard as any worker. Heathcliff bore all his trouble without any remorse and it was because Catherine taught him what he had learnt. They started growing into savages due to Hindley’s oppression. They would escape into the Moors and remain there. Hindley would not have known but Joseph and the curate reminded him of is carelessness. They asked him to flog Heathcliff and not let Catherine have dinner. The more the two were punished the more careless they grew and after some days laughed at the punishments. However hard they were punished once they were together, they forgot all their pain and hardships. They would strike some naughty plan of revenge and Nelly Dean was growing concerned to see them becoming more and more reckless.
One Sunday evening, they were thrown out of the sitting room for having made some noise and afterwards when everyone searched they were found nowhere inside the entire house. Hindley got the doors bolted and asked that no one let them in at night. Nelly Dean could not bear it and so she sat waiting for them to return and ready to let them in despite Hindley’s warning. After sometime she heard footsteps and saw a lantern coming up the street. Afraid that they would wake Hindley up, she went to the gate and found Heathcliff there alone. She asked him where Catherine was and he replied at Thrushcross Grange. It worried her even more. What were they dong at the Grange? Heathcliff told that they had gotten curious about the Lintons their parents and their way of life and so slipped their quietly. The two wondered if Lintons’ parents treated their kids the way they were treated at the Heights. She said they were better kids who deserved to be treated better. Heathcliff thought it was all nonsense. He started talking of how they slipped out, had a race and how they reached the Grange and had a peep in. It was well maintained and better than Heights, he said.
From his talk it appeared that the Linton kids were homely kids who were used to keeping inside. The feeble kids were crying when they peeped in and it seemed they had been fighting over a silly looking small dog. Nelly was concerned how Catherine got left behind. Heathcliff said they laughed and the Lintons heard who instantly shot to their parents. Heathcliff and Catherine decided to get even naughty to terrify them started making noises. Then they heard somebody drawing the bars and decided to flee. Heathcliff held Cathy’s hands urging her to run fast but she fell. The bulldog had got her ankle. Heathcliff cursed heavily and tried to drive a stone down the throats of the bloody animal. It let the girl go but Heathcliff was furious and then a servant came who took Cathy in her arms. She was sick with pain. The servant told the Lintons that it was some girl and a lad who looked an absolute outsider. After it, followed some moments of utter chaos. They had taken them for thieves who were trying to sneak in and will open the doors later for their gang. Young Miss Linton said Heathcliff looked like the son of the fortune teller who had stolen her tame pheasant. Cathy had heard the last remark and she laughed. Edgar Linton drew closer to have a better look on her and exclaimed it was Miss Earnshaw whom they used to see at the Church. He was worried about her bleeding ankle. Mrs Earnshaw was held aback. What was the young kid doing with a gypsy lad roaming around uncared for and that too when the family was still mourning old Mr Earnshaw’s death. Mr Linton blamed Hindley for this carelessness. He had come to learn from the tutor that he was absolutely carelessness about the kids’ upbringing.  Then he looked at the black kid and remembered it was the one Mr Earnshaw had brought from Liverpool. Mrs Linton was shocked by Hethcliff’s cursing and saw him as unfit for her decent house.
Heathcliff again started cursing. She ordered her servant Robert to take him off but Heathcliff refused. Robert dragged him out and pushed a lantern in his hand telling him to go. He had closed the doors of his house and Heathcliff had waited outside thinking she would like to come out. If she would have liked to, he would had broken the window pane to get her out. Heathcliff peeped inside and saw Catherine stationed on the sofa. Mrs Linton had taken the dairy maid’s cloak off her. They were taking care of her, washing her wounds and feeding her. Heathcliff was not satisfied how they had treated him but liked how they cared for her. They fed her and took her near the fire so she could be warm.  The stupid Linton Kids were admiring her and she looked far superior than them. Heathcliff told Nelly that Cathy was superior to everyone on this earth. Nelly said he was incurable and did not know what disaster would result from all this.  Hindley was furious to learn of the misadventure and the next day, Mr Linton gave him a lecture about how he was bringing up the kids that he was left absolutely mute. While Heathcliff himself did not get any flogging, he was still well reprimanded and told to keep away from Catherine. Hindley’s wife took the responsibility to care for her sister in law and keep her under her custody without any use of force.