The Importance of Chapter Nine in the Wuthering Heights

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The Importance of Chapter Nine in the Wuthering Heights

Chapter nine is a key chapter in the novel for several reasons.

Firstly, it is a significant part of the overall plot; the events in

this chapter dictate the remaining plot of the story. Secondly, it is

in this chapter that the true natures and emotions of the main

characters, Cathy and Heathcliff are revealed. Also, chapter nine

demonstrates aspects of Victorian society and literature, which add to

the readers understanding of the life of 'Wuthering Heights'.

The chapter opens with Hindley coming home drunk. This part of the

chapter has a strong atmosphere, the reader picks up the feeling that

the house is generally very anxious and the tension is building up

between the characters. Bronte uses evil language to add to the build

up of tension in the text. She uses sentences like 'I want to kill

some of you', 'devilish', 'bad,' and 'with the help of Satan'. These

are all references to hell and sinful things add the final touches to

create an atmosphere for the reader. The main story line at this

moment also shows how tense the atmosphere really is as Hindley takes

a knife to Nelly's mouth threatening to ram it down her throat. Nelly

replies 'but I don't like the carving knife, Mr Hindley,' this shows

that she is not afraid of Hindley.

After this Hindley then picks up Hareton and asks Nelly for a pair of

scissors to trim his hair. Hindley then proceeds to take Hareton

upstairs and hangs him over the balcony. At this point Hindley hears a

sound as Heathcliff comes in then he drops Hareton as a natural

instinct Heathcliff catches him. Nelly then comes down and takes

Hareton. ...

... middle of paper ...

...he disappearance of Heathcliff makes

Cathy become more passionate and even more demanding than she used to

be, 'our young lady returned to us, saucier, and more passionate, and

haughtier than ever.' This is evidence that Cathy's character develops

during this chapter.

This chapter is the hinging chapter for the rest of the book. The

whole plot of the remaining story is influenced by the events of the

chapter. If Heathcliff hadn't been listening to the convosation

between Nelly and Cathy he wouldn't have left 'Wuthering Heights' so

abruptly. Also if he had stayed a little longer to listen to what

Cathy had to say, about how much she loves him but cant really be with

him, then he would understand how much she loves him. This is why

chapter nine of the novel is probably the most important chapter of

the whole novel.

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