top of page

Louise's Utopia: A Synopsis On Wuthering Heights Chapter Two A Snowstorm And Dinner In Hell

Writer's picture: Coteau Valley FarmCoteau Valley Farm

Snowstorm Coteau Valley Farm Louise's Utopia

The Saga continues with Mr. Lockwood's ill-advised return to Wuthering Heights. He seems so drawn to the madness at Wuthering Heights that he wishes to be a part of it. He leaves his home on the Grange in a snowstorm. Upon arrival, he vainly tries to knock on the door of Wuthering Heights, hoping to be assured of his welcome. Lockwood is ignored by its inhabitants; they are probably hoping that he will leave. Unfortunately, he forces the issue, as he is wildly arrogant. Finally, he is admitted into the home by a young man with none other than a (welcoming) pitchfork. Lockwood is introduced to Mrs. Heathcliff whom he describes as exquisite. He also presumes to himself that she is the wife of Mr. Heathcliff. She is just as insolent toward Mr. Lockwood as Mr. Heathcliff was in the previous meeting. He tries to make small talk with her, but it does not go well. He and Mrs. Heathcliff end up treating one another in an insulting manner. Mr. Heathcliff finally arrives in the room, and he is not pleased to receive him again. Lockwood uses awkward sarcasm and forced charm to ease the tension with Mr. Heathcliff, but that does not go well either. The scene is reminiscent of a scene from hell, where everyone is playing the part of a demon and they hate one another with an excessive amount of passion. Mr. Lockwood forces an invite to dinner, where he begins making assumptions about the position of Mrs. Heathcliff at Wuthering Heights; perhaps he is interested in her, but as usual, it backfires on him, not once, but twice! Lockwood assumes she is the wife of Mr. Heathcliff, and is angrily made aware by Heathcliff that this is not the case because the real Mrs Heathcliff is dead! Lockwood continues to make his ill-thought-out blunders at the highly uncivil dinner. Again he proposes another assumption as to who Mrs. Heathcliff must be. He announces she must be the wife of the young man who let him in, who was carrying the pitchfork, Hareton Earnshaw. This also is the name mentioned in Chapter One inscribed on the threshold of the door of Wuthering Heights. Shockingly again, this is not the case. Hareton Earnshaw begins at this point, to show his menacing character and he has a fit of rage, bringing about more discord in the anything-but-lovely dinner scene. The little gathering for dinner is so uncomfortable, and the conversation is so distasteful that it is nothing short of a disaster. Instead of a pleasant environment, the scene is doused in misery, and it is still unclear what happened in their past to cause their evident disdain for one another. After dinner, Lockwood immediately focuses on his personal needs and whines immaturely about returning to his home, as the winter storm has progressed. His hosts rudely ignore his pending problem, instead, making snide comments that he will never find his way back, to the Grange without a guide in the storm. (The weather outside must be a wild blizzard with no visibility otherwise, why can't he make it home?) The plot grows more intense when (understandably after all the ill-treatment and rude comments from his hosts) Lockwood becomes angry and leaves in a rage. In his utter madness and tactlessness he exits Wuthering Heights, and in the yard ends up trying to steal an outdoor lamp (that he quickly quips he will return), but Joseph calls for help assuming he is a thief. The dogs are unleashed on Lockwood, and he is attacked yet again, this time gaining himself a bloody nose. The kitchen woman, Zillah (the stout woman from chapter one) cares for his injuries, and now Lockwood will spend the night at Wuthering Heights.

We now know that Mrs. Heathcliff is Mr. Heathcliff's daughter-in-law. Mr. Earnshaw is not his son but seems to be the owner of Wuthering Heights as his name is inscribed over the threshold to the door. Maybe it's his father's name. We do not know. We also learn that Mrs. Heathcliff either is a witch (and Joseph seems to believe this) or she is just true to her character, a wretched little spoiled brat with a bad character who says wicked things to get a rise out of her housemates. That said, Mrs. Heathcliff has a bit of kindness in her heart. She did try showing a hint of concern for Mr. Lockwood when he ran out of the house to try and find his home in the snowstorm. Her concern comes out in the form of assailing threats on her housemates, but it is a concern, nonetheless. Alas, the residents of Wuthering Heights are a mystery to me, as they are all angry characters who seem to always sit on the brink of verbal and mental destruction. Mr. Lockwood is a supercilious person who has thrown himself upon them uninvited, acting as if he is prim and proper, and they are impolite and uninviting. These characters have a lot of issues that challenge their ability to have a house guest at best. They seem unable to deal with whatever suffering they encountered in the past, and if they are challenged they usually respond with rage to all situations. The twisted details of their doom will unfold as we read onward, I can't wait.

Grab a copy of this book, because there are SO many details in this building horror, that one should read all about it for themselves. The material is mature and has a dark foreboding theme. It fits a nineteenth-century English gothic. But amid the exaggerated drama, I wonder how off-key these characters are. Perhaps everyone in the world acts like a character from Wuthering Heights. Where am I going with this? The wild personalities are not so unusual to meet in this life as many people tend to act like this daily. Life is always filled with miserable happenings, to which people do not know how to respond, and this causes discord. The storms within a person come out in their behavior toward others as anger and resentment. The author seems to have understood how humans act toward one another and wrote a spiffy story about it. We look at it as gothic literature because we will not admit that unchecked, this is exactly where the human mind dwells in despair towards their neighbor. Without a guide, a rock, or truth man acts carnal. A solid foundation is what they need to begin from and work forward from there. The characters act like dogs toward one another. They growl and bite at one another each time they get in their way, or inconvenience each other. They are self-absorbed and need some taking out of themselves. Maybe, Wuthering Heights needs a brush-up class on kindness and charity. I hope it happens, but I doubt it will. Please share if you enjoyed the blog and I hope you will visit again for Chapter Three.

*Thank you for reading, Louise's Utopia: A Synopsis On Wuthering Heights Chapter Two A Snowstorm And Dinner In Hell



12 views6 comments

6 Comments

Rated 0 out of 5 stars.
No ratings yet

Add a rating
Guest
Jan 29
Rated 5 out of 5 stars.

I suppose if you show up at someone's house in the country, uninvited before a snowstorm, and then expect lodging because the weather is too bad to go home, you shouldn't expect a warm welcome. Can't wait for chapter 3.

Like
Replying to

Ha! I would love to do that while on vacation. Cheap night's sleep.

Like

Guest
Jan 29
Rated 5 out of 5 stars.

I LOVE this blog!!!!!! My utopia too

Like
Replying to

😍Thank you for reading.

Like

Guest
Jan 29
Rated 5 out of 5 stars.

THE PLOT THICKENS!!

Like
Replying to

And becomes more uncomfortable...

Like
bottom of page