Wuthering Heights book club questions

The reading plan

Meeting 1: Chapters 1 to 11

1. What might make Lockwood want to return after such a cold reception, and would you make the same choice?
2. How might reading Catherine's childhood notes shape the meaning Lockwood gives his nightmare?
3. How does Heathcliff's mistreatment complicate your judgment of his growing influence in the household?
4. What might unequal treatment teach Catherine and Heathcliff about their places in the world?
5. Where would you draw the line between understandable hurt and unjustified revenge in Heathcliff's response to Christmas?

Meeting 2: Chapters 12 to 21

6. What does Isabella's account of fear and hostility suggest a household owes someone newly joining it?
7. How should we judge Ellen's agreement to carry Heathcliff's message when he forces it after she witnesses his cruelty?
8. How do you weigh Nelly's decision to admit Heathcliff against Catherine's refusal to let him leave?
9. What makes Hareton's dependence on his father's enemy especially troubling or unfair?
10. How does the gap between promises of care and plans for property change your expectations for Linton's life with his father?

Meeting 3: Chapters 22 to 34

11. When Heathcliff says Cathy's cousin needs her help to survive, how freely can she decide whether to visit?
12. Was Edgar right to permit supervised meetings when Heathcliff controlled his sick son's requests?
13. How much blame belongs to the frightened cousin who draws Catherine and Nelly into captivity?
14. What does Linton's death without medical help suggest about the responsibilities people refuse in this household?
15. What does the shift from hostility to affection suggest about whether people can change their relationships?

Themes to talk about

Tips for the host

1. Open each meeting with one question everyone can answer, then go deeper.
2. Anyone who fell behind can catch up with the 15-minute summary.