Who Catherine Morland is
Catherine Morland grows up in Fullerton, with kind parents and little experience of the world beyond her village. She is open and honest, but her enthusiasm for frightening novels shapes what she expects from real life.
When her neighbors, Mr and Mrs Allen, take her to Bath, she enters a world of dances and new acquaintances. She knows more about imagined dangers than about the everyday pressures hidden beneath polite conversation.
What Catherine Morland wants
Catherine wants adventure, friendship and love, and her reading gives those hopes a Gothic setting. An invitation to Northanger Abbey delights her because its name suggests the mysterious places she loves in novels.
Catherine Morland and the others in the story
Isabella Thorpe quickly offers Catherine an eager friendship, strengthened by their shared taste for Gothic stories. Eleanor Tilney offers a quieter friendship, while her brother Henry attracts Catherine with wit and playful conversation.
How Catherine Morland changes
When John Thorpe deceives her about an outing, Catherine discovers that agreeing with others can mean breaking her own promises. She tries to put matters right by telling the Tilneys the truth, and begins resisting the Thorpes' demands.
Questions
Who is Catherine Morland?
Catherine Morland is Austen's young heroine, whose visits to Bath and Northanger Abbey test her trusting view of people.
What does Catherine Morland want?
She wants adventure, close friendships and love, with hopes encouraged by her favorite Gothic tales.
How does Catherine Morland know Henry Tilney?
She meets Henry when he asks her to dance in Bath. His teasing conversation delights her, and she likes him more as they spend time together.