Mr. Lockwood (Narrator)
Name: Not given his first name in this chapter
Role: Present throughout as narrator and visitor
Physical details: Claims to be "tolerably attractive"; suffers nosebleed during altercation
Personality traits: Polite but judgmental, somewhat conceited, easily flustered in social situations
Key actions: Visits Wuthering Heights despite bad weather, attempts conversation, gets trapped by snowstorm, attacked by dogs
Relationships: Tenant at Thrushcross Grange; visitor to Heathcliff's household
Heathcliff
Name: Mr. Heathcliff (first name not given)
Role: Present as host and master of Wuthering Heights
Physical details: About forty years old
Personality traits: Rude, inhospitable, morose, shows "genuine bad nature," has "diabolical sneer"
Key actions: Reluctantly receives Lockwood, refuses guide, laughs at Lockwood's misfortune
Relationships: Master of the house; father-in-law to the young Mrs. Heathcliff; employer of Joseph, Zillah, and others
Young Mrs. Heathcliff (Heathcliff's daughter-in-law)
Name: Mrs. Heathcliff (first name not given)
Role: Present throughout the visit
Physical details: Slender, "scarcely past girlhood," "not look seventeen," small features, very fair, "flaxen ringlets, or rather golden," delicate neck, beautiful eyes but with expression "between scorn and a kind of desperation," wearing "neat black frock"
Personality traits: Cold, unwelcoming, sharp-tongued, playfully threatens Joseph with witchcraft
Key actions: Refuses to welcome Lockwood, reluctantly makes tea, threatens Joseph with a "Black Art" book
Relationships: Heathcliff's daughter-in-law, widow (her husband/mate is dead)
Hareton Earnshaw
Name: Hareton Earnshaw
Role: Present throughout
Physical details: Young man without coat initially, thick brown curls "rough and uncultivated," whiskers "encroached bearishly over his cheeks," hands "embrowned like those of a common labourer," appears to be doing manual labor
Personality traits: Gruff, proud of his name despite humble appearance, has "free, almost haughty" bearing
Key actions: Guides Lockwood inside, nearly assaults him when mistaken for Mrs. Heathcliff's husband, refuses to guide Lockwood home
Relationships: Not Heathcliff's son; appears to work at Wuthering Heights
Joseph
Name: Joseph
Role: Present, described as servant
Physical details: "Vinegar-faced," described as "aged rascal" and "elder"
Personality traits: Speaks in heavy dialect, religious, critical, easily frightened by Mrs. Heathcliff's threats
Key actions: Initially refuses to help Lockwood enter, feeds dogs, scolds Mrs. Heathcliff, flees when she threatens him with witchcraft
Relationships: Servant at Wuthering Heights
Zillah
Name: Zillah
Role: Appears at end of chapter
Physical details: "Stout housewife"
Personality traits: More rational and benevolent than others, takes charge in crisis
Key actions: Intervenes when Lockwood is attacked, treats his injuries, gives him lodging
Relationships: Housewife at Wuthering Heights; mentioned as one of only five people at the farm
Juno
Name: Juno (dog)
Role: Mentioned briefly
Physical details: Large dog (called "villain")
Key actions: Barely acknowledges Lockwood with tail tip movement
Unnamed housekeeper at Thrushcross Grange
Role: Mentioned only
Physical details: "Matronly lady, taken as a fixture along with the house"
Key actions: Refuses to serve dinner at 5 PM as Lockwood requests
Time of day: Yesterday afternoon, described as "misty and cold" Lockwood's routine: Dines "between twelve and one o'clock"
Sequence of events: 1. Lockwood initially plans to stay by his study fire but finds servant cleaning it 2. Takes "four-miles' walk" to Wuthering Heights 3. Arrives "just in time to escape the first feathery flakes of a snow shower" 4. Cannot get anyone to answer the door initially 5. Joseph appears from barn window, directs him around the building 6. Young man (Hareton) guides him through outbuildings to main room 7. Meets Mrs. Heathcliff, attempts awkward conversation 8. Heathcliff arrives, shaking snow from clothes 9. All sit for evening meal in "austere silence" 10. Lockwood attempts conversation, makes social blunders about relationships 11. Snow worsens, making return journey impossible 12. Heathcliff refuses to provide guide or proper accommodation 13. Lockwood attempts to leave, gets attacked by dogs 14. Zillah intervenes, tends to Lockwood's injuries, provides lodging
Physical descriptions:
Wuthering Heights sits on "bleak hill top"
House has flagged causeway bordered with gooseberry-bushes
Entry area has garden-gate with chain, then yard with wash-house, paved area containing coal-shed, pump, and pigeon-cot
Main room is "huge, warm, cheerful" with immense fire of "coal, peat, and wood"
Room has painted canisters on chimney-piece, cushioned seating
Joseph works in barn with round window
Property has fold for sheep, barn porch
Household details:
Only five people at the farm: Heathcliff, Earnshaw, Zillah, Joseph, and Mrs. Heathcliff
No boys/young workers at the farm
Dogs named Gnasher and Wolf (plus Juno)
They keep sheep, horses, cows
Mrs. Heathcliff owns a "long, dark book" she claims is about "Black Art"
Background revealed:
Mrs. Heathcliff's husband (Heathcliff's son) is dead
She is Heathcliff's daughter-in-law
The red cow died recently (Mrs. Heathcliff implies she caused it)
Joseph suffers from rheumatism
Character ages:
Heathcliff: "about forty"
Mrs. Heathcliff: "did not look seventeen," "scarcely past girlhood"
Age disparity noted as making marriage between Heathcliff and young woman unlikely
Time references:
Events occur "yesterday afternoon"
Lockwood dines "between twelve and one o'clock"
Evening meal being prepared when he arrives
"Dark night coming down prematurely" due to storm
From Chapter I:
Mrs. Heathcliff was not present or mentioned in previous visit
Hareton Earnshaw was not identified by name in previous chapter
Zillah was not present in previous chapter
The household dynamics and relationships were not clarified previously
New threads introduced:
Who exactly is Mrs. Heathcliff and what happened to her husband?
What is Hareton Earnshaw's exact relationship to the family?
Why does Mrs. Heathcliff seem trapped ("They wouldn't let me go to the end of the garden wall")?
What is the significance of the "Black Art" book and her threats?
Existing threads advanced:
Lockwood's relationship with his neighbors becomes more strained
The unwelcoming nature of Wuthering Heights is reinforced
The mysterious family dynamics begin to be revealed
New obstacles:
Lockwood is now trapped overnight at Wuthering Heights
His relationship with the household has deteriorated significantly
Weather prevents his return to Thrushcross Grange
Objects given emphasis:
The "long, dark book" about "Black Art" - suggests supernatural elements or Mrs. Heathcliff's rebellious nature
The matches Mrs. Heathcliff burns - shows her restless, destructive tendencies
References to the dead red cow and Joseph's rheumatism - hints at Mrs. Heathcliff's possible powers or vindictive nature
Statements hinting at secrets:
Mrs. Heathcliff's restriction: "They wouldn't let me go to the end of the garden wall" - suggests she's being held against her will
Heathcliff's "peculiar look" of "hatred" toward his daughter-in-law
The mysterious death of Mrs. Heathcliff's husband/Heathcliff's son
Unresolved questions:
What happened to Heathcliff's son?
Why does Heathcliff hate his daughter-in-law?
What is Hareton's exact position in the household?
Why does Mrs. Heathcliff seem imprisoned?
What is the significance of her interest in witchcraft/supernatural?
The chapter establishes the complex and hostile family dynamics at Wuthering Heights while trapping Lockwood there overnight, setting up potential revelations about the household's secrets.