Character guide

Unknown Narrator

major

Also known as myself, mine

The primary narrative voice, often using first-person pronouns to guide the reader.

Henry James

major

Also known as James, The James

Novelist and critic whose works are frequently analyzed as examples of character and plot.

Moll Flanders

supporting

Also known as Moll, Maria, Mamie

Defoe's resourceful heroine, used to discuss character development and flat vs. round types.

Strether

supporting

Central character from James's The Ambassadors, analyzed for his evolving perceptions.

Chad Newsome

supporting

Also known as Chad

Young man from The Ambassadors, whose transformation drives the plot's moral questions.

Lady Bertram

supporting

Also known as Bertram

Indolent aunt from Mansfield Park, exemplifying flat character in Austen's work.

Herman Melville

supporting

Also known as Melville

Author of Moby-Dick, discussed for prophetic and fantasy elements in fiction.

Sir Walter Scott

supporting

Also known as Scott, Walter Scott

Historical novelist whose characters and plots are frequently referenced for comparison.

Dinah

supporting

Methodist preacher from Adam Bede, used to discuss prophetic and emotional character types.

Edouard

supporting

Character from Gide's The Counterfeiters, central to discussions of plot and character.

Dickens

supporting

Novelist whose flat characters and vivid scenes are analyzed for their enduring power.

André Gide

supporting

Also known as Gide

French author and critic, cited for his views on character and the novel form.

Flecker

minor

Poet and novelist, referenced in discussions of fantasy and prophecy in literature.

Zuleika Dobson

minor

Also known as Zuleika

Fictional enchantress from Beerbohm's novel, used to illustrate fantasy and parody.

Lovel

minor

Character from Scott's The Antiquary, discussed in relation to plot and mystery.

Bernard

minor

Character from Virginia Woolf's The Waves, used to discuss pattern and rhythm.

The Heroine

minor

Also known as the heroine, hers

Generic term for female protagonists across novels, analyzed for their narrative roles.

H. G. Wells

minor

Also known as Wells

Science fiction writer and critic, referenced for his views on character and society.

Mme. de Vionnet

minor

Also known as Mme, de Vionnet

Elegant Frenchwoman from The Ambassadors, key to Strether's awakening.

Thomas Hardy

minor

Also known as Hardy

Novelist and poet, discussed for his use of fate and character in tragic plots.

Scheherazade

minor

Storyteller from One Thousand and One Nights, used to discuss narrative structure.

George Meredith

minor

Also known as Meredith, George Meredith . Sleep

Novelist and poet, cited for his comic characters and psychological insight.

James Joyce

minor

Also known as Joyce, D. H. Lawrence, Lawrence, James Joyce or D. H. Lawrence

Modernist author, referenced for stream of consciousness and character innovation.

The Hero

minor

Also known as the hero, The hero

Generic term for male protagonists, analyzed for their function in narrative.

Jane Austen

minor

Novelist whose characters and plots are frequently used as examples of craft.

Emily Brontë

minor

Also known as Milly

Author of Wuthering Heights, discussed for prophetic and passionate character creation.

Aristotle

minor

Ancient philosopher, cited for his Poetics and theories of plot and character.

Moby Dick

minor

Also known as Moby

The white whale from Melville's novel, used to discuss symbol and prophecy.

Ulysses

minor

Homeric hero and Joyce's novel, referenced for pattern and mythic structure.

Defoe

minor

Early novelist, discussed for his realistic characters and episodic plots.

Queen Victoria

minor

Also known as Queen

Monarch referenced in discussions of historical context and character types.

Gertrude Stein

minor

Modernist writer, cited for her experimental approach to character and narrative.

Caleb Balderstone

minor

Servant character from Scott's The Bride of Lammermoor, used to discuss flatness.

Mr. Percy Lubbock

minor

Also known as Mr. Lubbock, Percy Lubbock, Lubbock

Literary critic, referenced for his work on the craft of fiction.

The Narrator

minor

Also known as the narrator, The narrator

Generic narrative voice, discussed in relation to point of view and reliability.

Charlotte Brontë

minor

Novelist, discussed for her passionate heroines and Gothic elements.

Laura

minor

Character from various novels, used in discussions of flat and round types.

Sir Arthur Wardour

minor

Also known as Sir Arthur

Character from Scott's The Antiquary, used to illustrate comic relief.

Homo Fictus

minor

Term for fictional human, used to discuss the nature of character in novels.

Vinteuil

minor

Composer character from Proust, used to discuss pattern and rhythm in fiction.

Swann

minor

Central character from Proust's In Search of Lost Time, analyzed for depth.

Tristram Shandy

minor

Also known as Tristram

Narrator of Sterne's novel, used to discuss digression and narrative time.

Lord Glenallan

minor

Character from Scott's The Antiquary, involved in the novel's subplot.

Mrs. Proudie

minor

Domineering character from Trollope's Barchester Towers, exemplifying flatness.

Esther Summerson

minor

Also known as Esther

Narrator and heroine of Dickens's Bleak House, used to discuss point of view.

Dostoevsky

minor

Russian novelist, discussed for his psychological depth and prophetic vision.

Marcel Proust

minor

Also known as Proust

French novelist, cited for his intricate character development and memory themes.

Virginia Woolf

minor

Modernist writer, discussed for her stream of consciousness and character innovation.

Dousterswivel

minor

Comic charlatan from Scott's The Antiquary, used to illustrate flat character.

Becky Sharp

minor

Also known as Becky

Ambitious heroine from Thackeray's Vanity Fair, analyzed for roundness.

Emma

minor

Heroine of Austen's novel, used to discuss character growth and point of view.

Fanny

minor

Also known as Anatole France

Character from various novels, referenced in discussions of flatness.

Laetitia Dale

minor

Also known as Laetitia

Character from Meredith's The Egoist, used to discuss romantic subplots.

Sterne

minor

Author of Tristram Shandy, discussed for his experimental narrative techniques.

Evelina Nevile

minor

Also known as Evelina

Heroine of Burney's novel, used to discuss epistolary form and character.

Mrs. Micawber

minor

Also known as Mrs. Micawber⁠—she

Character from Dickens's David Copperfield, exemplifying flat comic type.

Sir Willoughby

minor

Egoistic hero from Meredith's The Egoist, analyzed for character flaws.

Mr. Asquith

minor

Historical figure referenced in discussions of political context in fiction.

Edie Ochiltree

minor

Wandering beggar from Scott's The Antiquary, used for comic relief.

Sophia

minor

Heroine from Fielding's Tom Jones, discussed for her role in the plot.

Mr. Norman Douglas

minor

Also known as Mr. Douglas

Writer and critic, referenced in discussions of character and style.

Mr. Pickwick

minor

Also known as Mr. Pickwick edgeways

Comic hero from Dickens's Pickwick Papers, used to discuss flat character.

Beauchamp

minor

Character from Meredith's Beauchamp's Career, used to discuss political themes.

Miss Austen

minor

Polite reference to Jane Austen, used in discussions of her technique.

Sir Walter Raleigh

minor

Also known as Raleigh, The late Sir Walter Raleigh

Historical figure and literary critic, referenced for his views on fiction.

Isabella Wardour

minor

Also known as Isabella

Character from Scott's The Antiquary, involved in romantic subplot.

Constance

minor

Character from various novels, used in discussions of flat types.

Tolstoy

minor

Russian novelist, discussed for his epic scope and character depth.

Miss Bates

minor

Also known as Even Miss Bates

Garrulous character from Austen's Emma, exemplifying flat comic type.

Stephen Dedalus

minor

Also known as Stephen

Protagonist from Joyce's works, used to discuss modernist character.

George Eliot

minor

Novelist, discussed for her psychological realism and moral vision.

Heathcliffe

minor

Byronic hero from Wuthering Heights, used to discuss passionate character.

Blake

minor

Poet and artist, referenced for his prophetic and visionary qualities.

Newton

minor

Scientist referenced in discussions of pattern and order in fiction.

Thaïs

minor

Courtesan from Anatole France's novel, used to discuss character transformation.

Tom Jones

minor

Hero of Fielding's novel, discussed for his role in comic plot.

Samuel Richardson

minor

Also known as Richardson

Epistolary novelist, discussed for his psychological character development.

Billy Budd

minor

Also known as Billy

Innocent sailor from Melville's novella, used to discuss allegory and character.

Claggart

minor

Antagonistic master-at-arms from Billy Budd, used to discuss evil character.

Mrs. Newsome

minor

Offstage character from The Ambassadors, driving the plot's conflict.