Billy Budd

Billy Budd

Also known as Baby Budd · Baby · Handsome Sailor · Beauty · foretopman

A twenty-one-year-old foretopman impressed from the merchant ship Rights-of-Man into H.M.S. Indomitable. A handsome, good-natured foundling, he is illiterate and prone to stuttering when provoked; after striking Claggart dead, he is convicted and hanged, blessing Captain Vere with his last words.

Lieutenant Ratcliffe

The Indomitable’s boarding officer who selects Billy for impressment from the Rights-of-Man.

Captain Graveling

Master of the merchant ship Rights-of-Man, which his crew calls the Rights. He values Billy as a peacemaker and laments losing him to the Navy.

Red Whiskers

Also known as the bluffer of the gang

A large, red-whiskered sailor aboard the Rights-of-Man who initially provokes Billy and is soundly beaten; afterward he becomes fond of Billy.

Thomas Paine

Author of Rights of Man, after which the Dundee owner named the merchant ship Rights-of-Man; mentioned but does not appear.

Stephen Girard

A Philadelphia shipowner cited as another person who named ships after figures associated with liberal philosophies; mentioned but does not appear.

Anacharsis Cloots

A figure invoked as a comparison for the diverse sailors in a Liverpool anecdote; mentioned but does not appear.

Captain the Honourable Edward Fairfax Vere

Also known as Starry Vere · Captain Vere · Vere

The Indomitable’s distinguished, disciplined bachelor captain from a noble family. He presides over the proceedings that condemn Billy and, mortally wounded in battle, murmurs Billy’s name before dying.

Lord Denton

Captain Vere’s free-handed cousin, who gave him the nickname “Starry Vere” after his return from the West Indies; mentioned but does not appear.

John Claggart

Also known as Jemmy Legs · the master-at-arms

The Indomitable’s master-at-arms, whose innate malice and envy focus on Billy. He plots against Billy and dies when Billy strikes him; rumors about his origins remain unsubstantiated.

Titus Oates

Also known as the Rev. Dr. Titus Oates

A historical figure whose likeness is used to describe Claggart’s chin; mentioned but does not appear.

The Dansker

Also known as Board-her-in-the-smoke · old Dansker · mainmast-man

A veteran mainmast-man aboard the Indomitable, formerly of the Agamemnon and scarred in a boarding action. Guarded and cynical, he takes an interest in Billy and warns him that Claggart is against him.

Donald

A sailor aboard the Indomitable who questions Billy after Claggart’s playful remark about spilled soup. In Billy’s ballad, he promises to stand by the plank at the burial.

Squeak

A cunning, sharp-faced corporal under Claggart, nicknamed for his squeaky voice. He supplies Claggart with reports about Billy and misrepresents Billy’s innocent behavior.

Captain Horatio Nelson

Also known as Sir Horatio · Vice-Admiral Sir Horatio

A celebrated British naval commander under whom the Dansker served in the Agamemnon; discussed in the narrative but does not appear directly.

Admiral Rodney

The admiral under whom Vere served as flag-lieutenant in the West Indies; mentioned but does not appear.

Admiral de Grasse

The French admiral defeated by Rodney in the West Indian victory that helped earn Vere his promotion; mentioned but does not appear.

G. P. R. James

A naval historian cited for his account of the Nore Mutiny; mentioned but does not appear.

Dibdin

A songwriter whose patriotic verses about British sailors are discussed; mentioned but does not appear.

Alfred Tennyson

Also known as Tennyson

The poet whose phrase about Nelson is cited; mentioned but does not appear.

The narrator

Also known as the inside narrator

The first-person narrator who recounts Billy Budd’s story and comments on its events and historical setting.

The shipmaster in the Liverpool anecdote

An unnamed merchant-ship master whom the narrator remembers seeing in Liverpool surrounded by his shipmates.

The small brisk mustering officer

An unnamed Indomitable officer who questions Billy about his birth and parentage during formal muster.

The afterguardsman

An unnamed young sailor who tries to enlist Billy’s help in a covert scheme, offering him two coins. The Dansker identifies him as Claggart’s cat’s-paw; he later acts friendly toward Billy.

The drummer-boy

An unnamed boy aboard the Indomitable who accidentally collides with Claggart and is sharply rebuked.

The old pensioner

Also known as the Baltimore negro · a Trafalgar man

An unnamed former sailor who told the narrator that warships short of crew sometimes received men drafted from jails.

The honest scholar

An unnamed older scholar who discusses with the narrator the difficulty of understanding exceptional human character.

X

An unnamed exceptionally respectable man discussed by the narrator and the honest scholar as a difficult study of character; mentioned but does not appear.

The old lawyer

An unnamed lawyer whom a young woman influenced in the honest scholar’s example; mentioned but does not appear.

The young woman

Also known as the girl

An unnamed woman who, in the honest scholar’s account, successfully influenced an old lawyer; mentioned but does not appear.

Red Pepper

An irascible, brick-faced veteran among the Indomitable’s forecastlemen who rebukes Billy for not punishing the afterguardsman more severely.

The forecastleman who calls Billy Beauty

An unnamed sailor who wakes during Billy’s encounter with the afterguardsman and recognizes him as “Beauty.”

The nonconformist old tar

An unnamed, serious-minded Indomitable sailor who uses a secluded fore-chain platform as a private place of prayer.

Mr. Wilkes

A midshipman whom Captain Vere directs to send for Albert.

Albert

Also known as the captain’s hammock-boy

Captain Vere’s discreet, trusted hammock-boy, sent to bring Billy to the captain’s cabin.

The sentry at the cabin door

Also known as the marine sentinel

An unnamed marine stationed outside Vere’s cabin during the accusation and later assigned to guard Billy.

The surgeon

An unnamed experienced ship’s surgeon who confirms Claggart’s death, helps move his body, and directs the arrangements for Billy’s hanging. Afterward, he says he cannot scientifically explain Billy’s stillness.

Mr. Morton

Also known as the captain of marines

The Indomitable’s captain of marines and a member of Billy’s drum-head court. He questions whether Billy intended mutiny or murder and is reluctant to condemn him.

The first lieutenant

An unnamed senior Indomitable lieutenant who serves on Billy’s court and initially leads its questioning. He takes command after Vere is mortally wounded.

The junior lieutenant

An unnamed Indomitable lieutenant who asks whether the court can convict Billy while reducing his punishment.

The sailing-master

An unnamed senior officer selected by Vere to serve on Billy’s drum-head court.

The chaplain

An unnamed ship’s chaplain who is the only person permitted to communicate with Billy before execution. He offers religious counsel, kisses Billy’s cheek, and attends him at the hanging.

Vere’s schoolmate

Also known as the bright young schoolmate

An unnamed boyhood schoolmate of Vere who became unable to speak when called on in class; the memory helps Vere recognize Billy’s speech impediment.

The writer cited on command under pressure

An unnamed writer quoted on the difficulty of judging a commander’s choices long after a crisis; mentioned but does not appear.

The Pope of that time

Also known as the Pope

An unnamed pope who is said to have called young English converts “Angles” because they looked like angels; mentioned but does not appear.

Fra Angelico

An Italian painter invoked in a comparison to the appearance of English girls; mentioned but does not appear.

The purser

Also known as Mr. Purser

An unnamed ruddy, rotund ship’s purser who thinks Billy’s stillness after hanging showed the force of will-power; the surgeon disputes his interpretation.

The boatswain

An unnamed Indomitable officer ordered to pipe down the starboard watch and clear the deck after the execution.

The boatswain’s-mates

Unnamed sailors who make the final preparations for Billy’s hanging.

The helmsman

An unnamed sailor whose diverted attention lets a sail flutter during the silence after Billy’s execution.

The senior lieutenant

An unnamed lieutenant who assumes command after Vere is wounded in battle and receives an account of Vere’s final words from his attendant.

Vere’s attendant

An unnamed person attending Vere during his final illness who hears him murmur Billy’s name and reports it to the senior officer of marines.

The senior officer of marines

An unnamed Indomitable officer and member of Billy’s court, most reluctant to condemn him. He knows Billy was innocent and keeps that knowledge to himself.

Taff the Welshman

Also known as Taff

A Welsh sailor recalled in Billy’s ballad as having sunk with a pink-looking cheek; mentioned but does not appear.

Bristol-Molly

A woman mentioned in Billy’s ballad as the recipient of an earring he gave her; she does not appear.

The foretopman who writes Billy’s ballad

Also known as the artless poetic foretopman

An unnamed foretopman of Billy’s watch aboard the Indomitable who writes “Billy in the Darbies” in Billy’s memory.

The two-year-old calves

Also known as the calves · the hair-trunks

Six emaciated calves turned out into a pasture after a hard winter. The narrator addresses them while reflecting on his despondency.

The Shanghai cock

Also known as Shanghai · Trumpet · Signor Beneventano · the cock

Merrymusk’s magnificent rooster, known for its powerful, inspiring crow. It gives Merrymusk and his sick family cheer and hope; after their deaths, it dies as well.

The narrator’s creditor

Also known as the dun · the lean farmer

An unnamed farmer who repeatedly demands payment from the first-person narrator, serves him with a civil process, and is briefly overpowered by him.

Jake

A boy in the narrator’s household, sent to bring potatoes so the creditor can be pelted away.

The sick baby

Also known as the Irish ditcher’s baby

An unnamed baby in a nearby hovel with scarlet fever; the narrator has medicine powder intended for the child.

The Irish ditcher

An unnamed Irish laborer who lives in a nearby hovel with his sick baby; mentioned but does not appear directly.

The lady on the North River boat

Also known as the sick lady

An unnamed sick woman to whom the narrator once gave up his berth on a crowded boat, leaving himself on deck in drizzling weather.

The cock’s hungry master

An unnamed owner of a cock in the narrator’s reflection on the bird’s freedom and mortality; mentioned but not identified individually.

Widow Crowfoot

A local woman whose cock is mentioned by an old farmer when the narrator asks about an extraordinary crow.

Squire Squaretoes

A local landowner whose cock is mentioned by an old farmer; he does not appear.

The old ploughman

An unnamed farmer who tells the narrator that Widow Crowfoot, Squire Squaretoes, and he each own a cock.

The old fence-mender

An unnamed farmer repairing a decaying rail fence while chasing young steers that break through it.

The wealthy Shanghai owner

Also known as the portly gentleman

An unnamed wealthy landowner who owns ten imported Shanghai cocks, which the narrator inspects while searching for the extraordinary rooster.

The young steers

A group of steers belonging to the old fence-mender; they repeatedly butt through his broken fence.

Merrymusk

Also known as the wood-sawyer

A tall, spare, taciturn Marylander who saws the narrator’s wood and lives with his invalid wife and four sick children in a poor shanty. A former sailor, he is proud of his rooster Trumpet and regards its crow as a source of cheer and spiritual strength.

Mrs. Merrymusk

Merrymusk’s gravely ill wife, who dies shortly after her husband.

The sick daughter

Also known as the pale girl

One of Merrymusk’s children, a pale, sick girl who ministers to her mother. She dies with the rest of the family.

The three sick children

Merrymusk’s other three children, described as pale and rickety; they die with their parents.

Merrymusk’s dead friends

The friends Merrymusk found dead when he returned home from his early sailing years; they are mentioned but do not appear.

The first-person narrator of “The Two Temples”

Also known as the narrator

An unnamed narrator who recounts being excluded from a wealthy American church and later receiving kindness at a London theatre. He appears again as the first-person speaker in “Poor Man’s Pudding and Rich Man’s Crumbs.”

The beadle-faced man

Also known as the beadle

An unnamed church beadle who turns the narrator away from a wealthy congregation, later finds him in the tower, and has him arrested.

The three ragged little boys

Three unnamed boys whom the church beadle drives into the street.

The bell-ringer

An unnamed church worker whose failure to lock the tower door leaves the narrator inside; the narrator expects him to return.

The priest

Also known as the noble-looking man · the Talma-like man

An unnamed white-robed priest who leads worship and preaches to the wealthy church congregation.

The church congregation

The unnamed congregation at the wealthy church that excludes the narrator from its service.

The judge

An unnamed judge who hears the narrator’s case after his arrest for entering the church tower and fines and reprimands him.

The policemen

Three unnamed policemen who take the narrator into custody after the beadle accuses him of trespassing.

The London theatre ticket-giver

Also known as the working man

An unnamed working man who gives the penniless narrator a theatre ticket and disappears into the crowd.

The young orphan lady

Also known as the lady

A wealthy young woman from Philadelphia whom the narrator accompanies to England as her physician and companion. She dismisses him after her maternal relatives persuade her to winter on the Isle of Wight.

The aunt-duenna

Also known as the duenna

The young orphan lady’s older aunt and chaperone, who accompanies her to England.

The landlady

An unnamed London landlady to whom the narrator owes money; she refuses to receive him in her parlour.

The tattered little girl

An unnamed girl selling theatre handbills who approaches the narrator and realizes he has no money.

William Charles Macready

Also known as Mr. Macready · Macready

A celebrated and respected actor whom the narrator sees playing Cardinal Richelieu in a London theatre.

The theatre doorkeeper

Also known as the man in the sentry-box

An unnamed theatre attendant in a small booth who admits the narrator to the gallery after inspecting his ticket.

The ragged boy

Also known as the generous boy

An unnamed, good-natured boy in the theatre gallery who offers the penniless narrator a mug of ale in honor of his absent father.

The boy’s father

Also known as dad

An unnamed man who has gone to Yankee-land seeking his fortune; his son offers the narrator ale in his name.

The theatre audience

Also known as the enraptured thousands

The theatre’s gathered audience, whose enthusiastic response to the performance impresses the narrator.

The poet Blandmour

Also known as Blandmour

A poet who tells the narrator that March snow benefits poor farmers as natural manure; his optimistic claim prompts the narrator to question how the benefits are distributed.

Coulter

Also known as William · poor Coulter

A poor husbandman who works for Squire Teamster and is the husband of Martha. He labors in the woods and has lost two young children, William and Martha.

Squire Teamster

Also known as rich Squire Teamster

A wealthy landowner whose field receives snow blown off poor Coulter’s patch.

Dame Coulter

Also known as Martha · Coulter’s wife

Coulter’s kind, pregnant wife, who welcomes the narrator into their poor home and mourns their deceased children, little William and little Martha.

Little William

Also known as Coulter’s son

Coulter and Martha’s deceased six-year-old son, remembered by his mother as a bright, manly child.

Little Martha

Also known as Coulter’s daughter

Coulter and Martha’s deceased daughter, remembered by her mother as beautiful.

The first-person narrator of “The Fiddler”

Also known as Helmstone

An ambitious poet whose work receives harsh criticism and who meets Hautboy, a former child prodigy now teaching fiddle. Inspired by Hautboy’s story and music, he abandons his manuscripts and takes up the fiddle.

Standard

Helmstone’s old friend, who introduces him to Hautboy and reveals Hautboy’s former fame.

Hautboy

A cheerful, short, stout fiddler who was once a celebrated child prodigy and has since become an obscure music teacher. His real name is not disclosed.

The elderly uncle

Also known as the projector

The narrator’s old uncle, an inventor who spends ten years developing an apparatus to drain swamps. When it fails, he finds contentment in the failure and advises his nephew to invent happiness.

Yorpy

Also known as the uncle’s old black man · faithful old Yorpy

The elderly uncle’s grizzled, loyal servant, who carries and helps test the apparatus and later closes his master’s eyes when he dies.

The friendly civic guide

Also known as the narrator’s guide

An unnamed off-duty civic official in uniform who takes the narrator to see the Guildhall distribution of banquet remnants and helps him escape the crush.

The red-gowned official

An unnamed Guildhall official who mistakes the narrator for a beggar collecting leftovers and orders him to take food and leave.

The invalid bachelor

An unnamed bachelor in a room adjoining the Temple dinner who sleeps soundly during the meal after weeks of poor rest.

The nine bachelors

The unnamed guests at R. F. C.’s convivial dinner in the Temple, including the narrator’s host; their comfortable unmarried lives prompt the narrator’s contrast with women workers’ hardships.

R. F. C.

A friendly English barrister, bachelor, and bencher who hosts the narrator and eight other bachelors at dinner in the Temple.

The old field-marshal waiter

Also known as Socrates

An unnamed white-haired waiter at the bachelors’ dinner, nicknamed Socrates because of his head and solemn bearing.

The paper-mill maids

The women workers whose harsh labor in the New England paper mill is introduced by the title “The Tartarus of Maids”; no individual identities are supplied here.

The first-person narrator of “The Tartarus of Maids”

An unnamed seedsman who visits the Devil’s Dungeon paper-mill to arrange a paper order and observe its work. He reflects on the factory’s harsh conditions and compares it to the Paradise of Bachelors.

Black

Also known as the narrator’s horse

The narrator’s six-year-old horse, who pulls the pung to the Devil’s Dungeon paper-mill.

The first girl at the factory door

An unnamed factory worker who runs between the mill buildings in the cold and briefly speaks with the narrator.

The second pale girl at the factory door

An unnamed, shivering factory worker who appears at a doorway while the narrator looks for a horse shed.

The dark-complexioned paper-mill proprietor

Also known as Old Bach · the Bach · the old bachelor

The bachelor principal proprietor of the Devil’s Dungeon paper-mill. He explains the factory’s work schedule and why its female workers are called girls.

Cupid

A lively, forward boy at the Devil’s Dungeon mill who guides the narrator through the factory and explains its machinery.

The former nurse at the paper machine

An unnamed, sad-looking older woman who recently left nursing because business was poor and now tends the paper machine’s output.

The night visitor to Jimmy Rose’s dinner

An unnamed former guest at Jimmy Rose’s dinner who tells the narrator that Jimmy has failed financially and invites him to the Coffee-house.

The merchant who speculates about Jimmy

An unnamed merchant who suggests Jimmy Rose may have taken money and gone into hiding after his financial ruin.

The indignant creditor of Jimmy Rose

An unnamed wealthy man who calls Jimmy a scamp after losing money indirectly through Jimmy’s failure, despite having enjoyed his hospitality.

The person versed in private histories

An unnamed person known for insight into notable people’s private lives, who tells the narrator where Jimmy Rose may be hiding.

Jimmy Rose

Also known as James Rose

A once-wealthy, charming New York host and former state militia general ruined by business losses and extravagance. He later lives in poverty while preserving his gracious manners, until a young woman cares for him in his final illness.

William Ford

The narrator of “Jimmy Rose,” who knew Jimmy in his prosperous days, seeks him out after his ruin, and later visits him during his final illness.

The young lady who cares for Jimmy Rose

Also known as the opulent alderman’s only daughter · the sweet girl

An unnamed woman, daughter of a wealthy alderman, who tends Jimmy Rose during his final illness and closes his eyes after his death.

Miss Frances

A young woman whom Jimmy Rose visits annually and compliments; mentioned but does not otherwise appear.

Miss Arabella

A young woman whom Jimmy Rose visits annually and compliments; mentioned but does not otherwise appear.

General G⸺

An unnamed general who receives a presentation of pistols from Jimmy Rose; mentioned but does not appear.

The original proprietor of the old house

An unnamed former owner of the mansion later inherited by the narrator; Jimmy Rose is associated with the house and its room of roses.

The poulterer and former proprietor

An unnamed temporary owner of Jimmy Rose’s old house who had its roof and chimney cut down.

The old mason

Also known as the squint-eyed mason

An unnamed mason who repairs the narrator’s chimney with a replacement top that stands awry.

The narrator’s wife

The energetic, enterprising wife of the chimney narrator, who repeatedly schemes to alter or remove his beloved central chimney. An editorial note says this character is based on Melville’s mother.

The narrator’s daughters

The chimney narrator’s daughters, Anna and Julia, who join their mother in seeking changes to the house and oppose their father’s attachment to the chimney.

Biddy

Also known as the girl

A girl in the chimney narrator’s household who mistakes the rose designs on the parlour wallpaper for onions.

The neighbour who finds the narrator digging

An unnamed neighbor who interrupts the chimney narrator while he digs around the chimney’s foundation.

The mortgagee

The unnamed holder of a mortgage on the narrator’s house, whose notice prompts repairs to the chimney.

John Locke

The philosopher whose comparison of the newborn mind to blank paper is recalled by the narrator of “The Tartarus of Maids”; mentioned but does not appear.

Lord Rosse

A figure whose giant telescope is used as a comparison for the chimney; mentioned but does not appear.

Cosmo the Magnificent

A Florentine trader invoked as a comparison for Jimmy Rose’s princely business; mentioned but does not appear.

Louis le Grand

The French king who built the Grand Trianon for Madame de Maintenon; mentioned but does not appear.

Madame de Maintenon

The woman for whom Louis le Grand built the Grand Trianon; mentioned but does not appear.

Kossuth

A figure whose “rising of the peoples” is used in a comparison to spring grass; mentioned but does not appear.

Cromwell

The historical figure invoked in a comparison to the former proprietor who cut down the chimney; mentioned but does not appear.

Joshua

The biblical figure who set stones at Gilgal as a memorial after crossing the Jordan; mentioned but does not appear.

Captain Hosea Kean

Also known as old Captain Hosea Kean

An experienced Nantucket whaling captain described as a shrewd judge of ’Gee sailors who inspects prospective crew members in secret.

The New Bedford captain

An unnamed captain who hires an allegedly agile ’Gee sailor and discovers that elephantiasis has disabled the man’s legs; mentioned but does not appear.

The elephantiasis-afflicted ’Gee

An unnamed Fogo sailor whose swollen legs leave him unable to work aboard a whaling ship; he remains aboard for a three-year voyage.

The young Portuguese naval officer

An unnamed officer said to have sent a young ’Gee to Salamanca University; mentioned but does not appear.

The first ’Gee narrator’s friend

An unnamed friend who suggests that the narrator write an account of the ’Gees.

The visitor to the chimney narrator’s house

An unnamed neighbor who finds the narrator digging around the chimney and jokes that he is trying to make it grow.

Hiram Scribe

Also known as Mr. Scribe

A master mason and rough architect who surveys the narrator’s chimney, suggests it can be removed, and claims a hidden closet may exist inside it. He accepts fifty dollars and certifies that he found no reason to believe there is a secret closet.

Captain Julian Dacres

Also known as the narrator’s late kinsman

The narrator’s bachelor kinsman, a shipmaster and merchant in the Indian trade who built the house and died there about thirty years before the story. Neighbors speculated he had hidden treasure or been a Borneo pirate, rumors the narrator dismisses.

Anna

Also known as the narrator’s daughter Anna

One of the chimney narrator’s daughters, who joins her mother in pressing for changes to the house. A stylish young gentleman courts her and becomes lost in the dining room’s doors.

Julia

Also known as the narrator’s daughter Julia

One of the chimney narrator’s daughters, alarmed by the apple-tree table’s cloven feet and later frightened by its unexplained ticking.

The stylish young gentleman

Also known as the great exquisite

An unnamed suitor of Anna who becomes lost in the chimney narrator’s many-doored dining room and backs into a dark pantry.

The architectural reformer

Also known as the meddlesome architectural reformer

An unnamed advocate of architectural change who persuades older people to destroy old houses and chimneys; he visits the chimney narrator’s home.

The gander

Also known as the diabolical-looking old gander

An unnamed gander whose stiff quill the chimney narrator plucks to make a pen for his reply to Scribe. Its master has decorated it with a four-pronged wooden collar.

The first-person narrator of “The Apple-Tree Table”

An unnamed first-person narrator who brings an old apple-wood table down from a haunted garret. When it ticks, he discovers a luminous bug emerging from it, though his family remains frightened.

The wife of the narrator of “The Apple-Tree Table”

The narrator’s practical wife, who insists the family keep using the apple-tree table despite its mysterious ticking.

The two daughters of the narrator of “The Apple-Tree Table”

The narrator’s daughters, Julia and Anna, who fear the cloven-footed table and its unexplained ticking.

The smith

An unnamed blacksmith who would have been needed to open the locked garret door; mentioned but does not appear.

The Fox Girls

A group referenced by the Apple-Tree Table narrator as a later event in his life; they do not appear in this passage.

Cotton Mather

Also known as Dr. Cotton Mather

A New England clergyman and author whose Magnalia the narrator reads. Its accounts of witchcraft unsettle him and contribute to his fear of the ticking table.

Dr. Johnson

A dictionary compiler cited as a rational, matter-of-fact man who believed in ghosts; mentioned but does not appear.

The insect in the apple-tree table

Also known as the bug · the fire-fly bug

A small luminous bug that gnaws its way out of the old apple-wood table, producing the mysterious ticking. It dies the day after emerging and is preserved by the family.

Democritus

Also known as the old sage · the sturdy philosopher

An ancient philosopher whose calm response to boys pretending to be ghosts in Abdera inspires the narrator to master his fear.

The mischievous boys of Abdera

Also known as the little boys of the town

Unnamed boys who once tried to frighten Democritus with false ghosts in the tombs of Abdera.

Friar Bacon

A legendary friar invoked as a possible owner of the table, which resembles a necromantic object; mentioned but does not appear.

Doctor Faust

Also known as Faust

A legendary scholar whose supposed bond to Mephistopheles is used to describe a document in the garret; mentioned but does not appear.

Mephistopheles

The devil to whom Faust is said to have given a bond; mentioned but does not appear.

Mrs. Radcliffe

A novelist whom the narrator contrasts with Cotton Mather, whom he regards as an earnest eyewitness rather than a writer of romances; mentioned but does not appear.

St. Dunstan

A saint whose devil is said to have emerged from an ash-hole; mentioned but does not appear.

Momus

A figure the chimney narrator cites in condemning the desire to expose hidden things; mentioned but does not appear.

The burglar

An imagined intruder whom the chimney narrator says would be deterred by the house’s visible smoke.

The murderer

An imagined intruder whom the chimney narrator says would be deterred by the house’s visible smoke.

The Iroquois Indians

Also known as the Indians

People invoked in a comparison to the narrator’s family sleeping around one central chimney; they do not appear.

Brutus

A Roman figure mentioned as one who might have become greater if Julius Caesar had been less great; mentioned but does not appear.

Cassius

A Roman figure mentioned as one who might have become greater if Julius Caesar had been less great; mentioned but does not appear.

Antony

A Roman figure mentioned as one who might have become greater if Julius Caesar had been less great; mentioned but does not appear.

Caius Julius Cæsar

Also known as Julius Caesar

The Roman ruler invoked in a comparison about greatness and the people around him; mentioned but does not appear.

Peter the Great

The Russian ruler whom the chimney narrator says his energetic wife would have suited; mentioned but does not appear.

Peter the Piper

A figure in a tongue-twister comparison whom the narrator’s energetic wife might have suited; mentioned but does not appear.

Abraham

Also known as old Abraham

The biblical patriarch invoked in a comparison about the narrator’s wife’s refusal to believe in old age; mentioned but does not appear.

Nero

The Roman emperor whose imagined canal through the Isthmus of Corinth is compared to the wife’s proposed tunnel through the chimney; mentioned but does not appear.

Belzoni

An explorer invoked as a hypothetical future traveler who might pass through the chimney tunnel; mentioned but does not appear.

Charles V

Also known as the venerable Charles V

The emperor whose retirement is compared to the narrator abdicating household responsibilities; mentioned but does not appear.

King

Also known as the King at Temple Bar

An unnamed king invoked in a comparison about a guest knocking at doors; mentioned but does not appear.

The Pope of Rome

Also known as the Pope

The pope invoked in an imagined celebration of High Mass in the chimney narrator’s house; mentioned but does not appear.

Professor Johnson

Also known as the professor · the eminent naturalist · the learned professor

A naturalist consulted by the Apple-Tree Table narrator. He identifies the luminous insect as an apple-tree bug that had remained in the wood for roughly 150 years.

Madame Pazzi

Also known as the conjuress

A conjurer whom Julia urges her father to consult about the mysterious table; mentioned but does not appear.

The watchman

An unnamed street watchman whose club striking the pavement and call of “All well!” startle the family during their overnight vigil.

The baker

An unnamed baker whose early-morning knocking at the door frightens the family during their vigil.

Mrs. Brown

An unnamed woman associated with a place where the Apple-Tree Table narrator suggests getting ice cream.

The servant of My Lord the Ambassador

Also known as the MS narrator

An unnamed servant who narrates the Persian travel manuscript. He accompanies his master, describes the amber vase and its history, and recounts a Greek renegade’s translation of Lugar-Lips’s verses.

My Lord the Ambassador

Also known as My Lord · the ambassador

An unnamed English ambassador serving in Persia, whose servant narrates the events around the amber vase. He admires the vase and receives a Persian book from the Azem.

The Azem

A Persian grandee who owns the amber vase and presents the ambassador with a book containing Lugar-Lips’s verses.

The black slave who arranges the roses

Also known as the black slave

An unnamed adolescent enslaved servant who arranges roses in the amber vase at the Azem’s bidding.

The Azem’s page

Also known as the pretty little page

An unnamed page who brings the amber vase and later retrieves a book for the Azem.

The interpreter

Also known as the precise clerk

An unnamed interpreter who conveys the ambassador’s words to the Azem and struggles to render the ambassador’s praise of the vase.

The Greek renegado

Also known as the polyglot infidel · the renegado

An unnamed Greek scholar employed at times by the ambassador, expert in several languages and Persian and Arabic writing. He has one hand and translates Lugar-Lips’s verses into English after drinking wine.

Lugar-Lips

A Persian poet whose verses were inspired by insects preserved in the amber vase; the Azem says the vase was present at a bridal festival that prompted the poem.

Shaz Gold-beak

Also known as the old Shaz Gold-beak

A Persian ruler whose bridal festival at Shiraz featured the amber vase; mentioned but does not appear.

My Lord’s father

The ambassador’s father, who died suddenly at about the age of sixty-three; mentioned but does not appear.

My Lord’s grandfather

The ambassador’s grandfather, who also died suddenly at about the age of sixty-three; mentioned but does not appear.

The Great Duke of Florence

Also known as the Great Duke

A ruler whose museum is said to contain a famous piece of amber; mentioned but does not appear.

My Lady

The ambassador’s wife, whose Flanders lace is mentioned in a comparison; mentioned but does not appear.

The two factors at Aleppo

Two unnamed commercial agents whose dispute is mentioned as the occasion for a meeting between the ambassador and the Azem.

The Marquis de Grandvin

Also known as de Grandvin · the Marquis

A genial French patrician renown for warmth, humor, generosity, and social charm. The narrator admires him and attempts to preserve his wit and manner in writing.

The old philosopher who condemns women’s fellowship

An unnamed philosopher cited for claiming that women lack the capacity for masculine-style good fellowship; mentioned but does not appear.

Roland

The hero of the old French epic about Roncesvalles, invoked in a comparison to the ladies’ appreciation of the Marquis; mentioned but does not appear.

B. Hobbema Brown

Also known as Hobbema Brown · Brown

A landscape painter and theoretical misanthrope who is secretly loving-kind and praises the Marquis de Grandvin’s effect on people.

Rufus Choate

A Boston advocate remembered for the exhilarating force of his oratory; mentioned but does not appear.

Spinoza

The philosopher whose maxim linking joy with intelligence is cited; mentioned but does not appear.

Adam

The biblical first man, invoked as an example of humanity’s original potential; mentioned but does not appear.

Raphael

The artist invoked in a comparison to a kindly archangel; mentioned but does not appear.

Milton

The poet whose affable archangel is invoked in a comparison to the Marquis; mentioned but does not appear.

Admirable Crichton

A figure praised as a paragon of ability, whom the narrator calls less admirable than the Marquis; mentioned but does not appear.

The Prince of Golconda

A prince invoked in a comparison to the Marquis’s abundant generosity; mentioned but does not appear.

Millet

The painter whose seed-sower is invoked in a comparison to the Marquis’s profusion; mentioned but does not appear.

Jack Gentian

Also known as John Gentian · John Gentian, Esq. · Major Gentian · the Major · the Dean · the Dean of the Burgundians

A sociable, generous bachelor and Civil War veteran who lives at the Burgundy Club and is its Dean. He is admired for his kindness, old-school hospitality, and attachment to the Marquis de Grandvin; he lost an arm in the Wilderness under Grant.

Count D’Orsay

A figure invoked as a comparison for Gentian’s manners; mentioned but does not appear.

Sir Charles Grandison

A fictional gentleman invoked as a comparison for Gentian’s manners; mentioned but does not appear.

Brandt

A figure whose tomahawk at a London masked ball is used to compare the shock of Gentian’s profanity; mentioned but does not appear.

The Roman consul

An unnamed consul cited for a speech meant to school soldiers before battle; mentioned but does not appear.

The Chinese Achilles

An unnamed figure in a comparison about soldiers using foul-smelling missiles to terrorize enemies; mentioned but does not appear.

Washington

The first head of the Society of the Cincinnati, whose original membership included Gentian’s ancestor; mentioned but does not appear.

The great-grandfather of Major Gentian

Also known as the South Carolinian captain

Major Gentian’s ancestor, a white-haired South Carolinian infantry captain at Saratoga and an original member of the Society of the Cincinnati.

The father of Major Gentian

Major Gentian’s father, who wore the Cincinnati order before him; mentioned but does not appear.

Charles Sumner

A New England statesman and friend whom Gentian sincerely honors despite disagreeing with some of his policies; mentioned but does not appear.

Ulysses S. Grant

Also known as Grant · General Grant

The Union general under whom Gentian served and who later nominated him as consul at Naples. He and Lee joined hands at Appomattox.

Robert E. Lee

Also known as Lee

The Confederate general who joined hands with Grant at Appomattox; mentioned but does not appear.

Queen Victoria

Also known as Victoria

The reigning British queen invoked in a comparison about the fading celebration of Guy Fawkes’ Day; mentioned but does not appear.

Guy Fawkes

The historical figure commemorated by Guy Fawkes’ Day; mentioned but does not appear.

Elizabeth I

Also known as Elizabeth

The English queen whose reign is compared with Victoria’s in a remark about Guy Fawkes’ Day; mentioned but does not appear.

General William Worth

Also known as General Worth · Will Worth

A general Gentian knew who died while campaigning in Mexico against Santa Anna. Gentian recalls him as a brave soldier and recites a stanza about the battle of Monterey.

Gustavus Adolphus

Also known as the great Gustavus

A Swedish king invoked in comparing General Worth’s death in Mexico to a laurelled death at Lützen; mentioned but does not appear.

Charlie Fenno Hoffman

Also known as Charles Fenno Hoffman

A poet and Gentian’s friend, inspired by the battle of Monterey to write a lyric; mentioned but does not appear.

Judge Myndert van Groot

Also known as Judge van Groot · Myndert van Groot

A judge recalled by Gentian as a boy whose Fourth of July powder crackers accidentally exploded in a booth. He is now an elderly man who has gone to Saratoga.

Tobias

A ruddy-cheeked young servitor at the Burgundy Club whom Gentian summons to check on lunch and wine.

The club steward

Also known as the steward

An unnamed Burgundy Club employee responsible for arranging the meal and wine Gentian orders.

Jerry Bland

A friend Gentian expects to dine with at the Burgundy Club; mentioned but does not appear.

Captain Don Tempest

A Navy captain and friend Gentian expects to dine with; mentioned but does not appear.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

The New England writer whose appreciation of the historic past is compared with Gentian’s; mentioned but does not appear.

General Ulysses S. Grant’s military family member

An unnamed member of Grant’s military family, of whom Gentian was one; not separately identified.

The reserved gentleman at the club

Also known as the solitary auditor · the quiet listener

An unnamed mature gentleman who listens to Gentian’s Fourth of July reminiscences at the Burgundy Club.

The veteran comrades in the Grand Army procession

Unnamed Civil War veterans who pass Gentian during the Memorial Day procession; no individual identities are supplied.

The old slave at the Virginia mansion

An unnamed enslaved servant recalled by Gentian as guarding a mansion during the Civil War; mentioned but does not appear.

The young women at the Virginia mansions

Unnamed women whom Gentian recalls as either indignant at Union soldiers or hospitable to them during the Civil War.

General Grant’s presidential nominee rival

Also known as the rival applicant

An unnamed rival applicant who is said to have circulated a whisper that helped keep Gentian from Senate confirmation as consul.

The narrator of “Portrait of a Gentleman”

Also known as Jack Gentian’s literary portraitist

An unnamed narrator who admires Gentian and records his stories and manner, while acknowledging that his written portrait falls short.

Colonel Josiah Bunkum

Also known as Colonel J. Bunkum · Colonel Bunkum

A brave, rash Civil War officer who later becomes a distinguished Grand Army officer. He criticizes Gentian’s Cincinnati badge and political scruples in a campaign speech; Gentian explains his conduct charitably.

John Hancock

A wealthy merchant and signer of the Declaration of Independence cited in Colonel Bunkum’s argument about revolutionary-era political beliefs; mentioned but does not appear.

John Hampden

An English country gentleman cited in Bunkum’s comparison to John Hancock; mentioned but does not appear.

King George

Also known as George III

The British king whose tea tax is associated with John Hancock’s resistance; mentioned but does not appear.

King Charles

Also known as Charles I

The English king whose ship-money levy John Hampden resisted; mentioned but does not appear.

McClellan

Also known as General McClellan

A Union general whose cautious tactics frustrated Colonel Bunkum; mentioned but does not appear.

Webster

The name on the spelling books Colonel Bunkum planned to distribute in his imagined campaign against ignorance; mentioned but does not appear.

Father Abraham

A biblical name used by Gentian in praising wise, patriarchal humor; mentioned but does not appear.

Mahommed

Also known as Muhammad

A religious figure used in a joking comparison to Colonel Bunkum’s imagined campaign; mentioned but does not appear.

General John E. Wool

No individual by this name is identified; omitted.

The philosopher of the Burgundy

Also known as the Burgundy’s eccentric philosopher · the philosopher

An unnamed member of the Burgundy Club with an unusual and continually growing library of Americana. He comments on the narrator’s sketch of Jack Gentian and supplies an account of the Society of the Cincinnati’s ribbon and history.

The narrator of “Fragments from a Writing-Desk,” No. 1

Also known as L. A. V.

An unnamed first-person writer who sends a comic, self-aggrandizing letter from Lansingburgh to a correspondent identified as M⸺. He describes three local women in extravagant terms.

M⸺

The unnamed recipient of L. A. V.’s letter, addressed as a former friend who used to scold him and whose home and opinions he describes.

W⸺

An unnamed acquaintance who told L. A. V. that a particular old chair was the seat in which Burton composed Anatomy of Melancholy.

The Major addressed in the letter

An unnamed major thanked by L. A. V. for prompt attention to his request; his identity is not established.

The cloaked conductress

Also known as the mysterious fugitive · the guide

An unnamed woman who lures the first-person narrator of “Fragments from a Writing-Desk,” No. 2 on a nighttime pursuit with a billet-doux, then guides him into a richly furnished hidden room.

Inamorata

The signature on the rose-scented billet-doux that summons the narrator to follow its bearer; the text does not establish whether it names the cloaked conductress or another person.

The beautiful woman in the hidden room

Also known as the lovely being · the inmate

An unnamed woman reclining in an opulent, concealed apartment, where the cloaked conductress brings the narrator. The passage presents her as the apparent object of the secret nighttime meeting.