Silas Marner (AmazonClassics Edition) characters

Appears from the start

A linen weaver who has settled near Raveloe after being driven from his former religious community by a false accusation. He lives alone, suffers occasional fits in which he becomes unresponsive, and has replaced human fellowship with devotion to the coins earned at his loom.

Appears from the start

Silas's closest friend in Lantern Yard and a fellow member of its narrow religious community. When Silas is accused of theft, William claims to accept the community's judgment and soon takes Silas's former place in Sarah's life.

Appears from the start

The woman Silas expected to marry in Lantern Yard. After the community condemns him for a theft he denies, she ends their engagement and later marries William Dane.

First appears in chapter 3

The aging landowner of the Red House and head of the leading family near Raveloe. He is indulgent toward his sons, proud of his standing, and more forceful in talk than in the discipline of his household.

First appears in chapter 3

The Squire's eldest son and presumed heir. He wants to marry Nancy Lammeter, but a secret earlier marriage to Molly Farren leaves him vulnerable to his reckless brother Dunstan, who knows the truth.

Also known as Dunsey

First appears in chapter 3

Godfrey's younger brother, a dishonest and spiteful gambler who exploits his knowledge of Godfrey's secret marriage. He pressures Godfrey for money and treats other people's property and distress as opportunities.

First appears in chapter 10

A practical, kindly Raveloe woman who visits Silas after the theft of his savings. Though her religious language is unfamiliar to him, her food, patience, and concern offer the first steady neighborly contact he has accepted in years.

First appears in chapter 10

Dolly Winthrop's young son. He first accompanies his mother on a visit to Silas and becomes one of the few children to enter the weaver's isolated home without fear.

First appears in chapter 11

A well-regarded young woman from a prosperous farming family, admired by Godfrey Cass. She is sincere, orderly, and guided by firm ideas of duty, and she distrusts conduct that seems careless or deceptive.

First appears in chapter 11

Nancy's plain-spoken elder sister, whose confidence and practical good sense contrast with Nancy's self-consciousness at the Red House dance. The sisters are affectionate despite their different temperaments.

First appears in chapter 12

Godfrey's estranged wife and the mother of his small daughter. Poor, ill, and dependent on opium, she sets out for the Red House on New Year's Eve intending to make her marriage known.

First appears in chapter 12

A little girl who wanders into Silas's cottage on a snowy New Year's Eve. Her golden hair reminds him of the lost coins he once treasured, but her immediate need for warmth and care calls him back into human life.