The Horla [Classic Tales Edition] characters

Appears from the start

A prosperous man living alone on an estate near Rouen, recording his experiences in a diary. Sensitive to the landscape and confident in reason at first, he becomes troubled by fever, nightmares, exhaustion, and the conviction that an unseen presence enters his room at night.

Appears from the start

The name the narrator gives to an invisible being he believes has attached itself to him. It appears to drink water and milk, influence his will, and occupy physical space despite being beyond ordinary sight; whether it is an external creature or part of his mental collapse remains unresolved.

Appears from the start

The narrator's cousin in Paris. During a gathering at her home, she agrees to be hypnotized and later carries out a suggestion without consciously remembering why, giving the narrator disturbing evidence that one mind can govern another.

Appears from the start

A physician who demonstrates hypnosis at Madame Sablé's home. His experiment shows that a person can be made to see what is absent, overlook what is present, and obey a command after waking.

Appears from the start

A monk encountered during the narrator's visit to Mont-Saint-Michel. He discusses forces and beings that may exist beyond the narrow range of human senses, an idea that stays with the narrator after he returns home.

Appears from the start

The domestic workers on the narrator's estate. Their own frightened disputes suggest that the household's disturbance may extend beyond their employer, but they remain unaware of the fatal plan he eventually directs at the house.