The Mysterious Stranger characters

Appears from the start

A boy growing up in the isolated Austrian village of Eseldorf in 1590 and the narrator of the strange events that follow. He has absorbed his community's religious fears and assumptions, but his meetings with a supernatural visitor force him to question human judgment, cruelty, and reality itself.

Appears from the start

A beautiful, charismatic youth who introduces himself to Theodor and his friends as an angel and a nephew of the biblical Satan. During their first meeting he reads thoughts, produces food, and creates living miniature people. His pleasant manner is paired with an inhuman detachment from their suffering.

Appears from the start

One of Theodor's two closest boyhood friends in Eseldorf. He accompanies Theodor to the secluded place where they encounter the mysterious young stranger.

Appears from the start

The third member of Theodor's circle of friends. Good-hearted and impulsive, he shares the other boys' fascination with the newcomer who calls himself Satan.

First appears in chapter 2

A kindly, impoverished local priest who has lost his position and lives with his niece Marget. Theodor wants the stranger's powers to relieve the household's hardship.

First appears in chapter 2

Father Peter's niece, who shares his poverty and cares for him. She hopes to marry Wilhelm Meidling, though her uncle's disgrace has made the household's future uncertain.

First appears in chapter 2

A young man devoted to Marget. He remains loyal to her despite Father Peter's disgrace and the household's poverty.

First appears in chapter 4

A self-important astrologer with influence in Eseldorf. He treats any challenge to his reputation as a threat and uses the village's credulity to turn suspicion against Father Peter.

First appears in chapter 3

An elderly woman living at the edge of the community whom the villagers fear as a witch. Their readiness to condemn her exposes the violence hidden beneath Eseldorf's claims to piety.