The Pickwick Papers characters

Appears from the start

The founder and president of the Pickwick Club, a prosperous retired businessman whose round spectacles and immense curiosity accompany him on journeys to observe English life. He is trusting, dignified, and easily drawn into misunderstandings, yet his generosity and loyalty become the moral center of the club's comic adventures.

Also known as Sam

First appears in chapter 10

A quick-witted young boot cleaner at the White Hart Inn. His alertness, practical sense, and gift for vivid comparisons impress Mr. Pickwick, who decides that such a capable servant would be useful on his travels.

Appears from the start

A younger member of the Pickwick Club who presents himself as a sportsman despite having little command of horses, guns, skates, or other athletic pursuits. His efforts to preserve that reputation repeatedly produce accidents and embarrassment.

Appears from the start

A Pickwickian who regards himself as a poet and carefully observes scenes that might inspire verse, though he is seldom shown writing any. Quiet and romantic, he travels with Pickwick, Tupman, and Winkle as the club's chronicler of poetic feeling.

Appears from the start

A stout, middle-aged Pickwickian devoted to romance. He readily falls in love and approaches courtship with confidence out of proportion to his success, making him particularly vulnerable to jealousy and manipulation.

First appears in chapter 2

A thin, flashy traveling actor who speaks in clipped bursts and rapidly invents impressive stories. He joins the Pickwickians after helping them out of a street quarrel and appears worldly, amusing, and useful, though his borrowed clothes and casual claims make his reliability uncertain.

First appears in chapter 16

Jingle's servant, who presents himself to Pickwick as a miserable dependent eager to expose his master's wrongdoing. His humble manner and apparent distress make his warnings seem credible when the Pickwickians encounter Jingle again.

First appears in chapter 4

The warm, boisterous owner of Manor Farm at Dingley Dell. He welcomes the Pickwickians into a large household of relatives, friends, servants, and animals, and enjoys practical jokes, sport, food, and company.

First appears in chapter 4

Mr. Wardle's unmarried sister. Past youth but still eager for romance, she receives Tupman's attention at Dingley Dell and becomes the focus of a rivalry when Jingle recognizes an opportunity.

First appears in chapter 4

One of Mr. Wardle's daughters at Dingley Dell. Her warmth and good sense attract Snodgrass, whose poetic temperament becomes more practical whenever she is near.

First appears in chapter 12

Mr. Pickwick's widowed landlady. When he awkwardly explains that he intends to bring another man into the household as a servant, she mistakes his words for a marriage proposal and faints in his arms just as several friends enter.

First appears in chapter 11

A small, brisk attorney who acts for Mr. Wardle and becomes Mr. Pickwick's legal adviser. Familiar with elections, settlements, and the less dignified realities of the law, he repeatedly gives practical counsel that Pickwick's sense of honor does not always allow him to accept.

First appears in chapter 20

One of the attorneys representing Mrs. Bardell in her breach-of-promise action. With his partner Fogg, he treats the misunderstanding as profitable business and pursues Pickwick through formal notices, witnesses, and costs.

Also known as Tony Weller

First appears in chapter 20

Sam Weller's father, a veteran coachman with strong opinions about marriage, widows, lawyers, and temperance advocates. He is proud of Sam and quickly recognizes Mr. Pickwick as a master worthy of his son's loyalty.

First appears in chapter 30

The sister of Benjamin Allen and a pupil at a girls' school near Bury St. Edmunds. Winkle first hears of her through her brother and Bob Sawyer, who assume that family friendship gives Bob a claim on her affection.

First appears in chapter 30

A medical student and friend of Benjamin Allen. Sociable, noisy, and chronically short of money, he invites the Pickwickians into the disorder of his lodgings and expects eventually to marry Benjamin's sister Arabella.