The Possessed characters

Also known as The Chronicler

Appears from the start

A resident of the provincial town who records the events surrounding Stepan Trofimovich, the Stavrogin household, and the revolutionary circle. He participates at the edges of the action and reports both what he witnesses and what he later learns from others.

Appears from the start

An aging intellectual who has spent many years as Varvara Petrovna's friend, dependent, and resident ornament. He regards himself as a persecuted liberal thinker, speaks in elevated phrases, and relies on Varvara while repeatedly dramatizing his wish for independence. He is Pyotr Stepanovich's largely absent father.

Also known as Varvara Petrovna Stavrogina

Appears from the start

A wealthy widow who dominates the town's social life and has supported Stepan Trofimovich for years. Proud, decisive, and given to arranging other people's futures, she is the mother of Nikolai Stavrogin and the patron of Darya Shatova.

First appears in chapter 2

Stepan Trofimovich's estranged son, raised largely away from his father. He has begun moving among political radicals and is expected to return to the town with Nikolai Stavrogin.

First appears in chapter 15

Varvara Petrovna's handsome and enigmatic son. Stories of his earlier life in the town describe startling public insults and acts carried out with an unnerving calm, followed by illness and years abroad. His intelligence and self-command draw fascination even from people who fear him.

First appears in chapter 7

Varvara Petrovna's young ward and Ivan Shatov's sister. Quiet and self-possessed, she has also served in the Stavrogin household, where her connection with Nikolai has become the subject of rumor.

First appears in chapter 9

A former student of Stepan Trofimovich and the brother of Darya. Once attracted to radical ideas, he has since moved toward emphatic ideas about Russian faith and national identity. He lives in poor circumstances on Varvara Petrovna's property.

Also known as Liza

First appears in chapter 12

The spirited daughter of Varvara Petrovna's old friend Praskovya. Recently returned from abroad, she is formally attached to the patient Mavriky Nikolaevich but remains intensely curious about Stavrogin and the disturbing stories surrounding him.

First appears in chapter 13

A reserved and honorable young man devoted to Lizaveta Tushina. He responds to her changing moods with patience and understands that her interest in Stavrogin threatens their proposed marriage.

First appears in chapter 23

An engineer recently returned from America who lodges near Shatov. Severe, courteous, and absorbed in philosophical questions, he argues that complete human freedom would require mastery over the fear of death.

Also known as Captain Lebyadkin

First appears in chapter 28

A drunken former army captain who writes bad verse and alternates between swaggering threats and frightened submission. He has links to the radical circle and uses dangerous information about the Stavrogin household in pursuit of money.

Also known as The Lame Woman

First appears in chapter 35

Captain Lebyadkin's physically disabled sister, kept in poverty and treated harshly by him. Her speech moves between sharp perception, religious imagery, and fantasy, and her unexplained connection to Stavrogin is a source of anxiety to several people.

First appears in chapter 44

The provincial governor, an anxious administrator who wants to appear both humane and firm. He is increasingly unsettled by labor unrest, political intrigue, and the influence that his socially ambitious wife exercises over public affairs.

First appears in chapter 45

The governor's energetic wife, who hopes to make the province fashionable through literary gatherings and charitable events. Flattered by Pyotr Verkhovensky's attention, she admits him to her circle and treats the town's young radicals as interesting rather than dangerous.

Also known as Fedka the Convict

First appears in chapter 55

An escaped convict who has returned to the district and offers violence for payment. He once belonged to Stepan Trofimovich as a serf before being sold into military service, and he now moves between the conspirators and local criminal life.

Also known as Marie Shatova

First appears in chapter 96

Shatov's estranged wife, who unexpectedly returns to him exhausted, ill, and pregnant. Although the child is not his, her need awakens his hope that their broken life can begin again.