# Crystalman — A Voyage to Arcturus character guide

> Crystalman in A Voyage to Arcturus by David Lindsay.

**Role:** supporting

**First appearance:** 0005-vi-joiwind

## Snapshot

The radiant power whose face Krag names in a lamplit street, ruler of Tormance and weaver of its seductive, treacherous forms.

## Who they are

Crystalman governs Tormance, the one inhabited planet of Arcturus, and is spoken of with a grin and a shiver by those who know his country. His beauty and pleasure are the bait; Krag's warning that the travellers are bound for 'Crystalman's country' turns an idle night into a summons. For Maskull, the name becomes the question the whole journey must answer: whether the world's loveliness is a gift or a lure.

## Relationships

### [Maskull](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/characters/maskull)

_rivalry_

Crystalman is the ultimate antagonist, a seductive and corrupting force that Maskull must resist and ultimately confront.

### [Krag](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/characters/krag)

_rivalry_

Crystalman and Krag are eternal cosmic adversaries, representing the forces of illusion and truth respectively.

### [Maskull](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/characters/maskull)

_rivalry_

Crystalman is the ultimate antagonist, a seductive and corrupting force that Maskull must resist and ultimately confront.

### [Maskull](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/characters/maskull)

_rivalry_

Crystalman is the ultimate antagonist, a seductive and corrupting force that Maskull must resist and ultimately confront.

### [Krag](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/characters/krag)

_rivalry_

Crystalman and Krag are eternal cosmic adversaries, representing the forces of illusion and truth respectively.

### [Krag](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/characters/krag)

_rivalry_

Crystalman and Krag are eternal cosmic adversaries, representing the forces of illusion and truth respectively.

## In the story

### [VI: Joiwind](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/chapters/vi-joiwind)

Identified by Joiwind as another name for Shaping, the creator, contradicting Maskull's prior understanding.

### [Swaylone's Island](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/chapters/xv-swaylone-s-island)

Referred to as Shaping in the legend; he breathed thoughts into Swaylone's soul to make his music lovelier.

### [Leehallfae](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/chapters/xvi-leehallfae)

Implied as the shaping force or 'Great Living Mind' behind the creation of plant-animals from the life stream.

### [XVII: Corpang](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/chapters/xvii-corpang)

The sordid and horrible mask seen on the statues under Muspel-light, representing the deceptive nature of life.

### [XXI: Muspel](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/chapters/xxi-muspel)

Crystalman is depicted as a bright, mocking shadow that feeds on the Muspel-stream, converting it into individual wills that experience pleasure and pain. His world is one of sin, degradation, and illusion.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/characters/crystalman
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_voyage_to_arcturus_se/characters