# Mr. Barnabas — Back to Methuselah character guide

> Mr. Barnabas in Back to Methuselah by George Bernard Shaw.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Barnabas, the Brothers Barnabas, Barnabas Alarmed, Barnabas Ingratitude, Barnabas Rising, Barnabas No, Barnabas Yah, Barnabas Hoarse, Barnabas Stuff, Barnabas Interrupting, Barnabas Choking, Doctor Barnabas

**First appearance:** 0055-part-ii-the-gospel-of-the-brothers-barnabas

## Snapshot

A retired clergyman and father of Franklyn and Conrad, proud of his sons' ideas yet quick to bristle when anyone questions his authority on longevity.

## Who they are

Mr. Barnabas moves through the brothers' orbit as a fond but prickly elder, defending his sons' reputations while guarding his own standing as the era's foremost authority on the duration of human life. When a newspaper hints that underwater breathing will upset his figures, he flies into alarm and marches off to confront the American who dared challenge his Act. His vanity and genuine paternal pride make him both comic and touching, a small portrait of how the old order absorbs new ideas.

## Relationships

### [Franklyn Barnabas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/back_to_methuselah_se/characters/franklyn_barnabas)

_family_

Franklyn and Mr. Barnabas are father and son, with a relationship of mutual respect and intellectual inheritance.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/back_to_methuselah_se/characters/mr_barnabas
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/back_to_methuselah_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/back_to_methuselah_se/characters