# The Devil — Man and Superman character guide

> The Devil in Man and Superman by George Bernard Shaw.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** the Devil, The Devil Bowing, The Devil Warmly, The Devil It, Devil

**First appearance:** 0004-act-iii

## Snapshot

The urbane ruler of Hell who argues that pleasure, not improvement, is man's true business and finds Don Juan an exasperating guest.

## Who they are

The Devil presides over a Hell that is frankly a place of enjoyment, where the damned pursue their pleasures without the hypocrisies of the surface world, and he receives Don Juan with the warmth of a host who expects to be agreed with. He is a philosopher of comfortable cynicism, content to let men be men and women be women, and his debate with Juan exposes the play's central question: whether the Life Force is a genuine purpose or a self-flattering illusion. His genial materialism makes him the most seductive voice against the Superman.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/man_and_superman_se/characters/the_devil
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/man_and_superman_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/man_and_superman_se/characters