# Dumay — Modeste Mignon character guide

> Dumay in Modeste Mignon by Honoré de Balzac.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Madame Dumay, Latournelle, Monsieur Dumay, old Dumay, the worthy Dumay, The unhappy Dumay, Little Dumay

**First appearance:** 0001-modeste-mignon

## Snapshot

The Mignons' loyal steward and Charles's old comrade-in-arms, a blunt soldier turned watchdog who would die for the family that took him in.

## Who they are

Dumay is a former soldier who followed Charles Mignon through exile and now manages his household with military discipline and absolute devotion. Gruff, watchful, and suspicious of strangers, he joins the notary Latournelle in guarding Modeste against fortune-hunters, seeing plots where others see romance. His fierce, unglamorous loyalty makes him both a comic and a touching figure, embodying the old-fashioned honor that the novel's fashionable world has largely abandoned.

## In the story

### [Modeste Mignon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/modeste_mignon_se/chapters/modeste-mignon)

The loyal cashier, prepared to use violence to protect Modeste, placing pistols on the chimney-shelf.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/modeste_mignon_se/characters/dumay
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/modeste_mignon_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/modeste_mignon_se/characters