# Aunt Helen — My Brilliant Career character guide > Aunt Helen in My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin. **Role:** supporting **Also known as:** Helen, aunt Helen, Aunt Helen, auntie Helen, Helen Bossier **First appearance:** 0014-ix-aunt-helen-s-recipe ## Snapshot Sybylla's refined, unmarried aunt at Caddagat, whose quiet honesty and unspoken sorrow make her the girl's truest confidante. ## Who they are Aunt Helen runs the gracious household at Caddagat and offers Sybylla the only adult sympathy she trusts—never lecturing, never retailing confidences, always saying something brave instead of pious. She understands Sybylla's wildness because she recognizes its cost, and her own life, in which the deeper love passed her by, shadows her advice about friendship versus passion. She is the story's moral center: proof that a woman can be fine and unloved, and a warning Sybylla cannot quite heed. ## Relationships ### [Sybylla Penelope Melvyn](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/sybylla_penelope_melvyn) _family_ A supportive and nurturing aunt-niece bond, with Aunt Helen acting as a mentor and confidante to Sybylla. ### [Everard Grey](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/everard_grey) _friendship_ A close friendship or possible romantic undercurrent, with shared intellectual and emotional rapport. ### [Harold Beecham](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/harold_beecham) _social_ A polite acquaintance, with Aunt Helen observing Harold's courtship of Sybylla with interest. ### [Sybylla Penelope Melvyn](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/sybylla_penelope_melvyn) _family_ A supportive and nurturing aunt-niece bond, with Aunt Helen acting as a mentor and confidante to Sybylla. ### [Harold Beecham](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/harold_beecham) _social_ A polite acquaintance, with Aunt Helen observing Harold's courtship of Sybylla with interest. ### [Everard Grey](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/everard_grey) _friendship_ A close friendship or possible romantic undercurrent, with shared intellectual and emotional rapport. ### [Everard Grey](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/everard_grey) _friendship_ A close friendship or possible romantic undercurrent, with shared intellectual and emotional rapport. ### [Sybylla Penelope Melvyn](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/sybylla_penelope_melvyn) _family_ A supportive and nurturing aunt-niece bond, with Aunt Helen acting as a mentor and confidante to Sybylla. ### [Harold Beecham](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/harold_beecham) _social_ A polite acquaintance, with Aunt Helen observing Harold's courtship of Sybylla with interest. ## In the story ### [VII: Was E’er a Rose Without Its Thorn?](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/vii-was-e-er-a-rose-without-its-thorn) Recipient of the letter from Sybylla's mother; she is asked to take Sybylla in and help improve her prospects. ### [VIII: Possum Gully Left Behind. Hurrah! Hurrah!](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/viii-possum-gully-left-behind-hurrah-hurrah) Greets Sybylla with a kiss and cordial handclasp; speaks quietly and with high-bred grace; shows kindness and refinement. ### [IX: Aunt Helen's Recipe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/ix-aunt-helen-s-recipe) Aunt Helen comforts Sybylla with sincere advice, shares her own tragic past of being deserted by Colonel Bell, and devises a plan to help Sybylla with her self-image. ### [X: Everard Grey](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/x-everard-grey) Helps Sybylla dress and advises Everard to be careful about Sybylla's sensitivity regarding her appearance. ### [XI: Yah!](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xi-yah) Briefly intervenes to redirect Sybylla to attend to Frank Hawden. ### [XIII: He](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xiii-he) Sends Sybylla to pick lemons and later teases her about her interest in Harold Beecham. ### [XIV: Principally Letters](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xiv-principally-letters) Described as an angel; Sybylla rides with her to Yabtree church. ### [When the Heart Is Young](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xv-when-the-heart-is-young) Receives a letter from Miss Beecham and allows Sybylla to visit Five-Bob Downs. ### [XVI: When Fortune Smiles](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xvi-when-fortune-smiles) Sybylla's confidante at Caddagat; listens attentively to Sybylla's stories about her stay at Five-Bob. ### [XVII: Idylls of Youth](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xvii-idylls-of-youth) Scolds Sybylla for not improving her ladylike demeanor; oversees the swimming outings. ### [XVIII: As Short as I Wish Had Been the Majority of Sermons to Which I Have Been Forced to Give Ear](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xviii-as-short-as-i-wish-had-been-the-majority-of-sermons-to-which-i-have-been-forced-to-give-ear) Questions Sybylla about her feelings for Harold, warns against flirting, and defends Harold's character. ### [XIX: The 9th of November 1896](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xix-the-9th-of-november-1896) Accompanies Sybylla to the races and stays with her at Five-Bob Downs. ### [Same Yarn (Continued)](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xx-same-yarn-continued) Shares a bedroom with Sybylla; helps her prepare for the ball. ### [Sweet Seventeen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xxii-sweet-seventeen) Organizes the birthday tea and arranges a walk to the fern gullies, acting as a gracious hostess. ### [XXIII: “Ah, for One Hour of Burning Love, ’Tis Worth an Age of Cold Respect!”](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xxiii-ah-for-one-hour-of-burning-love-tis-worth-an-age-of-cold-respect) Mentioned as having lent Sybylla rings to wear, providing a cover for Harold's engagement ring. ### [XXV: Because?](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xxv-because) Bids Sybylla good night and suggests Harold may have cared for her despite his financial failure. ### [XXVI: Boast Not Thyself of Tomorrow](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xxvi-boast-not-thyself-of-tomorrow) Comforts Sybylla and argues for her duty; shows emotion at her departure. ### [XXXIV: But Absent Friends Are Soon Forgot](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/chapters/xxxiv-but-absent-friends-are-soon-forgot) Writes to Sybylla's mother, noting Harold's frequent visits and his potential interest in Gertie. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters/aunt_helen - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/my_brilliant_career_se/characters