# Our Nig — Character guide

> Key figures in Our Nig by Harriet E. Wilson.

- [Frado](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/frado.md): Frado enters the Bellmonts as an indentured servant, expected to earn her keep from childhood until eighteen. Her roguish spirit and stubborn independence collide with Mrs. Bellmont's cruelty, while small kindnesses from
- [Mag Smith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/mag_smith.md): Mag's early ruin leaves her isolated, and her marriage to Seth Shipley offers no real protection for her children. When the family must move, she agrees to place Frado with the Bellmonts, half-aware of the household's re
- [Mrs. Bellmont](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/mrs_bellmont.md): Mrs. Bellmont controls the household through fear, and Frado's body and time belong to her absolutely. Her cruelty is methodical and self-justifying, yet her grief over Mary's death briefly stills the house before the ol
- [Mr. Bellmont](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/mr_bellmont.md): Mr. Bellmont is the household's nominal head, but his authority collapses before Mrs. B.'s temper, leaving Frado without real protection. He pities her, and his presence restrains her mistress somewhat, yet he will not i
- [Jack](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/jack.md): Jack is the first Bellmont to want Frado kept, arguing she is handsome, bright, and useful. He writes to his brother James about her merits and hints that mother treats her unjustly, making him an early ally. Yet his sym
- [Mary](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/mary.md): Mary resents Frado's presence from the start, declaring she wants no 'nigger' near her, and her cruelty rivals her mother's. When the parents travel, Mary holds sole authority over Frado, turning weeks into a gauntlet of
- [Jane](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/jane.md): Jane moves through the Bellmont household as the softer sister, the one who sits with Aunt Abby and shows Frado a measure of ordinary kindness. When George Means's attentions expose how little she feels for the suitor he
- [Aunt Abby](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/aunt_abby.md): Aunt Abby is the Bellmont household's conscience in a rocking chair, the relative whose quiet room becomes a refuge for both Frado and the ailing James. She listens to Frado's grief in the barn, contradicts the world's c
- [Susan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/susan.md): A friend or acquaintance who interacts with the Bellmont household.
- [Jim](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/jim.md): A suitor or acquaintance of Mag Smith, possibly Frado's father.
- [Seth Shipley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/seth_shipley.md): Mag Smith's second husband, who abandons her and Frado.
- [George Means](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/george_means.md): A local man who interacts with the Bellmonts or Frado.
- [Henry Reed](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/henry_reed.md): A character who appears in the later part of the story.
- [Samuel](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/samuel.md): A relative or acquaintance who returns after a long absence.
- [Mrs. Moore](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/mrs_moore.md): A kind woman who briefly helps or shelters Frado.
- [Jenny](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters/jenny.md): A minor servant or worker in the household.

HTML index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/our_nig_se/characters