# Riceyman Steps — Character guide

> Key figures in Riceyman Steps by Arnold Bennett.

- [Elsie](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/elsie.md): Elsie keeps the shop and the rooms running while Henry Earlforward counts every penny and his new wife Violet rearranges the furniture of his life. Dr. Raste calls her 'a good girl' and asks whether she might marry his s
- [Henry Earlforward](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/henry_earlforward.md): Henry Earlforward inherited his uncle's shop and his uncle's name, and he runs both with the placid deliberation of a man who believes eternity is on his side. He is drawn to Violet, the widow across the way, yet every s
- [Violet Earlforward](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/violet_earlforward.md): Violet enters Riceyman Steps as the woman across the way, soberly dressed but with red flowers in her hat and a girlishness that wakes Henry from two decades of solitary thrift. She is practical, warm, and shrewd enough 
- [Joe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/joe.md): Joe is the lad in Dr. Raste's service, a war-damaged young man running after Elsie with a persistence that the doctor half-approves and half-fears. His pursuit of Elsie forces Henry Earlforward to confront the possibilit
- [Dr. Raste](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/dr_raste.md): Dr. Raste is a managing, interfering sort of man—at least in Henry's irritated estimation—who asks whether Elsie is 'a good girl' and whether she might marry his shell-shock patient. His questions are kindly meant, but t
- [Jerry Perkins](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/jerry_perkins.md): Jerry Perkins belongs to the neighborhood's working life—the yards, the lorries, the hum of hidden machinery that throbs beneath Riceyman Steps. He assists Elsie and the Earlforwards in small, practical ways, and his pre
- [Mr. Bauersch](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/mr_bauersch.md): A wealthy customer and acquaintance of Henry Earlforward.
- [Mr. Belrose](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/mr_belrose.md): A local shopkeeper and friend of the Earlforwards.
- [Mrs. Belrose](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/mrs_belrose.md): Wife of Mr. Belrose, a minor character in the neighborhood.
- [Reverend Augustus Earlforward](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/reverend_augustus_earlforward.md): Henry's brother, a clergyman who appears briefly.
- [Miss Raste](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/miss_raste.md): Dr. Raste's sister, who helps care for the sick.
- [Mr. Arb](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/mr_arb.md): Elsie's deceased first husband, mentioned but not present.
- [T. T. Riceyman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/t_t_riceyman.md): A wealthy businessman and former employer of Henry.
- [Jack](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/riceyman_steps_se/characters/jack.md): A minor character, possibly a servant or neighbor.

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