# Marconi — Search the Sky character guide

> Marconi in Search the Sky by Frederik Pohl.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Little Marconi, Trader Marconi, Mr. Marconi

**First appearance:** 0000-i

## Snapshot

A lean, dark trader at Haarland's who reads more than bills of lading, he is Ross's easiest friend on the Exchange and the first to hear his secret.

## Who they are

Little Marconi stands four ranks above Ross in seniority, but the two juniors share lunch and confidences across the rival firms of Oldham and Haarland. He is rapturously, fatuously engaged to Lurline of the Old Landowners, waving a photo inscribed 'with crates of love' and reciting the child-bearing clauses of their contract as if they were poetry. Ross privately thinks him gaffed like a sugar perch, but Marconi's openness—and his willingness to listen—makes him the sounding board Ross needs before the mission begins.

## Relationships

### [Ross](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/ross)

_professional_

Marconi is a colleague or superior to Ross, often interacting in a work or mission-related capacity.

### [Haarland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/haarland)

_professional_

Haarland and Marconi work together, possibly as colleagues or in a hierarchical professional setting.

### [Ma](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/ma)

_social_

Ma and Marconi are acquaintances, possibly connected through Ross or community events.

### [Ross](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/ross)

_professional_

Marconi is a colleague or superior to Ross, often interacting in a work or mission-related capacity.

### [Haarland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/haarland)

_professional_

Haarland and Marconi work together, possibly as colleagues or in a hierarchical professional setting.

### [Ross](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/ross)

_professional_

Marconi is a colleague or superior to Ross, often interacting in a work or mission-related capacity.

### [Ma](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/ma)

_social_

Ma and Marconi are acquaintances, possibly connected through Ross or community events.

### [Haarland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/haarland)

_professional_

Haarland and Marconi work together, possibly as colleagues or in a hierarchical professional setting.

### [Ma](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/ma)

_social_

Ma and Marconi are acquaintances, possibly connected through Ross or community events.

## In the story

### [I Decay](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/chapters/i)

A trader and friend of Ross, evasive about longliners and the planet's problems.

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/chapters/ii)

Marconi defends the longliner crew's use of 'the box' as a necessary evil for survival, revealing his pragmatic yet troubled perspective.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/chapters/iii)

Wakes Ross, offers him a job, drives recklessly through Ghost Town, and brings him to Haarland; later quits the assignment.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/chapters/iv)

Visits Ross before the final briefing, expresses envy and regret; wishes Ross well and hopes he won't hate him.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters/marconi
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/search_the_sky_se/characters