# Gennaro — Short Fiction character guide

> Gennaro in Short Fiction by E. M. Forster.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Mr. Gennaro

**First appearance:** 0008-the-story-of-a-panic

## Snapshot

A poor Italian fisherman and boatman whose incongruous dress, warm embraces, and halting English make him both comic and quietly dignified among the visiting English.

## Who they are

Gennaro appears in a borrowed waiter's suit with a dirty fisherman's cap, scoops the boy Eustace into his arms, and later tries, with difficulty, to explain what the child means about not understanding men. He is at once servant, friend, and baffled interpreter between two worlds. His tenderness toward Eustace and his inability to translate that bond into English words deepen the story's unease about sympathy and distance.

## Relationships

### [Eustace](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/eustace)

_friendship_

Eustace and Gennaro are friends or companions, possibly with a bond formed during travel or adventure.

### [Eustace](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/eustace)

_friendship_

Eustace and Gennaro are friends or companions, possibly with a bond formed during travel or adventure.

### [Eustace](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/eustace)

_friendship_

Eustace and Gennaro are friends or companions, possibly with a bond formed during travel or adventure.

## In the story

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/chapters/ii)

The clumsy waiter; carries Eustace into the house; uses the informal 'tu' with Eustace; insists he will only use formal address if Eustace asks.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/chapters/iii)

Betrays Eustace for money, then dies after falling from an olive tree.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/gennaro
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters