# Harold — Short Fiction character guide

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

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** The wretched Harold, Kind Harry, Harry, Henry

**First appearance:** 0001-i

## Who they are

A man of mysterious former greatness who awakens beside Sicilian ruins and claims, with unnerving calm, to have lived here before.

## Relationships

### [Mildred Peaslake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/mildred_peaslake)

_family_

Harold and Mildred Peaslake are likely a married couple or close family members, given their high interaction frequency and shared social circle.

### [Sir Edwin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/sir_edwin)

_family_

Harold and Sir Edwin are likely father and son or close relatives, given their frequent interactions and shared surname context.

### [Michael](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/michael)

_family_

Harold and Michael are likely brothers or close relatives, with a familiar and possibly supportive bond.

### [Lady Peaslake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/lady_peaslake)

_family_

Harold and Lady Peaslake are likely mother and son, with a close familial bond.

### [Lilian](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/lilian)

_family_

Harold and Lilian are likely siblings or a married couple, with a warm domestic relationship.

### [Mildred Peaslake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/mildred_peaslake)

_family_

Harold and Mildred Peaslake are likely a married couple or close family members, given their high interaction frequency and shared social circle.

### [Sir Edwin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/sir_edwin)

_family_

Harold and Sir Edwin are likely father and son or close relatives, given their frequent interactions and shared surname context.

### [Lady Peaslake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/lady_peaslake)

_family_

Harold and Lady Peaslake are likely mother and son, with a close familial bond.

### [Mildred Peaslake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/mildred_peaslake)

_family_

Harold and Mildred Peaslake are likely a married couple or close family members, given their high interaction frequency and shared social circle.

### [Lilian](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/lilian)

_family_

Harold and Lilian are likely siblings or a married couple, with a warm domestic relationship.

### [Sir Edwin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/sir_edwin)

_family_

Harold and Sir Edwin are likely father and son or close relatives, given their frequent interactions and shared surname context.

### [Lady Peaslake](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/characters/lady_peaslake)

_family_

Harold and Lady Peaslake are likely mother and son, with a close familial bond.

## In the story

### [Albergo Empedocle](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/chapters/albergo-empedocle)

Writes a letter from Naples describing his travels and engagement; later ends up in an asylum.

### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/chapters/i)

Engaged to Mildred, he is tired and reveals his odd sleep habit of pretending to be someone else.

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

Falls asleep in the Temple of Zeus, reveals a mysterious memory of a past life, and feels ecstatic that Mildred believes him.

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

Harold becomes increasingly frantic, insisting on his past life and accusing others of not believing him; he suffers a breakdown and loses coherence.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/chapters/iv)

Harold is committed to an asylum after being sent back to England; he becomes mute and unresponsive, but the narrator believes he has truly become a Greek.

### [The Curate's Friend](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/chapters/the-curate-s-friend)

The curate and narrator, whose encounter with the faun leads to personal transformation and a more genuine life.

### [The Point of It](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/chapters/the-point-of-it)

A friend who represents a contrasting perspective on life's purpose, possibly linked to themes of repression and liberation.

### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_13_se/chapters/i)

The invalid who rows with reckless abandon, dies of a heart strain.

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

Michael's friend who died young; remembered for his final gesture and words, but fades from memory over time.

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

Michael's eldest son; charming and sympathetic, but later revealed to be critical of his father.

## Links

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