Short Fiction · Character
M. Valdemar
A gentleman of talents and amiability who consents to be mesmerized at the very moment of death, becoming a voice suspended between worlds.
supporting
Also known as M. Ernest Valdemar, Valdemar
First appearance: The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar
As a supporting figure in Short Fiction, M. Valdemar is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.
The subject of the mesmeric experiment, a dying man who is mesmerized in articulo mortis and later speaks from a state of apparent death.
M. Valdemar is a man whose general amiability has recommended him to those around him, and whose willingness to submit to the narrator's mesmeric experiments makes him the subject of a singular inquiry. As his health fails, the question becomes whether the mesmeric trance can hold him at the threshold of death itself. What he says from that suspended state is the story's whole terrible point.
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Character Web
4 connectionsA slice of how M. Valdemar sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.
Relationship types
- Professional
- Other
Character groups
- Diverse story characters
- Protagonist
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Open in readerNarrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Falling action.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
In this excerpt, the dramatic climax occurs when Legrand’s frantic, "dancing mad" behavior—attributed to a tar…
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Follow the arc while readingRelationships
- Unknown Narrator
professional · ambivalent
The narrator, as a mesmerist, conducts an experiment on the dying M. How this plays out →
Relationship notes
How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.
See M. Valdemar in The Facts in the Case of M. ValdemarIn the story
M. Valdemar appears across 1 companion beat. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.
Chapter companion notes
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See M. Valdemar in The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar