# Mrs. Dempster — Short Fiction character guide

> Mrs. Dempster in Short Fiction by George MacDonald.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Dempster

**First appearance:** 0000-a-double-story

## Snapshot

A wife worn thin by a tyrant's temper, clinging to small dignities as her marriage becomes a slow, daily erosion of self.

## Who they are

Mrs. Dempster lives under the shadow of a husband whose cruelty is constant and casual, and her days are measured in the compromises she makes to keep the peace. Yet she is not merely passive: her quiet refusals and private griefs reveal a woman still fighting for a self he cannot fully own. Her endurance anchors the domestic drama, giving the reader someone to fear for and someone whose small victories matter.

## Relationships

### [Annie Melville](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/characters/annie_melville)

_friendship_

Annie Melville and Mrs. Dempster are friends or acquaintances, possibly sharing social circles or confidences.

### [Annie Melville](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/characters/annie_melville)

_friendship_

Annie Melville and Mrs. Dempster are friends or acquaintances, possibly sharing social circles or confidences.

### [Annie Melville](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/characters/annie_melville)

_friendship_

Annie Melville and Mrs. Dempster are friends or acquaintances, possibly sharing social circles or confidences.

## In the story

### [Husband and Wife](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/chapters/i-husband-and-wife)

A graceful but careless housekeeper who avoids precision; her fear of her husband grows as she falls into secret debt, yet she considers herself superior to him.

### [An Astonishment](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/chapters/ii-an-astonishment)

Recovers slowly from childbirth; shows indifference and even aversion to the baby, turning her head away when the nurse brings him.

### [III: Another Astonishment](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/chapters/iii-another-astonishment)

Absent from the household; her flight and the butcher's bills fuel her husband's suspicions.

### [IV: What It Meant](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/chapters/iv-what-it-meant)

The central figure of the chapter; she flees home due to guilt and fear, suffers brain fever, and eventually recovers her memory and resolves to return to her baby.

### [The Gray Wolf](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/chapters/the-gray-wolf)

The old mother who hosts the student, offering fish and shelter.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/characters/mrs_dempster
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_21_se/characters