# The Narrator's Uncle (The Happy Failure) — Short Fiction character guide

> The Narrator's Uncle (The Happy Failure) in Short Fiction by Herman Melville.

**Role:** minor

**Also known as:** Unknown, the man, this man

**First appearance:** 0016-the-happy-failure

## Who they are

An inventor who becomes obsessed with a draining machine that ultimately fails.

## In the story

### [The Happy Failure](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_28_se/chapters/the-happy-failure)

The elderly inventor of the Great Hydraulic-Hydrostatic Apparatus, who undergoes a transformation from pride and obsession to humble acceptance after the failure.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_28_se/characters/the_narrator_happy_failure_uncle
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_28_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_28_se/characters