# Mrs. Maple — Short Fiction character guide

> Mrs. Maple in Short Fiction by M. R. James.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** dear Mrs. Maple, Mary, Maple, Mrs. Ann Maple, Anne

**First appearance:** 0001-lost-hearts

## Snapshot

A housekeeper at the rectory whose practical authority over the household makes her the first to notice when something in the house refuses to obey ordinary rules.

## Who they are

Mrs. Maple runs the domestic side of the rectory with the confidence of long service, and her testimony carries weight precisely because she is not given to fancy. When the household's routine is disturbed, her account of what she saw and heard becomes the story's grounding in ordinary observation. She matters because the uncanny in these tales is most frightening when it intrudes on someone whose business is the everyday, and because her report is what turns a private unease into a shared problem.

## In the story

### [The Residence at Whitminster](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_35_se/chapters/the-residence-at-whitminster)

Housekeeper who shares local legends about Viscount Saul and assists with moving furniture.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_35_se/characters/mrs_maple
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_35_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_35_se/characters