# Mr. Clarke — Short Fiction character guide

> Mr. Clarke in Short Fiction by Arthur Machen.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Clarke

**First appearance:** 0000-the-great-god-pan

## Snapshot

A cautious bachelor who witnessed Dr. Raymond's experiment with the god Pan, and who now hoards morbid documents in a Japanese bureau like a boy before a jam-closet.

## Who they are

Clarke's character is an odd mingling of caution and curiosity: he repudiates the occult in his sober hours, yet pines for the unseen and secretly compiles his Memoirs to Prove the Existence of the Devil. The horrors of Raymond's laboratory left him clinging to the commonplace for years, but the old passion reasserts itself, and on a foggy December night he cannot resist the bureau. His letter of warning to Villiers reveals a man who has peered over an abyss and drawn back in terror.

## In the story

### [The Great God Pan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/chapters/the-great-god-pan)

Compiles the memoirs of the events and assists Villiers in the investigation.

### [The Experiment](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/chapters/i-the-experiment)

Witness to the experiment; troubled by Mary's fate.

### [II: Mr. Clarke's Memoirs](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/chapters/ii-mr-clarke-s-memoirs)

The compiler of the memoirs, who witnesses Raymond's experiment and now indulges his secret fascination with the occult by recording tales of the devil.

### [IV: The Discovery in Paul Street](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/chapters/iv-the-discovery-in-paul-street)

Clarke is visited by Villiers and hears the story of Herbert and Helen Vaughan. He is deeply disturbed upon recognizing the sketch of Helen as resembling Mary from his past.

### [The Letter of Advice](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/chapters/v-the-letter-of-advice)

Clarke wrote a letter to Villiers advising him to forget the matter, hinting at hidden horrors.

### [VII: The Encounter in Soho](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/chapters/vii-the-encounter-in-soho)

Villiers intends to involve him in confronting Mrs. Beaumont, believing Clarke possesses key facts about her.

### [The Fragments](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/chapters/viii-the-fragments)

Narrates the final revelations and describes his journey to Caermaen to uncover the truth.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/characters/clarke
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_6_se/characters