# Captain Alvarado — The Bridge of San Luis Rey character guide

> Captain Alvarado in The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** the Captain, the Captain Alvarado

**First appearance:** 0004-part-three-esteban

## Snapshot

A weathered sea captain who hires the twin brothers Manuel and Esteban as scribes, then finds himself drawn into the grief that follows their separation.

## Who they are

Captain Alvarado belongs to the practical world of ships and ledgers, a man accustomed to hiring hands and moving on. When he takes on the inseparable twins, he becomes an unwitting witness to a bond so total that it unsettles him, and his blunt kindness cannot quite reach Esteban's despair. His presence gives the novel its sharpest image of ordinary life pressing against extraordinary devotion, and his offer of a voyage becomes a test of whether Esteban can survive alone.

## Relationships

### [Esteban](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/characters/esteban)

_friendship_

Captain Alvarado befriends the grieving Esteban, offering him a job and companionship at sea to help him recover from Manuel's death.

### [The Abbess](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/characters/the_abbess)

_friendship_

Captain Alvarado and the Abbess share a mutual respect and collaborate in helping the poor and orphaned of Lima.

### [Esteban](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/characters/esteban)

_friendship_

Captain Alvarado befriends the grieving Esteban, offering him a job and companionship at sea to help him recover from Manuel's death.

### [Esteban](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/characters/esteban)

_friendship_

Captain Alvarado befriends the grieving Esteban, offering him a job and companionship at sea to help him recover from Manuel's death.

### [The Abbess](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/characters/the_abbess)

_friendship_

Captain Alvarado and the Abbess share a mutual respect and collaborate in helping the poor and orphaned of Lima.

### [The Abbess](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/characters/the_abbess)

_friendship_

Captain Alvarado and the Abbess share a mutual respect and collaborate in helping the poor and orphaned of Lima.

## In the story

### [Part Five: Perhaps an Intention](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/chapters/part-five-perhaps-an-intention)

Briefly enters the cathedral, finds the service false, and goes to the sea, speaking to Esteban about the drowned.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/characters/captain_alvarado
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_bridge_of_san_luis_rey_se/characters