# Silfax — The Child of the Cavern character guide

> Silfax in The Child of the Cavern by Jules Verne.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** old Silfax, Old Silfax

**First appearance:** 0015-xvi-a-final-threat

## Snapshot

A ferocious old hermit haunting the deepest galleries of the mine, he guards his granddaughter Nell with jealous silence and swears death on any who encroach on his buried kingdom.

## Who they are

Silfax lives alone in caverns known only to himself, feeding the child he keeps from the world and brooding over the miners who have claimed the old Aberfoyle workings. He cannot bear noise or cheerfulness, and his rage flares whenever the Fords and James Starr push toward the new mine he considers his own. His astonishing strength and threats make him a lurking menace, while his strange tenderness toward Nell binds her to him even as she dreads him.

## Relationships

### [Nell](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/nell)

_family_

Silfax is Nell's grandfather, a reclusive and dangerous old man who raised her in the cavern.

### [Harry Ford](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/harry_ford)

_rivalry_

Harry is Silfax's enemy, as Silfax opposes Harry's relationship with Nell and threatens the mine.

### [James Starr](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/james_starr)

_rivalry_

James Starr is a target of Silfax's wrath, as Silfax sabotages the mine to drive out intruders.

### [Jack Ryan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/jack_ryan)

_rivalry_

Jack Ryan is terrified of Silfax and opposes his destructive actions in the mine.

### [James Starr](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/james_starr)

_rivalry_

James Starr is a target of Silfax's wrath, as Silfax sabotages the mine to drive out intruders.

### [Harry Ford](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/harry_ford)

_rivalry_

Harry is Silfax's enemy, as Silfax opposes Harry's relationship with Nell and threatens the mine.

### [Nell](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/nell)

_family_

Silfax is Nell's grandfather, a reclusive and dangerous old man who raised her in the cavern.

### [Harry Ford](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/harry_ford)

_rivalry_

Harry is Silfax's enemy, as Silfax opposes Harry's relationship with Nell and threatens the mine.

### [Nell](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/nell)

_family_

Silfax is Nell's grandfather, a reclusive and dangerous old man who raised her in the cavern.

## In the story

### [The “Monk”](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/chapters/xvii-the-monk)

Revealed as the old 'monk' and Nell's grandfather; his madness and threats drive the chapter's conflict.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters/silfax
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_child_of_the_cavern_se/characters