# William Miller — The End of the World character guide

> William Miller in The End of the World by Geoffrey Dennis.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** William

**First appearance:** 0000-how

## Snapshot

The American preacher whose 1843–44 reckoning drew thousands to rooftops and hillsides, certain the world's clock had finally run out.

## Who they are

Miller belongs to the long procession of date-setters Dennis chronicles, the Protestant heirs of a numerological game that passed from the Rabbis and the Sibylline Leaves into eager new hands. His failed prediction is one more entry in the ledger of avoided disasters that shook the Church and then, oddly, left it standing. He matters because his earnest miscalculation shows how the machinery of apocalypse keeps running even after the appointed hour passes without incident.

## Relationships

### [Daniel](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se/characters/daniel)

_psychological_

Daniel's biblical prophecies are obsessively interpreted by William Miller as the key to calculating the end of the world.

### [Elder Joshua](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se/characters/elder_joshua)

_friendship_

Elder Joshua is a supporter and fellow believer who aids William Miller in spreading his apocalyptic message.

### [Jesus Christ](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se/characters/jesus_christ)

_psychological_

Jesus Christ is the central object of William Miller's prophetic calculations and religious obsession.

### [Crazy Amos](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se/characters/crazy_amos)

_social_

Crazy Amos is a fellow apocalyptic figure who shares the stage with William Miller in the end-times narrative.

## In the story

### [This Year](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se/chapters/this-year)

His prediction for a specific year failed, leading to his death brokenhearted.

### [Next Year](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se/chapters/next-year)

Not directly mentioned in excerpts, but Adventist denominations in America are referenced as avoiding fixed dates.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se/characters/william_miller
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_end_of_the_world_se/characters