# Phaidor — The Gods of Mars character guide

> Phaidor in The Gods of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs.

**Role:** supporting

**First appearance:** 0008-vii-a-fair-goddess

## Snapshot

Daughter of the Holy Thern Matai Shang, she fixates on John Carter with a jealousy that turns worship into something far more dangerous.

## Who they are

Phaidor moves through the sacred precincts of the Therns as both devotee and captive of her father's cold authority. Her obsession with John Carter is not simple romance but a possessive fury that makes her an unpredictable force inside the enemy's own household. She matters because her divided loyalties and volcanic temper can either expose the Therns' secrets or destroy the very man she claims to love.

## Relationships

### [Issus](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/characters/issus)

_psychological_

Issus manipulates and controls Phaidor, using her as a tool in her schemes.

### [Issus](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/characters/issus)

_psychological_

Issus manipulates and controls Phaidor, using her as a tool in her schemes.

## In the story

### [A Fair Goddess](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/chapters/vii-a-fair-goddess)

Daughter of Matai Shang, initially bound on the deck; freed by John Carter, she shows a cruel streak and aids him against the pirates.

### [The Depths of Omean](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/chapters/viii-the-depths-of-omean)

Phaidor, daughter of Matai Shang, is confronted with the possibility that her people's beliefs are false, and she grows fearful and dependent on John Carter.

### [IX: Issus, Goddess of Life Eternal](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/chapters/ix-issus-goddess-of-life-eternal)

Confesses love to John Carter, is rejected, and vows revenge against him and Dejah Thoris.

### [When Hell Broke Loose](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/chapters/xi-when-hell-broke-loose)

Daughter of Matai Shang, she saves John Carter from a blow and urges him to flee to the Holy Therns.

### [Victory and Defeat](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/chapters/xxii-victory-and-defeat)

Also imprisoned in the Temple of the Sun, she speaks to John Carter as the chamber revolves.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/characters/phaidor
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_gods_of_mars_se/characters