# The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia — Character guide

> Key figures in The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia by Samuel Johnson.

- [Rasselas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/rasselas.md): Fourth son of the mighty Emperor of Abyssinia, Rasselas is raised in the Happy Valley, a walled garden of perpetual delight where no want goes unanswered and no danger intrudes. That very perfection breeds a restless mel
- [Imlac](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/imlac.md): Imlac arrives in the Happy Valley as a traveler permitted to stay, bringing with him memory of courts, commerce, and disappointment the sheltered royals have never known. He is by turns mentor and skeptic, urging Rassela
- [Nekayah](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/nekayah.md): A princess raised in the same gilded confinement as her brother, Nekayah is less dazzled by the world and more exacting about it, pressing everyone she meets for the truth about domestic happiness. Her inquiries into mar
- [Pekuah](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/pekuah.md): Pekuah is the princess's closest companion, a lady whose wit and loyalty make her more confidante than servant. When she is seized during a visit to the pyramids, her absence forces Nekayah and the others to confront gri
- [The Astronomer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/the_astronomer.md): The astronomer is a man of genuine learning whose long isolation has bred a delusion of cosmic power: he believes the sun and moon obey his commands and that the world's order depends on his vigilance. His affliction is 
- [The Hermit](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/the_hermit.md): A solitary man who lived in the desert and later returns to society.
- [The Bassa](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/the_bassa.md): A Turkish governor who captures Pekuah and holds her in his seraglio.
- [The Old Man](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/the_old_man.md): An aged philosopher who discourses on the vanity of human wishes.
- [The Princess](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_history_of_rasselas_prince_of_abyssinia_se/characters/the_princess.md): A title often referring to Nekayah, but also used generically.

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