# Percy Gryce — The House of Mirth character guide

> Percy Gryce in The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Mr. Percy Gryce, Mr. Gryce, Gryce, Percy

**First appearance:** 0002-ii

## Snapshot

Immensely rich, profoundly dull, and paralyzed by his own decorum, Percy Gryce is the marriage market's great prize and its most tedious prospect.

## Who they are

Gryce arrives at Bellomont trailing Americana collections and a horror of impropriety, exactly the kind of heavy, passive fortune Lily has been trained to pursue. His shyness makes him manageable and his wealth makes him worth managing, but his conventional sensibilities are a trap as much as a target. He matters because the campaign to secure him forces Lily to weigh what she wants against what she is willing to perform.

## Relationships

### [Lily Bart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/characters/lily_bart)

_romantic_

A calculated courtship by Lily to secure a wealthy marriage, which fails due to her inability to maintain the required facade.

### [Bertha Dorset](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/characters/bertha_dorset)

_social_

A manipulative social interaction where Bertha deliberately steals Percy's attention from Lily to ruin her prospects.

### [Bertha Dorset](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/characters/bertha_dorset)

_social_

A manipulative social interaction where Bertha deliberately steals Percy's attention from Lily to ruin her prospects.

### [Lily Bart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/characters/lily_bart)

_romantic_

A calculated courtship by Lily to secure a wealthy marriage, which fails due to her inability to maintain the required facade.

### [Lily Bart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/characters/lily_bart)

_romantic_

A calculated courtship by Lily to secure a wealthy marriage, which fails due to her inability to maintain the required facade.

## In the story

### [Book I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/chapters/book-i)

A wealthy but dull young man whom Lily considers as a marriage prospect due to his fortune and social standing.

### [Chapter II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/chapters/ii)

Travels with Lily to Bellomont; she successfully engages him by discussing his collection of Americana.

### [Chapter IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/chapters/iv)

Percy Gryce is the object of Lily's matrimonial plans; he is shy, easily shocked, and wealthy, with a passion for Americana.

### [Chapter V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/chapters/v)

Mentioned as Lily's intended marriage prospect; his crestfallen face is noted when she misses the church omnibus.

### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/chapters/vi)

Percy Gryce is mentioned as Lily's suitor whom she has stood up for the walk. He is described as departing in a motorcar, resembling a 'baffled beetle,' and is concerned about Lily's health and its implications for future progeny.

### [Chapter VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/chapters/viii)

Seen at the wedding; Lily considers him a target for recapture.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/characters/percy_gryce
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_house_of_mirth_se/characters