# Rue Barrée — The King in Yellow character guide

> Rue Barrée in The King in Yellow by Robert W. Chambers.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Rue

**First appearance:** 0044-rue-barr-e

## Snapshot

A woman of the Latin Quarter with a chilling smile and a taste for pansies, Rue Barrée deflects suitors with the same cool grace she refuses flowers.

## Who they are

Rue Barrée is the elusive object of Clifford's, Elliott's, and Rowden's thwarted affections, a woman whose heart of ice they describe with rueful admiration. She buys pansies every spring but shakes her head at roses, and her trembling voice at the flower market hints at feeling beneath the chill. Selby, newly curious, watches her across the marble bridge, and her refusal to be won is the quiet engine of the story's longing.

## Relationships

### [Clifford](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_king_in_yellow_se/characters/clifford)

_social_

Clifford is a regular at Rue Barrée, a café and social hub where he interacts with the bohemian crowd.

### [Clifford](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_king_in_yellow_se/characters/clifford)

_social_

Clifford is a regular at Rue Barrée, a café and social hub where he interacts with the bohemian crowd.

### [Clifford](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_king_in_yellow_se/characters/clifford)

_social_

Clifford is a regular at Rue Barrée, a café and social hub where he interacts with the bohemian crowd.

## In the story

### [The Street of the First Shell](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_king_in_yellow_se/chapters/the-street-of-the-first-shell)

Seen by Selby at the flower market, a figure of calm in the chaos.

### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_king_in_yellow_se/chapters/i)

Mysterious girl with violet eyes, known only by the street name; she blushes at Selby.

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

Attempts to buy a rosebush but cannot afford it; buys pansies instead.

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

Appears in the Luxembourg Gardens; initially dismissive of Clifford but secretly delighted; ultimately rejects his marriage proposal.

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

The object of Selby's obsession; she silently receives him in her white room and later gives him a rose.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_king_in_yellow_se/characters/rue_barree
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_king_in_yellow_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_king_in_yellow_se/characters