# The Man — The Mother character guide

> The Man in The Mother by Pearl S. Buck.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** the man, yourself, myself, your

**First appearance:** 0000-i

## Who they are

An agent who waives his fee and lingers in a neighbor's dooryard, his false cheer masking the eyes that slide toward a woman across the way.

## Relationships

### [The Mother](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/the_mother)

_psychological_

A deeply obsessive and controlling bond, where The Man exerts psychological dominance over The Mother, who is both victim and reluctant participant.

### [Child](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/child)

_family_

A fearful and submissive relationship, where the child is caught between loyalty to the mother and intimidation by the man.

### [Cousin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/cousin)

_rivalry_

An antagonistic relationship fueled by jealousy and competition for influence over the mother.

### [The Young Girl](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/the_young_girl)

_psychological_

A predatory and obsessive fixation, with the man viewing the young girl as an object of control and desire.

### [The Elder Son](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/the_elder_son)

_rivalry_

A hostile power struggle, with the elder son challenging the man's authority and influence over the household.

### [Li The First](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/li_the_first)

_rivalry_

A bitter enmity rooted in romantic jealousy and conflicting claims over the mother.

### [Some Stranger](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/some_stranger)

_social_

A fleeting and transactional acquaintance, often involving the stranger as a witness or pawn in the man's schemes.

### [The Mother](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/the_mother)

_psychological_

A deeply obsessive and controlling bond, where The Man exerts psychological dominance over The Mother, who is both victim and reluctant participant.

### [The Mother](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/the_mother)

_psychological_

A deeply obsessive and controlling bond, where The Man exerts psychological dominance over The Mother, who is both victim and reluctant participant.

### [Cousin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/cousin)

_rivalry_

An antagonistic relationship fueled by jealousy and competition for influence over the mother.

### [Child](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/child)

_family_

A fearful and submissive relationship, where the child is caught between loyalty to the mother and intimidation by the man.

### [Li The First](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/li_the_first)

_rivalry_

A bitter enmity rooted in romantic jealousy and conflicting claims over the mother.

## In the story

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

The mother's husband, who quarrels with her about her frequent nursing and the division of labor, reflecting the tension of their shared poverty.

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

Wakes grumpy, dismisses the need for medicine for the girl's eyes, and goes to the field with his hoe.

### [The Man's Restlessness and the Quarrel](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/chapters/iv)

Restless and dissatisfied, he dreams of joy and adventure, resents his wife, and buys a blue robe from a pedlar.

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

Absent throughout the chapter; the mother waits for him, counts the days until his money runs out, and eventually cuts down his coat for the boy.

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

Recalled as the mother's husband, who was never enough for her in himself; she needed to conceive a child to feel complete.

### [IX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/chapters/ix)

Absent husband; his blue robe is a symbol of longing and anger.

### [The Heat of Desire](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/chapters/x)

The landlord's agent who deliberately seeks out the mother and leads her to the shrine.

### [The Unyielding Seed](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/chapters/xi)

The townsman who seduced her; he avoids her, pays her off with trinkets, and cruelly rejects her when she seeks him out.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters/the_man
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mother_se/characters