# Lady Alice — The Portent character guide > Lady Alice in The Portent by George MacDonald. **Role:** major **Also known as:** Elsie, V Lady Alice, Alice, Dear Alice **First appearance:** 0006-v-lady-alice ## Snapshot A guarded young heiress dismissed as dull by her stepmother's household, whose hidden depths and strange sleepwalking draw the narrator into a bond beyond ordinary love. ## Who they are Lady Alice lives at Hilton Hall under the thumb of Lady Hilton, who has kept her ignorant and isolated to serve her own purposes. Beneath the dull exterior is a soul of startling insight, awakened by the narrator's teaching and by something stranger still — she wakes in his presence without knowing how she came. Her quiet decision to leave with him, and her willingness to trust a bond she cannot explain, make her the story's emotional center. ## Relationships ### [Mrs. Blakesley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/characters/mrs_blakesley) _social_ Lady Alice and Mrs. Blakesley have a polite acquaintance, often exchanging pleasantries in the narrator's home. ## In the story ### [The Portent](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/the-portent) The object of Duncan's love and a key figure in the supernatural events. ### [V: Lady Alice](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/v-lady-alice) Introduced as a mysterious, isolated young woman with unusual remarks and a distant manner; she repels the narrator's attention. ### [VI: My Quarters](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/vi-my-quarters) Becomes a regular pupil of the narrator, though she takes no notice of him outside lessons. ### [The Library](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/vii-the-library) Appears at the library door with an inexplicable expression, then vanishes, showing signs of fear. ### [VIII: The Somnambulist](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/viii-the-somnambulist) Found as a somnambulist in the corridor, she falls with a wild cry and faints, cold and motionless. ### [The First Waking](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/ix-the-first-waking) Awakens from her sleepwalking, initially angry and ashamed, but gradually trusts Duncan and asks him to take her back to her room. ### [X: Love and Power](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/x-love-and-power) Appears in her sleepwalking state, then falls ill, and later returns as a distant, automatical version of herself. ### [A New Pupil](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xi-a-new-pupil) Becomes a pupil, shows improvement, but is interrupted by Lady Hilton. ### [Confession](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xii-confession) She sleepwalks and sings, revealing her inner self, and finally confesses her love, breaking the previous promise. ### [XIII: Questioning](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xiii-questioning) Returns to Duncan after a week, revealing her true feelings and her belief that she is his. She argues that Lord Hilton and her stepmother have wronged her, and that Duncan is obligated to stay. ### [XIV: Jealousy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xiv-jealousy) Returns after seven days, reassures Duncan of her fidelity, and explains that her initial pride was due to a strange attraction she felt for him from their first meeting. ### [XV: The Chamber of Ghosts](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xv-the-chamber-of-ghosts) Alice returns to her routine but shows signs of inner life. She summons Duncan to the haunted chamber, revealing her newfound power of will, and expresses her love and desire to meet there regularly. ### [The Clanking Shoe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xvi-the-clanking-shoe) Shows understanding of the poem, agrees to elope, reveals her birth month matches the date on the paper. ### [XVII: The Physician](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xvii-the-physician) The woman Duncan loves, whose fate is uncertain; he fears her mind has given way. ### [Chapter XX: Margaret](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xx-margaret) The object of Duncan's search; Margaret's vision reveals her location, possibly at Hilton Hall. ### [XXI: Hilton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxi-hilton) Reported to be at the Hall, completely mad but quiet and gentle, like an angel. ### [XXII: The Sleeper](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxii-the-sleeper) Sleeps most of the time; murmurs Duncan's name in her sleep, showing a lingering connection. ### [XXIII: My Old Room](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxiii-my-old-room) Sleepwalks into Duncan's room, appearing unchanged and believing it is still the time of their earlier meetings. She is unaware of the years that have passed and shows no signs of suffering. ### [XXIV: Prison-Breaking](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxiv-prison-breaking) Confused and sleepy, she shares a dream with Duncan and expresses fear of losing him. ### [New Entrenchments](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxv-new-entrenchments) Shows signs of recovery, learning to read again and remembering things with Duncan's help, while still moving in a somnambulic state. ### [Escape](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxvi-escape) Prepares for flight, retains her ring and money, and shows courage during the escape. ### [XXVII: Freedom](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/chapters/xxvii-freedom) Becomes the narrator's pupil again; her character flourishes with love. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/characters/lady_alice - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_portent_se/characters