# Mr. Kear — The Survivors of the Chancellor character guide

> Mr. Kear in The Survivors of the Chancellor by Jules Verne.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Mr. and Mrs. Kear, Kear

**First appearance:** 0001-ii

## Snapshot

A wealthy American passenger who hoards his valuables below deck while his ailing wife suffers above, treating the ship's crisis as an inconvenience to his property.

## Who they are

Kear belongs to the Chancellor's first-class passengers, a man of means whose instinct in danger is to retreat to his cabin and pack his cherished possessions rather than face the deck. His cold neglect of Mrs. Kear, whose complaints he dismisses even as her condition grows genuinely pitiable, exposes a selfishness that contrasts sharply with Miss Herbey's tireless care. As the voyage darkens, his refusal to engage with anyone or anything beyond his own interests marks him as the kind of passenger whose wealth buys nothing when the sea turns hostile.

## In the story

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

A wealthy American petroleum merchant, vain and conceited, who struts about with a sense of his own importance.

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

Mr. Kear complains about the voyage's length and holds the captain responsible for the delay.

### [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_survivors_of_the_chancellor_se/chapters/xii)

Retires to his cabin to pack his cherished articles, ignoring his wife's pitiable condition.

### [XVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_survivors_of_the_chancellor_se/chapters/xvi)

Complains impatiently to Curtis about the delay, demanding the ship set sail again.

### [XXVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_survivors_of_the_chancellor_se/chapters/xxvi)

Negotiates with sailors Burke and Sandon to help him down from the foretop, paying them a large sum; shows no concern for his wife's condition.

### [XXVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_survivors_of_the_chancellor_se/chapters/xxvii)

Deserts the ship with Captain Huntly and three sailors, stealing the whaleboat.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_survivors_of_the_chancellor_se/characters/mr_kear
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_survivors_of_the_chancellor_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_survivors_of_the_chancellor_se/characters