# Roscoe Sheridan — The Turmoil character guide > Roscoe Sheridan in The Turmoil by Booth Tarkington. **Role:** supporting **Also known as:** Mrs. Sheridan, Mrs. Roscoe Sheridan, young Mrs. Sheridan, mother Sheridan, Poor Roscoe, Honest Roscoe, Old Roscoe **First appearance:** 0002-i ## Snapshot The steady elder Sheridan son, dependable as an old wheel-horse, who begins to buckle under his father's expectations and his own unraveling marriage. ## Who they are Roscoe is the son Sheridan counts on now that Jim is gone, the one who shows up and does the work—until his father finds him slumped in his office, bloodshot and incoherent, refusing to say a word about the young Lamhorn. His collapse is a quiet catastrophe: the dependable one coming apart while the family's attention is elsewhere. He matters because his fracture exposes how much of the Sheridan edifice rests on men who cannot afford to feel anything. ## Relationships ### [Sibyl Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/sibyl_sheridan) _family_ Roscoe and his wife Sibyl have a troubled marriage, strained by Roscoe's ambition and emotional neglect. ### [Edith Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/edith_sheridan) _family_ Edith and her brother Roscoe have a cordial but distant sibling relationship, with Edith often mediating family tensions. ### [James Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/james_sheridan) _family_ James and his son Roscoe share a pragmatic, business-oriented relationship, with James favoring Roscoe's ambition. ### [Mary Vertrees](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/mary_vertrees) _rivalry_ Mary and Roscoe are antagonistic, as Roscoe resents her relationship with Bibbs and her influence on the family. ### [Robert Lamhorn](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/robert_lamhorn) _professional_ Robert Lamhorn and Roscoe Sheridan are business associates, with Lamhorn working under Roscoe's influence. ### [Sibyl Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/sibyl_sheridan) _family_ Roscoe and his wife Sibyl have a troubled marriage, strained by Roscoe's ambition and emotional neglect. ### [Edith Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/edith_sheridan) _family_ Edith and her brother Roscoe have a cordial but distant sibling relationship, with Edith often mediating family tensions. ### [Mary Vertrees](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/mary_vertrees) _rivalry_ Mary and Roscoe are antagonistic, as Roscoe resents her relationship with Bibbs and her influence on the family. ### [Edith Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/edith_sheridan) _family_ Edith and her brother Roscoe have a cordial but distant sibling relationship, with Edith often mediating family tensions. ### [James Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/james_sheridan) _family_ James and his son Roscoe share a pragmatic, business-oriented relationship, with James favoring Roscoe's ambition. ### [Sibyl Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/sibyl_sheridan) _family_ Roscoe and his wife Sibyl have a troubled marriage, strained by Roscoe's ambition and emotional neglect. ### [James Sheridan](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/james_sheridan) _family_ James and his son Roscoe share a pragmatic, business-oriented relationship, with James favoring Roscoe's ambition. ## In the story ### [The Turmoil](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/the-turmoil) Bibbs's brother, involved in the family business and conforming to their father's expectations. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/ii) Mentioned as a successful son, married and ready to build his own house, held up by his father as a model of hard work and business acumen. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/iii) Mentioned as Sibyl's husband, who built a house across the street and is described by Edith as too lenient with Sibyl. ### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/v) Mentioned as the middle son, married, and owner of the new house across the street where Robert Lamhorn visits. ### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/vi) Sits next to Mary Vertrees, is taken aback by her flirtation, and is described as a literal, steady young businessman. ### [Chapter IX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/ix) Mentioned by Sheridan as an example of a son who is industrious and successful in business. ### [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xii) Roscoe is dazed and shirks funeral responsibilities, justifying his inexperience. He follows Bibbs's directions. ### [XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xvii) Listens to Sibyl's mockery of the Vertrees family, expresses grim sympathy, and attempts to discuss Robert Lamhorn with Sibyl. ### [Chapter XVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xviii) Found drunk in his office by his father, who helps him home. ### [Chapter XX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xx) Revealed to be drinking heavily and neglecting his work; Sheridan confronts him and arranges a family dinner to discuss the issue. ### [Chapter XXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxi) Looks ill at dinner; eats nothing and avoids looking at his father. ### [XXII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxii) Mentioned briefly: an automobile is parked at the curb before Roscoe's house, though Bibbs does not recognize it. ### [XXIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxiii) Broken by overwork and domestic trouble, he refuses his father's demand to return to business. ### [XXVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxvi) Present in the scene, tearfully obeying Sheridan's commands and witnessing the confrontation. ### [XXVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxvii) Arrives with Sibyl at the New House, crossing the street without acknowledging Mary and Bibbs. ### [Chapter XXVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxviii) Present during Sibyl's apology and revelations; moves to a chair in the library, remaining silent. ### [Chapter XXX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxx) Remembers seeing Mary mail a letter the afternoon Jim was hurt. ### [XXXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxxi) Mentioned as having once said that Mary Vertrees turned Sibyl out of the house. ### [XXXII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/chapters/xxxii) Referenced as the older son whom Mary had previously tried to attract due to her family's poverty. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters/roscoe_sheridan - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_turmoil_se/characters