# George Pontifex — The Way of All Flesh character guide > George Pontifex in The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler. **Role:** supporting **Also known as:** Pontifex, Mr. Pontifex, old Mr. Pontifex, George, little George **First appearance:** 0004-ii ## Snapshot Ernest's grandfather, a prosperous old man whose benevolence is as carefully fed as his organ, and whose temper flares over lobster sauce. ## Who they are George Pontifex presides over Paleham as a minor deity, dispensing penny loaves at funerals and roaring genially at meek relatives who are willing to be eaten. His grandchildren enjoy liberties his own children never had, provided they wipe their shoes and leave his organ pipes alone. His sudden crimson flush at the dinner table hints at the irritability beneath the star-of-Bethlehem benevolence, the family weather Ernest will inherit. ## Relationships ### [Ernest Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/ernest_pontifex) _family_ Ernest's stern and successful grandfather, whose harshness and materialism set the family's oppressive pattern. ### [Theobald Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/theobald_pontifex) _family_ Father and son, with George imposing a harsh, unfeeling upbringing that Theobald later replicates with his own children. ### [Christina Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/christina_pontifex) _family_ Daughter-in-law and father-in-law, with Christina deferring to George's authority while resenting his coldness. ### [Ernest Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/ernest_pontifex) _family_ Ernest's stern and successful grandfather, whose harshness and materialism set the family's oppressive pattern. ### [Ernest Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/ernest_pontifex) _family_ Ernest's stern and successful grandfather, whose harshness and materialism set the family's oppressive pattern. ### [Theobald Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/theobald_pontifex) _family_ Father and son, with George imposing a harsh, unfeeling upbringing that Theobald later replicates with his own children. ### [Theobald Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/theobald_pontifex) _family_ Father and son, with George imposing a harsh, unfeeling upbringing that Theobald later replicates with his own children. ### [Christina Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/christina_pontifex) _family_ Daughter-in-law and father-in-law, with Christina deferring to George's authority while resenting his coldness. ## In the story ### [The Way of All Flesh](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/the-way-of-all-flesh) Portrayed as a stern and domineering father who imposes harsh discipline on his son Theobald. ### [Chapter I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/i) Mentioned as the successful son of old Mr. Pontifex, contrasted unfavorably by the narrator's father. ### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/ii) The central figure of the chapter; his birth, childhood, and early career are described, showing his intelligence, ambition, and rise in the publishing business. ### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/iii) Mentioned as the only son who erected the monument to his parents. ### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/iv) His diary of a European tour is quoted at length, showing his conventional and pretentious admiration for art and nature. ### [Chapter V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/v) Portrayed as a stern father who thrashes his children regularly, yet is successful in business and accumulates great wealth; his relationship with his money is contrasted with his relationship with his children. ### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/vi) The chapter centers on Mr. Pontifex's tyrannical parenting, his liver-induced bad moods, and his habit of threatening his sons with disinheritance and apprenticeships to greengrocers. ### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/vii) George Pontifex, the father, exerts strong pressure on Theobald while publicly professing to give him freedom, using threats and manipulation to ensure compliance. ### [Chapter VIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/viii) Responds harshly to Theobald's doubts, threatens to cut off funds, and insists on ordination. ### [IX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/ix) Mentioned as the father of Theobald, a publisher, indicating the family's comfortable social standing. ### [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/xii) Theobald's father, who writes a stern letter opposing the marriage due to financial concerns, revealing his controlling and unsympathetic nature. ### [XIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/xiv) Mentioned as the distinguished publisher and father of Theobald, whose reputation enhances the family's standing in the neighbourhood. ### [XVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/xvi) Mentioned as having used his interest to get Theobald mentioned in the Saturday Magazine for finding a plant. ### [XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/xvii) Old Mr. Pontifex, delighted at the birth of a grandson, prepares to visit Battersby and accidentally spills the baptismal water from the Jordan. ### [Chapter XVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/xviii) Writes a cordial letter, brings Jordan water for the christening, insists on the name Ernest, and loses his temper over the lobster sauce. ### [XIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/xix) Subject of the chapter's moral evaluation; his long, prosperous life and transmission of wealth and traits to his offspring are discussed. ### [Chapter XXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/xxi) Recently deceased; his will includes a bequest to Ernest, which Theobald and Christina view as a misfortune. ### [Chapter XXXVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/xxxvi) Mentioned as old Mr. Pontifex; his cottage site is now a railway station. ### [LXIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lxiii) George Pontifex is recalled as Theobald's harsh father, part of the ancestral chain of cruelty. ### [LXXIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lxxix) Mentioned as Ernest's grandfather, whose parenting Ernest fears repeating. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/george_pontifex - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters