The Works of Max Beerbohm · Character

Mr. Brummell

The Beau who made simplicity the highest extravagance, ruling Regency fashion from a dressing-room he treated as a studio.

major

Also known as Even Mr. Brummell, Brummell

First appearance: Dandies and Dandies

As a major figure in The Works of Max Beerbohm, Mr. Brummell is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Praised as the 'Father of Modern Costume' whose precepts of quiet, reasonable, and beautiful dress still dominate fashion.

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Brummell is the book's central artist, a man whose medium was dark cloth, perfect linen, and the symmetry of glove with hand. He is economical, scrupulous, and utterly without personality outside his art, which is precisely what makes him fascinating to Beerbohm. His rise and eventual flight from England after losing his figure give the collection its spine: a study of how style can be a whole life, and what happens when the life outlives the style.

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Character Web

9 connections

A slice of how Mr. Brummell sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Professional
Friendship
Other

Character groups

Dandy Archetypes and Publishers
Protagonist
Romance, Eccentricity, and Social Climbing

+4 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This is the dramatic climax because the narrator’s long-held, idealized image of Walter Pater as a sublime sty…

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Relationships

John Lane
professional · positive
John Lane was a publisher who worked with Mr. How this plays out →
King George IV
friendship · ambivalent

Relationship notes

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In the story

Mr. Brummell appears across 4 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Dandies and Dandies
Praised as the 'Father of Modern Costume' whose precepts of quiet, reasonable, and beautiful dress still dominate fashion.
A Good Prince
Mentioned indirectly in the context of dandyism and princely conduct.
King George the Fourth
Mentioned in passing as a figure of dandyism, though not directly involved in the chapter's narrative.
Poor Romeo!
Mentioned as a paragon of dandyism, whose foibles Coates parodies.

Chapter companion notes

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