While the Billy Boils · Character

Steelman

A velvet-tongued trickster who stages his partner Smith as a dying consumptive to milk sympathy from strangers, then scolds him for being a mug.

major

Also known as The Great Steelman, Steelman Steelman

First appearance: Steelman

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Steelman divides the world into 'spielers and mugs,' and he is emphatically the former, using greasepaint, borrowed rags, and a carefully rehearsed Aberdeen backstory to transform Smith into a convincing death's-door beggar. He is by turns cruelly exacting and theatrically tender, dressing Smith down for his stupidity even as he engineers every detail of the performance. His elaborate deceptions expose the thin line between bush hospitality and the predatory ingenuity of those who live by their wits.

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Character Web

10 connections

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Relationship types

Psychological
Friendship
Other

Character groups

Recurring Bush Archetypes
Protagonist
Comic Bush Neighbors
Minor and Named Bush Characters

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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 story's dramatic climax because it presents the emotional and psychological nadir of the outcasts'…

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Relationships

The Narrator
psychological · negative
Jim Brown
friendship · ambivalent
The Narrator
psychological · negative
The Narrator
psychological · negative
Jim Brown
friendship · ambivalent
Jim Brown
friendship · ambivalent

The Narrator
Steelman is a cunning conman and manipulator who frequently uses the narrator as a dupe or accomplice in his schemes.
Jim Brown
Jim Brown is Steelman's gullible but loyal mate, often the target of Steelman's tricks but remaining a companion.
The Narrator
Steelman is a cunning conman and manipulator who frequently uses the narrator as a dupe or accomplice in his schemes.
The Narrator
Steelman is a cunning conman and manipulator who frequently uses the narrator as a dupe or accomplice in his schemes.
Jim Brown
Jim Brown is Steelman's gullible but loyal mate, often the target of Steelman's tricks but remaining a companion.
Jim Brown
Jim Brown is Steelman's gullible but loyal mate, often the target of Steelman's tricks but remaining a companion.

Relationship notes

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In the story

Steelman appears across 5 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

While the Billy Boils
Featured in stories about his schemes and impositions, such as imposing on old schoolmate Brown.
Steelman
The central figure, a hard case who imposes himself on old friends and refuses to leave.
Steelman's Pupil
The spieler and teacher who tries to educate Smith in the ways of cadging and survival.
Coming Across—A Study in the Steerage
Implied as the commercial traveller who makes remarks about wrecks and heroics, and participates in the late-night gathering.
The Geological Spieler
Disguises himself as a geologist, Mr. Stoneleigh, to deceive the railway workers and gain free lodging.

Chapter companion notes

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