Character Clues

Character Analysis

Social Status

Sometimes it seems like the 1% have taken over the whole Udolpho universe. Not so, Shmoopers. First of all, Em has a rapid fall from the top when Dad loses all his moolah: "My income, you know, was never very large" he tells his only daughter, "and now it will be reduced to little indeed!" (1.6.14). Sure, the St. Auberts have been getting by while living at their mammoth chateau, but there's a huge difference between them and, say, Count de Villeforte's family.

And while Blanche and Emily are best buds, Count de Villeforte wants Em to know that her position is a little more perilous. She can't go marrying Valancourt, a ruined man, while her net worth is nada. Money is the thing that everyone whispers about throughout the book, and Em's rakin' in the dough by the end.

Family Life

At the beginning of the book, Em's a member of a classic sixteenth-century nuclear family. Yeah, that gets blown to shreds by the end of the first chapter. Family is of utmost importance in The Mysteries of Udolpho, but most of the characters see it as a means to an end—that is, more money and increased social status. Not Em. She's all about choosing her own family, and that family is Valancourt.

Madame Cheron, on the other hand, doesn't care much for Em's romantic vision of family. "From this hour you must consider the Signor Montoni your uncle—we were married this morning," Madame Cheron tells Em abruptly (1.13.3). It's just a business transaction to her, or a way to gain more financial stability. That's why the betrayal cuts so deep when she finds out Montoni bamboozled her into thinking he was wealthy.

Physical Appearances

If Em knows anything, it's that Montoni is a scary dude. That's because she's aces at determining someone's character by scoping out their physical appearance. Okay, okay, it's totally ridiculous, but check out this description: Montoni's countenance "exhibited, upon the whole, more of the haughtiness of command, and the quickness of discernment, than of any other character" (1.2.18). Translation: he has a mean-looking mug.

Okay, but does it work the other way? When Valancourt marches into the picture, the "manly grace of his figure" is evident from the way he holds his weapons (1.3.19). So let's get this straight: Montoni has a mean-looking face, and Valancourt looks like a good guy while he's carrying multiple weapons? In Udolpho, physical appearances really are a transparent way to deduce character.