Disgrace Characters

A fifty-two-year-old professor in Cape Town, South Africa, and the protagonist of Disgrace. David is an intelligent but vain man who has enjoyed his good looks throughout his adulthood, leading the life of an… read analysis of David Lurie

A young woman in her twenties living in a somewhat dingy farmhouse in Eastern Cape, South Africa. Lucy is David’s only child, and though they get along fairly well, they aren’t close. Still, this… read analysis of Lucy

A twenty-year-old college student in David’s class on the Romantic poets. Melanie is hesitant when David invites her to his apartment for the first time, and though she stays for dinner and drinks, she… read analysis of Melanie Isaacs

A man who shares Lucy’s land, works in her garden, and helps with her kennel business by taking care of the dogs. Petrus—whose wife is pregnant—is interested in expanding his land, and while David… read analysis of Petrus

Bev Shaw’s husband. A man David finds overwhelmingly simple, Bill shocks him with his kindness by picking him up from the hospital on the day of the attack. Even though he has to wait… read analysis of Bill Shaw

One of the three men who attack David and rape Lucy. A teenager who is somehow related to Petrus, Pollux has unidentified (or at least unspecified) cognitive challenges, though this doesn’t deter David… read analysis of Pollux

Melanie’s father. Not long after he has sex with Melanie for the final time, David receives a call from Mr. Isaacs, who asks him to talk to Melanie because she has apparently decided to… read analysis of Mr. Isaacs

A prostitute David visits in the beginning of Disgrace. David sees Soraya every Thursday night and feels that their appointments completely satisfy his sexual desires. However, he happens to see her in public with… read analysis of Soraya

A young man who is either Melanie’s boyfriend or ex-boyfriend. Regardless, he is deeply upset that Melanie has had sex with David—so upset that he appears in David’s office one evening and tells… read analysis of Ryan

David’s second wife, to whom he is no longer married. Rosalind is still involved in David’s life, since they’ve found themselves capable of maintaining a friendship in the aftermath of their marriage. However, when… read analysis of Rosalind

The Vice-Rector of David’s university, and one of his longtime acquaintances. When Melanie files a sexual harassment complaint about David, he is called to Hakim’s office, where he speaks with Elaine Winter, the… read analysis of Aram Hakim

The chair of David’s department. Elaine is present when David is first summoned to Aram Hakim’s office to discuss Melanie’s sexual harassment complaint. Coetzee notes that Elaine has “never liked” David, seeing him as “a… read analysis of Elaine Winter

A professor in the Social Sciences department at David’s university. Along with Elaine Winter, Farodia is present when David is first called to Aram Hakim’s office to discuss Melanie’s sexual harassment… read analysis of Farodia Rassool

A professor of Religious Studies who serves as the chair of the disciplinary committee that hears David’s sexual harassment case. Like Farodia Rassool, Mathabane recognizes David’s insincerity throughout the disciplinary hearing and repeatedly… read analysis of Manas Mathabane

The Dean of the Engineering department, and one of the colleagues sitting on the disciplinary committee that hears David’s case. When David starts digging a hole for himself by refusing to review Melanie’s… read analysis of Desmond Swarts

An old man who lives near Lucy’s farm. Unlike Lucy, Ettinger has decked his property out with all kinds of security, fearing attacks like the one Lucy and David experience. After this attack, Ettinger… read analysis of Ettinger