Walpole places the characters Father Jerome, a devout, generous and kindly friar, and Prince Manfred, a proud, headstrong and cruel tyrant, in direct opposition to one another. By making them foils for each other in this way, he highlights the worst part of Manfred's character and makes the best of Jerome's seem even better. Jerome is depicted as a:
[...] good man, with an air of firmness and authority, that daunted even the resolute Manfred.
Like many foils, these characters are similar in several ways. Both men have children under threat, both are fiercely protective of what they believe to be right, and both come from noble lineage. However, Jerome's character couldn't be more different from that of Manfred in every other way. Jerome is pious, unselfish, abstinent, and forgiving. Walpole actually uses the phrase "good man" to describe him four times in the novel. Jerome is directed by his religious obligations and altruism, while Manfred is lead by ambition and self-interest. Unlike Manfred, who rules through fear, Jerome is respected for his "air of firmness and authority." The language Walpole uses to describe the friar always evokes feelings of stability and reliability.
Manfred, however, is lustful, vengeful, unstable murderous and calculating. He is also absolutely relentless. For example, when he tells Isabella that he means to marry her whatever the cost, he shouts:
"Heaven nor hell shall impede my designs! [...] I will use the human means in my power for preserving my race."
Manfred, unlike Jerome, is not led by his relationship to God until the end of the novel. He implies here through invoking "heaven" and "hell" that not even God could get in the way of his plans. Unlike Jerome, he will break the rules of the Christian faith to get what he wants. He is willing to seriously harm his soul (through murder, kidnapping, imprisonment, and rape) in order to continue his bloodline. Manfred is also quite content to lie and to deceive others in support of remaining the Prince of Otranto, whereas Jerome only speaks the truth. Also unlike Jerome (whom the reader learns is Theodore's real father) Manfred has no remaining male heir after Conrad is squashed by the falling helmet. Manfred is obsessed with procreation and passing on his title, and will go so far as to subvert the will of God in order to keep Otranto in the family. By setting him alongside Jerome, the narrative effectively highlights Manfred's many moral shortcomings.
Walpole places the characters Father Jerome, a devout, generous and kindly friar, and Prince Manfred, a proud, headstrong and cruel tyrant, in direct opposition to one another. By making them foils for each other in this way, he highlights the worst part of Manfred's character and makes the best of Jerome's seem even better. Jerome is depicted as a:
[...] good man, with an air of firmness and authority, that daunted even the resolute Manfred.
Like many foils, these characters are similar in several ways. Both men have children under threat, both are fiercely protective of what they believe to be right, and both come from noble lineage. However, Jerome's character couldn't be more different from that of Manfred in every other way. Jerome is pious, unselfish, abstinent, and forgiving. Walpole actually uses the phrase "good man" to describe him four times in the novel. Jerome is directed by his religious obligations and altruism, while Manfred is lead by ambition and self-interest. Unlike Manfred, who rules through fear, Jerome is respected for his "air of firmness and authority." The language Walpole uses to describe the friar always evokes feelings of stability and reliability.
Manfred, however, is lustful, vengeful, unstable murderous and calculating. He is also absolutely relentless. For example, when he tells Isabella that he means to marry her whatever the cost, he shouts:
"Heaven nor hell shall impede my designs! [...] I will use the human means in my power for preserving my race."
Manfred, unlike Jerome, is not led by his relationship to God until the end of the novel. He implies here through invoking "heaven" and "hell" that not even God could get in the way of his plans. Unlike Jerome, he will break the rules of the Christian faith to get what he wants. He is willing to seriously harm his soul (through murder, kidnapping, imprisonment, and rape) in order to continue his bloodline. Manfred is also quite content to lie and to deceive others in support of remaining the Prince of Otranto, whereas Jerome only speaks the truth. Also unlike Jerome (whom the reader learns is Theodore's real father) Manfred has no remaining male heir after Conrad is squashed by the falling helmet. Manfred is obsessed with procreation and passing on his title, and will go so far as to subvert the will of God in order to keep Otranto in the family. By setting him alongside Jerome, the narrative effectively highlights Manfred's many moral shortcomings.
