The Tale of Despereaux

Princess Pea is the 12-year-old heir of the Kingdom of Dor. As for her conscience, “Like most hearts, it was complicated, shaded with dark and dappled with light” (197). The darkness in her heart came from her mother’s death and the soup-related sadness she and her father endure.

Above all, Pea is empathetic and kind, and takes a liking to Despereaux despite his small stature and species. She relies on inner strength and tolerance to turn Mig against Roscuro in the dungeon. She even does the seemingly impossible by convincing Roscuro to abandon his revenge for soup—a symbol of warmth.

Roscuro’s full name is Chiaroscuro, which is also a term meaning the artistic balance of darkness and light. The fact that he goes by a nickname is significant, because he prefers to dwell in the darkness out of anger and self-loathing. Roscuro is unlike other rats in that he is obsessed with bright light, just like Despereaux. Unlike the mouse, however, he is condemned by his nature to dwell in the darkness and pursue evil.

Roscuro convinces himself that his only option (and his best means of revenge for Pea’s treatment during the banquet) is to capture something full of light and let it suffer in the darkness. His plan fails, however, when faced with the smell of delicious soup. Roscuro loses his tail to Mig, and retains some gruffness typical of rats, but partially redeems himself in the end and is granted permission to roam the bright rooms upstairs.

Miggery Sow is a girl who was named after her father’s favorite pig. She experiences many hardships, from her mother’s early death to her enslavement to another farm. She is continually abused by authority figures who beat her ears—resulting in them resembling cauliflowers. Mig is not particularly bright but harbors an ambitious dream: She wishes to be a princess like Pea.

Mig is tricked by Roscuro into kidnapping Pea at knifepoint. Her life largely comprises no one listening to what she wants. When she finally breaks under pressure during the kidnapping, she cries for her mother, her greatest wish, even beyond being a princess.

In a way, Mig becomes a princess when she is reunited with her father, who loves and pampers her for the rest of her days.

Botticelli Remorso is Roscuro’s only friend. He has one ear, a heart-shaped necklace with a chain made from mouse whiskers, and is exceptionally disgusting. He is an archetypical rat, obsessed with all means of physical and psychological torture. He believes in his identity, and thinks the meaning of life is suffering and misery. Botticelli attempts to teach Roscuro how to be more ratlike, but the latter lacks the instinctual thirst for blood.

Botticelli is also very cunning, as is common with rats, and uses this skill to persuade Despereaux to grab his tail and follow him to Princess Pea’s holding cell.

Gregory is the castle dungeon’s jailer of many years. He is the only human able to navigate the pitch-black maze of cells—his secret being a rope tied around his ankle that allows him to track his movements. Gregory helps Despereaux because he is old enough to remember soup and what it once meant to the kingdom. In lieu of soup, Despereaux spins a beautiful story, full of light, for the old man.

Gregory dies after Roscuro chews through his signature rope as one of the steps in his plan to kidnap the princess.

The threadmaster’s name is Hovis, but Despereaux only learns this upon finding him to ask for help. Despite being an administrator of death (i.e., he ties the “red thread of death” around the necks of condemned mice), Hovis says he is merely doing his job. He and Despereaux’s conversation reveals their shared love for fairy tales and Princess Pea.

Hovis equips Despereaux with red thread again—but this time, as a means of support in the dungeon rather than a marker of death. He also gives the small mouse a needle as a sword and wishes him luck in his quest.

Antoinette is Despereaux’s mother. She is a dramatic French mouse who wears an exceptional amount of makeup. After giving birth to Despereaux, she claims she is disappointed with the suffering she endured. Later, during Despereaux’s trial, she cries and faints—but the performance is more for show than reassurance for her accused son.