A secondary, flat character in “The Minotaur,” King Aegeus is Theseus’s father and the king of Athens. The story portrays King Aegeus as an aging king who has become ignorant of the traitorous intentions within his own palace, where his nephews and his wife, Medea, plot against him. However, once he becomes aware of Medea’s betrayal, he acts decisively, banishing her from the kingdom.

King Aegeus is a loyal and loving father. For instance, he leaves an inheritance for Theseus to find as an adult and happily welcomes him into his palace: “‘My son! my son!’ cried King Aegeus, flinging away the fatal goblet, and tottering down from the throne to fall into the arms of Theseus” (6). King Aegeus shows his love for Theseus in his reluctance to allow his son to leave Athens and confront the Minotaur. The story describes Aegeus’s grief: “The old king shed tears, and besought Theseus not to leave him desolate in his old age, more especially as he had but just begun to know the happiness of possessing a good and valiant son” (9). King Aegeus’s affection for Theseus is also evident in his tragic end: He dies by suicide by hurling himself from a cliff when he believes that the monster has slain Theseus.

Ariadne is a flat and secondary character in “The Minotaur.” She’s a young princess on the island of Crete. As the daughter of King Minos, she’s familiar with the Minotaur, the vicious man-bull who lives in an underground labyrinth on the island, and she knows that King Minos annually sacrifices Athenian children to the monster. The story portrays Ariadne as a kind-hearted and intelligent person who uses strategy to help Theseus fulfill his quest to kill the Minotaur. Unlike her father, Ariadne has compassion for the victims of the child sacrifices, motivating her to free Theseus from his cell and guide him to the labyrinth. Ariadne’s plan showcases her intelligence and strategic thinking, as without her string, Theseus would become “quite lost” and “utterly hopeless” in the maze (14). Hawthorne presents her as a strong person whose belief in Theseus is an essential aspect of his success:

Then he knew that the tender-hearted Ariadne was still holding the other end, and that she was fearing for him, and hoping for him, and giving him just as much of her sympathy as if she were close by his side […] It was as if Ariadne were giving him all her might and courage; and much as he already had, and little as she had to give, it made his own seem twice as much. And to confess the honest truth, he needed the whole (14).

Unlike most tellings of this story, in Hawthorne’s version, Ariadne declines to leave the island with Theseus, citing her duty to stay and care for her aging father. This decision makes Ariadne a loyal figure with a strong sense of filial piety, even to a father with whom she disagrees.

As a populous nation of little people who live in Africa, the Pygmies are the main, though flat, characters in the story “The Pygmies.” The text emphasizes their tiny size, describing them as typically less than six inches tall. They “plant wheat and other kinds of grain, which, when it grew up and ripened, overshadowed these tiny people as the pines” (17). Hawthorne highlights how, despite the vulnerability of their tiny size, the Pygmies are industrious enough to thrive as a farming community. They’re hard-working and live in nestlike swellings “neatly plastered together by the Pygmy workmen” (44). The Pygmies are tiny but brave and willing to confront enemies. The story portrays them as brave warriors who protect their villages from crane attacks. In war, the Pygmies “made a formidable appearance, armed with sword and spear, and bow and arrow, blowing their tiny trumpet, and shouting their little war cry” (20). Underscoring this courage is their confrontation with Hercules, which the story presents as charming and admirable. By attacking the large human hero, the Pygmies show their loyalty to Antaeus and reveal their bravery despite their small size, earning them the respect of Hercules.

A secondary, round character in “The Pygmies,” Antaeus, is a giant who lives in Africa among the Pygmies. The story presents Antaeus as a nuanced character. He’s brutish and unintelligent with “one, great, stupid eye in the middle of his forehead,” but is also very gentle and good-natured with his Pygmy friends, acting “most sportive and humorous, and merry-hearted, and sweet-tempered” with the tiny people (19-20). Antaeus is particularly prideful and confrontational with strangers. When Hercules arrives and politely asks to cross Antaeus’s territory, the giant violently confronts him, saying, “What’s your name? Why do you come hither? Speak, you vagabond, or I’ll try the thickness of your skull with my walking-stick!” (22). This violent reaction triggers a fight between the two, which Hercules handily wins, showing Antaeus’s foolishness in challenging him.

In “The Pygmies,” Hercules is a flat, secondary character whose gentlemanly introduction highlights his polite, noble demeanor. He responds to Antaeus’s threats calmly, saying, “You are a very discourteous Giant […] and I shall probably have to teach you a little civility, before we part. As for my name, it is Hercules” (22). Hercules is a brave and physically strong character who is committed to his quest to reach the garden of Hesperides; he accepts Antaeus’s challenge and easily wins, killing the giant. However, Hercules doesn’t revel in violence, using it only in defense, making him another of Hawthorne’s role-model heroes. For instance, when he wakes up with his hair on fire and surrounded by Pygmies, he doesn’t hurt them. Instead, he admires their bravery and kindly agrees to leave their kingdom:

I sue for peace, and, as a condition of it, will take five strides, and be out of your kingdom at the sixth. Good-bye. I shall pick my steps carefully, for fear of treading upon some fifty of you, without knowing it. Ha, ha, ha! Ho, ho, ho! For once, Hercules acknowledges himself vanquished (28).

A round character, Ulysses is the protagonist of “Circe’s Palace.” Originally from Ithaca, he and his crew are making the long and dangerous journey home by sea. The story portrays him as a wise and caring king who feels a sense of duty toward the men under his leadership. Ulysses shows his wise and cautious nature when he encounters a small bird on the island and interprets it as a warning sign to return to his ship. This perceptive decision saves him from Circe’s enchantments. His desire to consult his crew about their dilemma reveals Ulysses’s collaborative leadership, and his decision to split the crew into two is a wise strategy.

When he later learns that the men who went to the palace have been transformed into hogs by the wicked Circe, Ulysses tells the others that he must return to save them. The crew’s reaction to this news shows how deeply they respect Ulysses and depend on him as their leader. They tell him, “‘You are our king,’ cried they; ‘and what is more, you are the wisest man in the whole world, and nothing but your wisdom and courage can get us out of this danger’” (57). Ulysses’s insistence that it’s his “duty” to rescue his other men emphasizes his compassionate leadership and strong sense of responsibility, making him another ideal hero.

Flat characters from the story “The Dragon’s Teeth,” Cadmus, Cilix, and Phoenix are brothers and the sons of Queen Telephassa and King Agenor, while Thasus is their loyal friend. The boys, who grow into men over the course of the story, are loving, loyal, and dutiful. Their long search for the missing Europa shows their affection and loyalty to her. Each man eventually wins the respect of everyone in his new region and becomes a king. For instance, Thasus earns people’s loyalty because they see that he’s “an upright, true-hearted, and courageous man, and therefore fit to rule” (35). Cadmus, whose journey lasts the longest, is the most heroic of the men, as he must slay a dragon. This ordeal showcases Cadmus’s work ethic and commitment to laboring toward his destiny, in which he, too, becomes a king.

A flat character, Ceres is the protagonist of “The Pomegranate Seeds.” The story depicts her as a positive, helpful goddess, as she’s responsible for nurturing farmers’ crops. She’s also a gentle, loving, and nurturing mother to her young daughter, Proserpina. For instance, she leaves Proserpina in the care of the sea nymphs, warning her to stay out of the meadow. When Proserpina disobeys her and is captured by Pluto, Ceres shows her love for her daughter by looking for her everywhere. She refuses Hecate’s offer of dwelling and companionship:

And when there shall be no more hope of finding her (if that black day is ordained to come), then, if you will give me room to fling myself down, either on these withered leaves or on the naked rock, I will show what it is to be miserable. But, until I know that she has perished from the face of the earth, I will not allow myself space even to grieve (73-74).

By working tirelessly to search for her daughter, Ceres becomes an unusual hero who overcomes challenges. Her extreme decision to neglect the world’s crops until Proserpina is returned reveals her desperation to reunite with her daughter, underscoring her loving and maternal nature, but complicates her heroism.

As a flat, secondary character in “The Pomegranate Seeds,” Proserpina is a young girl and is the daughter of the goddess Ceres. The story depicts Proserpina as an innocent, curious child. For example, when her mother leaves her on the beach, she disobeys her by investigating the meadow and digging up a strange plant. Like her mother, Proserpina is loyal and loving; she refuses to drink Pluto’s water that would make her forget all about her mother. She’s also fairly intuitive, as she refuses to eat Pluto’s many treats, which would condemn her to live forever in the Underworld. Proserpina’s tolerance of Pluto and pity for his loneliness reveal her kind nature.

The enchantress Medea is a secondary, flat character in both “The Minotaur” and “The Golden Fleece.” Interestingly, Medea plays significantly different roles in these tales. In “The Minotaur,” she’s a villainous figure who schemes to kill Theseus so that he can’t inherit the throne. The story presents her as evil, cunning, and selfish, as she tries to manipulate King Aegeus to poison Theseus with wine. Her dramatic flight from the palace portrays her as a powerful witch: “[B]ehold! there was her fiery chariot, and four huge, winged serpents, wriggling and twisting in the air, flourishing their tails higher than the top of the palace, and all ready to set off on an aerial journey” (6).

However, in “The Golden Fleece,” Medea helps the hero, Jason, in his quest for the fleece. Medea’s motivations are unclear, but her actions enable Jason’s heroics, showcasing a softer side to her personality. For instance, she gives him a magical ointment, helps him escape execution, and puts the dragon to sleep for him. Nonetheless, Hawthorne hints at more sinister aspects of her personality. For instance, she enjoys scaring Jason by showing him the dragon: “‘Well, Jason,’ whispered Medea (for she was ill natured, as all enchantresses are, and wanted to make the bold youth tremble), ‘what do you think now of your prospect of winning the Golden Fleece?’” (104). She also keeps the dragon alive on purpose, since she might want to use it later, underscoring her morally problematic behavior. She tells Jason, “One always finds a use for these mischievous creatures, sooner or later; so I did not wish to kill him outright” (105).