Malte is a 28-year-old impoverished Danish man living alone in a dilapidated Parisian apartment. Though he comes from a wealthy, aristocratic family, he currently exists in poverty, spending his days reading in the national library and drafting entries in his notebooks. Plagued by extreme anxiety and a deep fear of death since his frequent childhood illnesses, he obsessively documents the suffering of the local poor while recording his own unsettling family memories.

She is a devoted, affectionate woman who serves as the emotional center of Malte's early life. Often anxious and uncomfortable with the rigid expectations of her aristocratic in-laws, she forms an intense, protective bond with her frequently ill son. She harbors a wish for a daughter, which Malte attempts to fulfill by dressing up in a short frock and calling himself Sophie.

Brigge's Father is an emotionally distant aristocratic man who masks his deep feelings behind a cold exterior. He frequently displays impatience with his wife's affectionate nature toward their son, once forcing her to leave a sick Malte to return to a party. His inability to communicate creates a tense, repressed environment for his family, leaving a lasting impact on his son.

Abelone is Malte's unmarried aunt who remains a constant, quiet fixture at the family's Danish estates. Following the loss of his mother, Malte projects his intense emotions onto Abelone, writing her letters and spending significant time reading with her. She handles his teenage attention with a stoic, understanding demeanor.

Erik is Malte's young Danish cousin who shares a similar aristocratic background but remains entirely incomprehensible to him. He is a frail child with a chaotic presence, often found wandering the dark corridors of the family estates. He actively searches the attic for the family's resident ghost.

Count Brahe is Malte's maternal grandfather, an eccentric aristocrat who resides in a large, dark castle. He treats death with complete indifference, speaking of deceased relatives as if they are still living and showing absolutely no reaction to the ghosts that pass through his dining room.

A distant cousin of Malte's mother who spends time at the Urnekloster estate. Unlike the rest of the taciturn family, she possesses a forthright desire to talk constantly and holds a strong interest in spiritualism and the occult.

Christine is a deceased family member who died in childbirth years prior to the events of the notebooks. Her ghost regularly appears in the family castle, an occurrence the living relatives treat with awkward silence rather than fear or alarm.

Ingeborg was a beloved family member whose sudden passing from illness left a lasting mark on her sister. Like other deceased relatives in the family, her spirit occasionally makes silent appearances in the house, once walking in to serve tea to a stunned mourning party.