Lemony Snicket

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, ableism, child abuse, and death by suicide. Lemony Snicket, the narrator of The Wide Window, is the book’s in-universe author—a persona created for his <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/pseudonym/">pseudonym</a> by Handler. Snicket functions not only as narrator but also as a character within the series with a backstory and <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/point-of-view/">point of view</a> of his own. During the story, the reader learns that Snicket has led an adventurous life—he’s traveled widely and had several narrow escapes from danger in circumstances that are often as bizarre as the Baudelaires’ own story. He’s sympathetic to the Baudelaire children and distressed by the terrible events they encounter. Handler allows the reader to get to know Snicket using the device of <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/narrative/">narrative</a> intrusion. Throughout the story, Snicket interrupts the narrative to offer opinions, advice, and personal anecdotes. His <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/voice/">voice</a> is old-fashioned, formal, intellectual, and pessimistic, filled with dark, dry humor and dire analyses of the Baudelaires’ prospects. He explains the meanings of difficult vocabulary and concepts like “keeping things in perspective” (37). His definitions and explanations are often comically offbeat and sometimes even misleading because they are so specific to the situation at hand.

Violet Baudelaire

Klaus Baudelaire

Sunny Baudelaire

Josephine Antwhistle

Count Olaf/Captain Julio Sham

Mr. Poe

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Action & Adventure

Relationships

Brothers & Sisters

Life & Time

Childhood & Youth

Family

Emotions & Behavior

Fear

Values & Ideas

Good & Evil

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Jewish American Literature

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Mortality & Death

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About The Wide Window

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Chapters 1-4

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