Willie Lincoln

William Wallace “Willie” Lincoln was one of the sons of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln. Willie died of typhoid fever in 1862 at the age of 11. Willie is also one of the main characters of the novel. The novel describes Willie’s death and his subsequent occupancy of the bardo, which is the metaphysical space between death and the next life. Like his father, Willie is strong-willed, intelligent, courageous, and highly principled. This strong will keeps Willie from passing on to his next life, but when Willie finally realizes that he is dead, he choose of his own volition to pass on.

Hans Vollman

At the time of his death, Hans Vollman was a middle-aged American man who worked as a printer. During the novel, he is dead and occupies the bardo. In the mid-1840s, he was killed by a falling ceiling beam in his printing shop...