The Phantom Tollbooth
Characters
Not all characters from the book are listed here, as there are many.
A short description is given, followed by a quote(s) that exemplify their nature.
Milo
Tock
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 13
Milo is the protagonist of the story. He is a young boy who is bored with the world and feels that information is not worth attaining. Everything changes when he receives a magical tollbooth that transports him to the imaginary world of The Lands Beyond where he embarks on an adventure, meets many interesting folk, makes friends, and learns new ways to perceive the world around him.
"There was once a boy named Milo who didn't know what to do with himself - not just sometimes, but always. [...] Nothing really interested him - least of all the things that should have. [...] [H]e regarded the process of seeking knowledge as the greatest waste of time of all" (Juster, 1996, p. 9).
The Humbug
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 53
The Humbug is an Insecticus humbugium, an insect-like beetle, whom wears lavish clothing. Milo meets him in Dictionopolis. King Azaz volunteers the Humbug to accompany Milo and Tock on their journey to rescue Rhyme and Reason.
"'A slavish concern for the composition of words is the sign of a bankrupt intellect,' roared the Humbug, waving his cane furiously" (Juster, 1996, p. 54).
Rhyme and Reason
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 76
Princess of Sweet Rhyme and Princess of PureReason had been abandoned and found by the father of King Azaz and The Mathemagician. They were well loved for their ability to solve controversies in a fair and just manner. They were banished by the two kings to the Castle in the Air because they came to the conclusion that numbers and words were equal.
"'You must never feel badly about making mistakes,' explained Reason quietly, 'as long as you take the trouble to learn from them. For you often learn more by being wrong for the right reasons than you do by being right for the wrong reasons'" (Juster, 1996, p. 233).
"'Yes, that's true,' admitted Rhyme; 'but it's not just learning things that's important. It's learning what you do with what you learn and learning why you learn things at all that matters'" (p. 233).
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 103
Alec Bings
Alec Bings lives in the Forest of Sight and stands about three feet from the ground. He was born in the air at the height in which he will end up being, and grows downward. He has the ability to see through people, inside people, behind them, but cannot see what is right in front of him.
"'Carry this with you on your journey,' he said softly, 'for there is much worth noticing that often escapes the eye. Through it you can see everything from the tender moss in a sidewalk crack to the glow of the farthest star - and most important of all, you can see things as they really are, not just as they seem to be. It's my gift to you'" (Juster, 1996, p. 132).
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 136
Doctor of Dissonance
The doctor, Kakofonous A. Dischord, specializes in noises. He collects, measures, mixes, and writes prescriptions for various sounds, quiet to loud. Milo meets him at his wagon, somewhere between the Forest of Sight and the Valley of Sound.
"'Have you ever heard an ant wearing fur slippers walk across a thick wool carpet?'" (Juster, 1996, p. 133).
"'I specialize in noise - all kinds - from the loudest to the softest, and from the slightly annoying to the terribly unpleasant. For instance, have you ever heard a square-wheeled steam roller ride over a street full of hard-boiled eggs?'" (p. 137).
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 30
Tock is a watch-dog, that is, part dog, part alarm clock. Milo meets Tock in the Doldrums, where he works as a watch dog, watching to make sure people don't waste time. Tock becomes the companion to Milo in his further journeys in The Lands Beyond.
"[M]y brother is called Tick because he goes tocktocktock-tocktocktocktock and I am called Tock because I go ticktick-tickticktickticktick and both of us are forever burdened with the wrong names. My parents were so overwrought that they gave up having any more children and devoted their lives to doing good work among the poor and hungry" (Juster, 1996, p. 33).
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 69
Faintly Macabre
Faintly Macabre, the Official Which, is King Azaz's great-aunt. Milo meets her in prison at Dictionopolis where she tells the story of Rhyme and Reason.
"'For years and years I was in charge of choosing which words were to be used for all occasions, which ones to say and which ones not to say, which ones to write and which ones not to write.' [...] 'But power corrupts, and soon I grew miserly and chose fewer and fewer words, trying to keep as many as possible for myself'" (Juster, 1996, p. 67).
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 83
King Azaz
the Unabridged
King Azaz, the Unabridged, is the letter and word obsessed king of Dictionopolis. He is a large man with piercing eyes and a long gray beard. His brother is the Mathemagician, and they are in total disagreement over which is more important, numbers or words. The last thing they agreed upon was banishing Rhyme and Reason.
"'In this box are all the words I know,'" he said. 'Most of them you will never need, some you will use constantly, but with them you may ask all the questions which have never been answered and answer all the questions which have never been asked. All the great books of the past and all the ones yet to come are made with these words. With them there is no obstacle you cannot overcome. All you must learn to do is use them well and in the right places'" (Juster, 1996, pp. 98-99).
Chroma
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 120
Chroma is the conductor of the color symphony in the Forest of Sight. He is described as being tall and gaunt, and has deep-set eyes, a thin mouth, and a long pointed nose and chin.
"'You see what a dull place the world would be without color?' he said, bowing until his chin almost touched the ground. 'But what pleasure to lead my violins in a serenade of spring green or hear my trumpets blare out the blue sea and then watch the oboes tint it all in warm yellow sunshine. And rainbows are best of all - and blazing neon signs, and taxicabs with stripes, and the soft, muted tones of a foggy day. We play them all'" (Juster, 1996, p. 124).
The Soundkeeper
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 151
The Soundkeeper is the guardian of all sounds and noises in the Valley of Sound. She catalogs them, puts them in alphabetical order, and stores them in the vault. After Rhyme and Reason were locked up, sounds began to become more loud and more ugly. The Soundkeeper abolished sound, and keeps them locked up in her fortress, only to be seen on weekly tours that she permits.
"'It doesn't make me happy to hold back the sounds,' she began softly, 'for if we listen to them carefully they can sometimes tell us things far better than words'" (Juster, 1996, p. 158).
The Mathemagician
The Senses Taker
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 225
Feiffer, J. (1961), p. 183
The Mathemagician is the ruler of Digitopolis, brother to King Azaz. He wears a robe that is adorned with complicated math equations and a tall pointed cap. He carries a large pencil as a staff.
"'But it's only a big pencil,' the Humbug objected, tapping at it with his cane. 'True enough,' agreed the Mathemagician; 'but once you learn how to use it, there's no end to what you can do'" (Juster, 1996, p. 188)
"'[F]or the number you want is always at least one more than the number you've got, and it's so large that if you started saying it yesterday you wouldn't finish tomorrow'" (p. 190).
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The Senses Taker is a demon that lives in the Mountains of Ignorance, situated right before the stairway to the Castle in the Air. Once he takes information, he takes one's senses. He is described as a little, round man, whom wears a frock coat.
"'I warned you; I warned you I was the Senses Taker,' sneered the Senses Taker: 'I help people find what they're not looking for, hear what they're not listening for, run after what they're not chasing, and smell what isn't even there. And furthermore,' he cackled, hoping around gleefully on his stubby legs, 'I'll steal your sense of purpose, take your sense of duty, destroy your sense of proportion'" (Juster, 1996, p. 230).