Puddleglum

Puddleglum was a Marsh-wiggle living near the River Shribble in the Marshlands. He had a rather solemn demeanor, and was, as Jill Pole put it, a "wet blanket." He was distrustful of strangers; such as the giants in the House of Harfang, the Lady of the Green Kirtle, Rilian and the other underworlders. His misgivings were not often wrongly placed. He would constantly be expecting the worst to happen, but always encouraged everyone to "put a bold face on it."

He is featured in The Silver Chair and is somewhat the hero, because he is the only one able to resist the Lady of the Green Kirtle's spell. However, he accomplishes this by sticking his foot into a lit fireplace, an injury he believes - and constantly laments and bemoans - will almost certainly kill him, even though it is not life-threatening.

He also makes a brief appearance at the end of The Last Battle.

Appearance
Puddleglum is a tall, gangly, and weedy-looking fellow with greenish-gray tinted skin. Though humanoid, the length of his extensive limbs in proportion to his short and narrow body belie any possibility of his being human. Puddleglum (and by extension, all wiggles) are described as being frog-like creatures with human characteristics. His features are sharp and his hair (also greenish gray) is of a reedy texture. He is known to wear a wide-brimmed pointed hat at most times.

Character
Puddleglum is described as an eternal cheerful pessimist. His frontmost trait is his habit for expecting distaster in nearly every situation. Humans may find this depressing and irritating, yet Puddleglum's fellow marsh-wiggles consider him to be 'flighty'. When disaster does strike, Puddleglum proves that he is not just a 'wet blanket', as Eustace calls him. He displays loyalty to Aslan and to the signs even after his companions all but abandon their quest. He also shows remarkable courage and resilience in the face of the Lady of the Green Kirtle and the Fall of Underland.

Puddleglum's weakeness, it would seem, is strong drink, even bordering on alcoholism.



Trivia

 * Lewis said that his gardener Fred Paxford was inspiration for the loyal and pessimistic Puddleglum (Douglas Gresham recalls, "If you said good morning to him, he might reply, 'Ah! Looks like rain afore lunch, though; if'n it don't snow or hail, tha's.'")
 * There is a book called The Giant Surprise: A Narnia Story written by Hiawyn Oram, that tells a story about Puddleglum and his niece named Lally, who save some Mice from Giants.
 * He was played by Tom Baker in the BBC version of the Silver Chair