The Brickmaker

The brickmaker is another rather useless worker in the crew at Central Station. Despite his name, he does little to fulfill his title. This obvious idleness is one of the reasons Marlow – a man of honest labor – dislikes him so much. He is often referred to as the "manager’s spy" and, appropriately, he tries to pry information out of Marlow. Marlow is baffled at the brickmaker's strange insinuations and smiles, wondering why he is the object of such undesired attention and flattery.

In the end, we find that the brickmaker is only seeking to advance his position in the Company. Like the manager and his uncle, he is driven by ambition. However, unlike the manager, the brickmaker is by nature a sycophant, particularly sucking up to the people who he thinks will help him climb the Company ladder. He has no problem flattering and cajoling his way into what he wants. However, when snubbed, he turns cold and changes the subject. He does confess uncharacteristically to Marlow, but only when he finds that Marlow isn’t going to help him with his plans.

The narrator always paints the brickmaker in devil imagery, including a "forked beard and a hooked nose," calling him a "papier-mâché Mephistopheles." (FYI, Mephistopheles was the devil in another story, Faust). Indeed, the man has many of the characteristics attributed to Satan. He is the personification of idleness, greed, ambition, and sycophancy. Unlike many of the other members of the Company, he has a silver tongue and uses it to his advantage, much like Satan is said to tempt his victims into sinning.