Index & TL;DR: The Sources that Inspired Red Dead Redemption 2

Read Dead examines the literary sources that Red Dead Redemption 2 is based on. If you don’t care for essays, read the TL;DR for a trivia-style presentation (just be aware that only the full entries contain all the information about the game)! You can also use the tags at the bottom of this page to explore the essays by sub-topic. Visit Contents to read the essays organized by work. Visit Works for a complete list of the game’s sources, including those that don’t warrant their own entries.

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Main Characters
Major & Supporting Characters
Minor Characters
Animals
Themes
Events
Places
Points of Interest
Motifs & Symbols
Mission Names
Dialog
Miscellaneous
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This page contains spoilers for Red Dead Redemption and Red Dead Redemption 2.

TL;DR

Don’t want to read full essays? I got you. Here’s a brief summary of how the literary sources of Red Dead Redemption 2 show up in the text of the game. Individual entries will continue to be updated and added as more articles are published. All sections are still in progress.

Literary Sources for the Main Characters of Red Dead Redemption 2

Arthur Morgan

Partially inspired by John Milton’s vision of the Son (Christ) as found in Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained.

Named for King Arthur and Morgan le Fay, to convey his dual “good” and “bad” nature. King Arthur kills his son, and RDR2 implies (rather absurdly) that Arthur is morally responsible for Isaac’s death. Although named for King Arthur, Morgan’s character takes more inspiration from Lancelot, the greatest knight of King Arthur’s court, who struggles when his principles come into conflict. Arthur’s emotional storyline follows that of Perceval, the grail knight, as he appears in “The Story of the Grail.” Perceval begins life treating the people around him with total disregard; his journey is centered around learning to show care for others. Some of Arthur’s characteristics are based on the Fisher King of Arthurian legend. The game uses imagery from the legends to show that Arthur and Micah Bell are opposite to each other in nature.

Slightly influenced by Heathcliff in Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights.

Dutch Van der Linde

Heavily influenced by the Romantic poet George Gordon, Lord Byron, due to Byron’s fascination with John Milton’s Paradise Lost. Paradise Lost is one of the biggest sources for the game’s characters and narrative. Byron, like Dutch, was a morally complex figure who sometimes had good principles, but treated the people in his life very poorly. Dutch is played by Benjamin Byron Davis. Dutch is also heavily inspired by Milton’s seductive Satan. His characterization also draws on Paradise Lost’s Death and God.

Partially based on King Arthur, a once-great king who went to war with his most renowned follower, Lancelot, over an act of disloyalty. This led to the total decimation of his court. His son Mordred betrayed him, and the two killed each other. King Arthur’s wife Guinevere also informs Dutch’s character. She becomes jealous and distrustful when she hears rumors that her paramour Lancelot loves another woman, even though Lancelot is totally and completely loyal to her.

Influenced by King Leontes from William Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale. Leontes becomes paranoid and believes that his wife and best friend have betrayed him, with catastrophic results.

John Marston

Arthur’s warning not to look back, and John’s decision to do so anyway, are allusions to the myth of Orpheus, because the myth is alluded to in Paradise Lost. John’s lack of eloquence is ironic, because Orpheus was a great poet and bard.

John questioning Jack’s paternity is probably based on King Leontes from The Winter’s Tale.

Hosea Matthews

Largely based on Antigonus from William Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale. Antigonus is a loyal advisor to King Leontes (whom Dutch is partially based on), who grows paranoid that his wife and best friend have betrayed him. When Leontes orders his baby to be killed — believing it to have been fathered by his best friend — Antigonus insists upon saving the child. He dies doing so, just as Hosea most likely sacrificed himself to save Abigail.

Probably partially based on Merlin of Arthurian legend. Named for the Biblical prophet.

Micah Bell III

Based on the Paradise Lost characters Satan, Moloch, and Belial. His name is a partial anagram of “MOLOCH BELIAL.” “Bell III” also alludes to “Peter Bell the Third,” a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley, the Romantic poet and friend of Lord Byron. Partially based on Mordred, King Arthur’s treacherous and deceitful son who staged a coup. Also named for the Biblical prophet.

Major and Supporting Characters

Agent Andrew Milton: Named for the author of Paradise Lost, John Milton. Andrew Marvell wrote a prefatory poem, “On Paradise Lost,” that was included in the second edition of the epic poem. This is where Agent Milton gets his first name.

Angelo Bronte: Named for Emily Brontë.

Edith Downes: Based on the Haughty Knight’s maiden in Chrétien de Troyes’ “The Story of the Grail.”

Evelyn Miller: His work often contains allusions to the myth Paradise Lost retells.

Josiah Trelawny: Named for Edward John Trelawny, a friend of Lord Byron, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His horse, Gwydion, is named for the character from the Mabinogion.

Kieran Duffy: Based on the character Branwen from the Mabinogion. His horse is named after her.

Leviticus Cornwall: Named for the antagonist of the medieval poem “King Arthur and King Cornwall.”

Mary Linton: Although one might expect Mary to be named for Catherine Linton (née Earnshaw), she is apparently named for Mrs. Mary Linton of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights. Like Catherine, Mary marries a man with social standing instead of the poorer man with whom she’s in love. However, Mary has nothing else in common with Catherine, and resembles her namesake far more.

Molly O’Shea: Probably partially based on Claire Clairmont, one of Lord Byron’s many lovers. Clairmont approached Byron, as it is implied Molly approached Dutch. Both relationships ended badly. Many elements of her story are based on the Arthurian legend of the Lady of Shalott (especially as found in Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s poem of the same name). Her character is a kind of double for Susan Grimshaw’s.

Rains Fall: Largely inspired by the Fisher King of Arthurian legend.

Reverend Swanson: A Reverend for the Congregational Church, formerly known as the Puritans. John Milton was a Puritan.

Simon Pearson: Possibly based on John Williams, a man who greatly exaggerated his naval experience and who drowned with Percy Bysshe Shelley in a boat they designed together.

Susan Grimshaw: A double or foil for Molly O’Shea’s character. Probably named for the Victorian painter Atkinson Grimshaw, who painted Elaine of Astolat and the Lady of Shalott of Arthurian legend. Inspired by Sir Kay of Arthurian legend.

Thomas Downes: His death is based on Perceval’s mother’s in Chrétien de Troyes’ “The Story of the Grail.”

Minor Characters

Annabelle: Named for Anne Isabella Milbanke, who went by Annabella. She was Byron’s wife. Poems written to an Annabelle, kept in the same desk where Dutch’s pipe is found, highlight the connection to Byron.

Beatrice Morgan: Named for the character in Dante’s Inferno.

Charlotte Balfour: Based on Blancheflor in Chrétien de Troyes’ “The Story of the Grail.”

The Giant: The unnamed and unseen giant who lives in a cave in Ambarino is based on the creature in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Greta Van der Linde: Her epitaph is a misquotation of Paradise Lost. The gravestone reads “There was grace in her steps, love in every gesture.” Of Eve, the poem says: “Grace was in all her steps, heaven in her eye,/In every gesture dignity and love” (VII.488-489).

Jeremiah Compson: His first name is from the Biblical Book of Jeremiah. The book is concerned with people being punished for their sins; RDR2 uses it to portray Compson (and the South at large) as being punished for the sin of slavery. RDR2 also uses imagery from the book at Compson’s Stead.

Animals

Ariel: Named for the character from The Tempest.

Boaz: Probably named for the Biblical figure from the Book of Ruth.

Branwen: Named for the character from the Mabinogion. Kieran Duffy’s character is based on her.

Cain: Lord Byron wrote a play called Cain: A Mystery, based on the Biblical character. Cain is the name Dutch gives the camp dog.

The Count: Cremello color because Death rides a pale horse in Revelation, and Dutch’s character draws on John Milton’s version of that character in Paradise Lost. Possibly named for a friend of Lord Byron’s, Count Pietro Gamba. Lord Byron’s granddaughter, Lady Anne Blunt, made enormous contributions to the development of the Arabian horse, accounting for The Count’s breed.

Gwydion: Named for the character from the Mabinogion. Trelawny’s character has some similarities with this trickster figure.

Rachel: Named for the Biblical figure alluded to in The Inferno.

Red Dead Redemption 2 Themes from Literary Sources

Apocalypse: RDR2 is, in many ways, an apocalypse narrative. It makes occasional allusions to the Book of Revelation, such as Dutch’s association with the Fourth Horseman. The Meteor Point of Interest also evokes Revelation: “And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind” (6:13). In his journal, Arthur’s drawing is labeled “Found a rock that had fallen from the heavens.” The mission names “Horsemen, Apocalypses” and “A New Jerusalem” also relate to this theme.

Codes: The idea of following moral (and social) codes comes from Arthurian legend.

Cowardice: Cowardice is the gravest dishonor in Arthurian legend. That’s why Arthur’s insults to Micah usually involve calling him a coward.

Damnation. In Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff tells Nelly “I will have great pleasure in sending [my soul] to perdition, to punish its maker” (67). Similarly, Arthur tells Mrs. Downes, “I hope [eternity] is hot and terrible, Mrs. Downes. Otherwise I’ll feel I’ve been sold a false bill of goods” (“Sodom? Back to Gomorrah”).

Failure of principles: This major theme of RDR2 comes from Arthurian legend. The failure of Arthur’s court’s principles of brotherhood lead to its downfall. In RDR2, the major principle that fails, destroying the gang, is caring about other people.

Failure of regeneration: The major theme of RDR2 is inspired by man’s permanent banishment from Eden in Paradise Lost. Notable in the decline from Arthur’s character and skill levels to John’s. Rockstar’s focus on white characters in their treatment of this theme is rather bizarre, considering the broader context of colonization and genocide of Native American characters at this time and throughout U.S. history. See also the Fisher King of Arthurian legend. Also seen in Wuthering Heights, reflected in John and Abigail’s relationship as a lesser version of Arthur and Mary’s.

Free will: Free will and predestination are major themes of Paradise Lost, and appear in RDR2 as Dutch, Arthur, and John implying that they have no alternatives to the various choices they make.

Hubris: Hubris mainly shows up in Dutch Van der Linde’s character, and is featured because it’s a major theme in Paradise Lost. Also appears in John Marston’s decision to seek revenge on Micah Bell.

Knowledge: RDR2 addresses this theme because Paradise Lost does, but diverges sharply from it in its conclusions. Where Paradise Lost condemns Adam and Eve for gaining the knowledge of good and evil, RDR2 treats self-knowledge and individuation as vitally important to Arthur’s ability to find redemption.

Revenge: Arthur Morgan frequently speaks against taking revenge. John Marston’s decision to do so anyway eventually leads to his death.

Usury: Loaning money and charging interest is, as the mission title indicates, considered immoral in the Bible.

Events in Red Dead Redemption 2 Based on Literary Sources

“A Bright, Bouncing Boy II”: Marko Dragic’s creation of a robot “son” who destroys him is based on Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein.

“Red Dead Redemption”: The revelation of treachery and subsequent attack by an outside group in the middle of this mission is from Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

“The Veteran III”: This mission is an allegory for the beginning of Dante’s Inferno and the setting of the Dark Wood, where Dante in threatened by a she-wolf. It also foreshadows one of the game’s possible endings, imbuing it with hidden symbolism: Micah represents Arthur’s avarice and failure to follow his own better principles.

Literary Sources for Places in Red Dead Redemption 2

Bard’s Crossing: Probably an allusion to Orpheus’s journey out of the underworld. Also an allusion to William Shakespeare, commonly called “the Bard.”

Brandywine Drop: Probably named for Howard Pyle, who created what became known as the Brandywine School (due to one of his school’s locations on the Brandywine River). Pyle wrote and illustrated four books for children about Arthurian legend, and some of his followers also illustrated Arthurian subject matter.

Caliban’s Seat: Named for the character from William Shakespeare’s The Tempest.

Colter: At the beginning of Paradise Lost, the fallen angels land in hell, which is partially frozen. This partially inspired Colter’s setting.

Elysian Pool: Nested allusion to Paradise Lost, which alludes to the Elysian Fields of Greek mythology.

Guarma: Based on the island in The Tempest.

Hani’s Bethel: Paradise Lost alludes to the Biblical location of Bethel, which may be the source of this name. (Note: the name is an anagram for “Beth’s Alien,” which may or may not mean anything).

Lakay: The mural in the large house is probably an allusion to the painting Maenads by John Collier. The Cat Skull Mask and shrunken head hidden here are probably also allusions to the myth of Orpheus.

Lake Isabella: Named for Isabella Linton of Wuthering Heights.

Rhodes: Nested allusion to Paradise Lost. The poem alludes to Ophiusa, now known as Rhodes.

Tempest Rim: Named for The Tempest.

Valentine: Named for the antagonist of “Sir Launfal.”

Camps as Circles of Hell

Each camp represents a circle of Hell from Dante’s Inferno, and is associated with the sins of the person or people who suggest the location, as follows:

The Dark Wood where Dante’s tale begins imbues “The Veteran III” with symbolic meaning. Pronghorn Ranch represents Heaven, as is made by clear the use of the names David, Rachel, Abe (Abraham), and Abel. The Antenor is named for the second section of the ninth circle of Dante’s Hell, where people who committed treachery against their political party or homeland are punished.

Points of Interest

Giant Remains: Probably an allusion to a story about King Arthur slaying an evil giant in Le Morte Darthur and the Alliterative Morte Arthure.

Pagan Ritual: Probably an allusion to the way Bacchae (Maenads) killed Orpheus, alluded to in Paradise Lost.

Pleasance: The name alludes in part to Eden. The giant snake nearby and the tree fallen on the schoolhouse do, as well. The name comes from Arthurian legend and is an old name for Piacenza. The precise significance of the name is unclear.

The Withered Arm: An allusion to Shakespeare’s version of Richard III of England, as well as Donald Trump.

Motifs and Symbols

Beheadings: An allusion to a motif often found in Arthurian and Celtic legend, possibly related to the cult of the head.

The grail: In RDR2, the rising sun represents the grail. To achieve it, Arthur must have high honor and help John get to safety.

Man-made mutant: Based on the creature in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Ornate dagger: An allusion to Paradise Lost, as well as Lord Byron and the short story “The Vampyre” by John William Polidori.

Snakes: View this post to see snake imagery from the game, and see this post for further explanations.

The white stag: The buck that Arthur sees in his honor visions is an allusion to the white stag that often appears in Arthurian legend. So is the Legendary Elk found near Arthur’s grave. This stag is often a symbol for Christ, which is another hint that Arthur is a Christ figure.

Red Dead Redemption 2 Mission Names from Literary Sources

“The Aftermath of Genesis”: Nested allusion to Paradise Lost and to the Bible itself. Refers to human’s need to hunt and farm after the Fall.

“Blessed Are the Meek?”: From the Sermon on the Mount, found in Matthew 5:5: “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.”

“Blessed Are the Peacemakers”: Also from the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:9: “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” Dutch’s narcissism means, as Sadie points out in “Red Dead Redemption,” and as Molly does in “That’s Murfree Country,” that he rather thinks he is God. Here, Dutch abandons the man he likes to call his “son.”

“The Course of True Love”: From William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream: “The course of true love never did run smooth” (I.1.134).

“Enter, Pursued by a Memory”: See “Exit, Pursued by a Bruised Ego” below.

“Exit, Pursued by a Bruised Ego”: Named for the most famous English-language stage direction of all time: “exit, pursued by a bear,” from The Winter’s Tale. Hosea’s character is largely based on Antigonus from that play.

“Fatherhood and Other Dreams”: Contains many allusions to Wuthering Heights, including dialog, Mary Linton’s dress, and the mission name. Dreams are a prominent motif in the novel.

“Favored Sons”: Probably an allusion to Genesis 37, which tells the story of Jacob, who favors his son Joseph above the others.

“The First Shall Be Last”: From Matthew 20.16: “So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.”

“A Fisher of Men” (and “A Fisher of Fish”): An allusion to Matthew 4:19: “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

“Horsemen, Apocalypses”: An allusion to Revelation 6, which describes the four horsemen of the apocalypse. (As I’ve shown, Dutch represents Death.)

“A New Jerusalem”: An allusion to Revelation 21, which describes the new world where the chosen people will live after the apocalypse.

“Paradise Mercifully Departed”: Named for Paradise Lost.

“Pouring Forth Oil”: Oddly, from the sensual Song of Solomon: “Thine oils have a goodly fragrance;/Thy name is as oil poured forth;/Therefore do the virgins love thee” (American Standard Version).

“The Sheep and the Goats”: From Matthew 25:32-33: “And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.” The sheep in this metaphor are the saved, the goats the damned.

“Sodom? Back to Gomorrah”: Nested allusion to Paradise Lost and to the Bible.

“Welcome to the New World”: Named for Miranda’s line in The Tempest: “O brave new world/That has such people in’t!” (V.1.186).

“The Wheel”: Named for the medieval concept of the Wheel of Fortune, often alluded to in Arthurian material.

“Who Is Not Without Sin”: Based on John 8:7, in which Jesus defends a woman who’s committed adultery: “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” The reason for the negation is because Arthur (who is not without sin; i.e. is a sinner) saves the Reverend. Who is without sin condemns; who is not without sin saves.

“The Wisdom of the Elders”: From Job 12:12: “Wisdom is found with the elderly, and understanding comes with long life” (Christian Standard Bible).

Literature Alluded to in Dialog

“Big shadow, tiny tree”: Micah’s line (quoting Dutch) in “An American Pastoral Scene” is inspired by lines from Idylls of the King: “their fears/Are morning shadows huger than the shapes/That cast them” (“To the Queen”).

Book of Isaiah: Reverend Swanson reads at length from the Book of Isaiah in Colter. He reads 40.20-31.

Hamlet: Arthur Morgan alludes to the play in “A Fine Night of Debauchery.”

Romeo and Juliet: Alluded to in “Pouring Forth Oil IV” (by John Marston) and in “Advertising, the New American Art” (by Arthur Morgan). Leviticus Cornwall also loosely quotes the play in “Just a Social Call.”

Sonnet 18: In camp dialog, Dutch flirts with Molly by asking, “What shall I compare thee to?” This is an allusion to one of Shakespeare’s most famous sonnets: “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”

Miscellaneous

Cheat codes: “My kingdom is a horse” is an allusion to the most famous line in Richard III: “A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!” (V.4.13). “Death is silence” is probably an allusion to Hamlet’s line, “The rest is silence” (V.2.301). As is the case with Richard’s words above, these are the last words the title character speaks before dying.

Epitaphs: Arthur’s epitaphs are from the Sermon on the Mount. If he had low honor, it will read “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4, English Standard Version). Never fear that the game will not find secret ways to be depressing: the general reading of this verse is that what one is supposed to be mourning here is one’s sins. Low-honor Arthur has not mourned his sins and therefore will not be comforted (and neither will we). His high-honor epitaph is “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6, English Standard Version).

Faith: In The Death of King Arthur, the narrator calls Morgan le Fay “Morgan the Faithless.” This may have inspired Dutch’s frequent line.

“Unshaken”: The lyrics to the OST are inspired by a passage from John Milton’s Paradise Regained.