Miquel Moliner Character Analysis in The Shadow of the Wind

Miquel is Carax’s best friend at San Gabriel’s School. Miquel is one of the few rich characters who aren’t corrupted or weakened by wealth. Rather, he’s intelligent and eccentric, displaying an interest in philosophy and psychology. Miquel recognizes Carax’s genius and sympathizes with his forbidden love, so much so that he devotes most of his life and fortune to financing the publication of Carax’s unsuccessful books and sheltering him from his many enemies. He’s even content to play second fiddle in regard to Nuria, whom he loves even though she nurses a passion for Carax. Eventually, Miquel sacrifices his life for Carax. While most of the novel’s male characters are at least somewhat egotistical, Miquel’s life is a parable in unselfishness and unconditional love.

Miquel Moliner Character Timeline in The Shadow of the Wind

The timeline below shows where the character Miquel Moliner appears in The Shadow of the Wind. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Possessive and Obsessive Love Theme Icon

...his own relationship with his daughter is rocky. He believes she’s married to someone named Miquel, but she never told him personally or invited him to the wedding. Daniel wonders aloud... (full context)

...the son of the famously rich Aldaya family, as well as a “scatterbrained” boy named Miquel. (full context)

...in a shabby neighborhood and her name listed on the mailbox along with that of Miquel Moliner. After knocking on her door without success, he finds Nuria reading in the courtyard.... (full context)

Carax’s other early friend was Miquel Moliner, a wealthy, gifted, and extravagant boy. After graduating, Father Fernando drifted away from Miquel,... (full context)

Fathers, Sons, and Masculinity Theme Icon

...Carax is an outcast among the wealthy boys, who disdain him, with the exception of Miquel, who stands up for him. Carax befriends him as well as Javier, another lower-class outcast... (full context)

...spying on him and observing him kiss Penélope in secret. Only a lucky shove from Miquel saved Carax. Daniel tells Father Fernando what they know about the identity of the book-burner... (full context)

The next morning, Fermín tells Daniel that he’s made some inquires about Miquel Moliner. Although Nuria claimed he was in prison, none of Fermín’s contacts, who are well-informed... (full context)

...brought a gun to school and attempted to shoot Carax, who was only saved because Miquel jumped on Javier and took away the gun. (full context)

Miquel encouraged Carax to elope with Penélope and offered to finance the venture, planning a detailed... (full context)

...went to the train station where he’d promised to meet Penélope, but she never arrived. Miquel promised to keep him abreast of any developments and exhorted him to write books in... (full context)

...Nuria discovers that the unprofitable editions of Carax’s books are financed completely by someone named Miquel Moliner, and that Cabestany is charging Moliner significantly more than it cost to print the... (full context)

Nuria and Miquel quickly become friends, sharing their interest in books, music, and the enigmatic Carax. Miquel tells... (full context)

When Nuria returns to Barcelona and sees Miquel, he knows immediately that she’s hopelessly in love with Carax. Meanwhile, he’s in the process... (full context)

Eventually, out of mutual loneliness and desperation, Miquel and Nuria become lovers. Miquel drinks more and more, and sometimes they fight over Nuria’s... (full context)

One day after a fight, Miquel tells Nuria that in 1919, when Carax and Penélope’s affair was discovered, Mr. Aldaya locked... (full context)

One night, Jorge tracks Miquel down and hands him an obviously fake letter from Penélope to Carax, announcing her marriage... (full context)

Viçeneta, Sophie’s only friend, informs Miquel that she’s staying in an obscure boardinghouse and waiting for a ship to America. Miquel... (full context)

...father. The family buries her and the baby in the secret crypt. Jorge eventually tells Miquel of her fate, “drunk with guilt and shame” at not having protected his sister. (full context)

Meanwhile, Miquel’s brothers succeed in evicting him, and Nuria finds him in a derelict apartment building, bankrupt... (full context)

One day Nuria comes home from work to find that Fumero has visited Miquel and announced that Carax is getting married to Irene Marceau, which Miquel assumes is an... (full context)

Meanwhile, the Civil War is beginning and Miquel is dying of tuberculosis. No one knows which side is in charge of the city,... (full context)

...falls asleep on the sofa. When she wakes up, she finds a note saying that Miquel has gone to look for Julian and she should wait in the apartment. She notices... (full context)

In fact, Miquel returns to The Angel of Mist, having received a call from one of the neighboring... (full context)

Meanwhile the waiter of the café, who’s in Fumero’s pay, calls the police. Miquel and Carax don’t realize they’ve been trapped until they see a car outside. Carax produces... (full context)

The police abandon Miquel’s body in a seedy neighborhood, and when it eventually arrives at the morgue, he’s identified... (full context)

Meanwhile, Nuria hasn’t heard from either Carax or Miquel and is sick with worry. When Don Fonseca calls from the morgue to say that... (full context)

Nuria finds a badly burned Carax at the hospital and identifies him (falsely) as Miquel Moliner. She takes care of him as he recovers for a year. Meanwhile, he says... (full context)

...until one day an informer posing as a journalism student arrived to ask questions about Miquel. That night, Nuria takes Carax to hide in his childhood apartment. By this time, he... (full context)