The Richest Man in Babylon

Arkad is the character referred to as “the richest man in Babylon,” the phrase that gives the book its name. Arkad is a key figure in the text and features as the source of financial knowledge in several chapters. He goes from being a poor scribe to a wealthy landowner and investor by following financial advice from Algamish, another wealthy, self-made man. By revealing the obstacles Arkad faces throughout his life’s journey and his unwise decisions he makes along the way, Clason reinforces the importance of hard work and discipline to his readers. Arkad did not become financially successful overnight; it took many years, and he had to start over several times. Arkad’s journey and the wisdom he passes on to the students Bansir and Kobbi emphasize Clason’s first pieces of advice to the reader about saving and investing money wisely.

Algamish is Arkad’s mentor and is portrayed as a savvy and disciplined man who has valuable advice about how to become rich. Algamish is the local money lender. Notably, when young Arkad comes to Algamish for advice, Algamish does not give it away for free: He makes Arkad perform a writing task in exchange for his financial wisdom. While Clason does not make this point explicit, Algamish’s character shows that a wealthy person never gives anything away for free. Algamish advises Arkad to always save 10% of his income, establishing the financial practice of “paying yourself first.” Clason will repeat the 10% savings advice throughout the rest of the text. Algamish rewards Arkad’s success by making him an heir to his fortune, implying that hard work brings recognition and good fortune. By including the character of Algamish and detailing Arkad’s journey from poor scribe to wealthy landowner, Clason persuades the reader that financial skills can be learned by anyone and can transform your life.

Nomasir is featured in “The Five Laws of Gold,” which charts his journey from being wealthy but inexperienced and naïve to learning how to combine work ethic and financial discipline to attain success. Nomasir is Arkad’s son, and his parable demonstrates that wisdom is even more valuable than wealth, as Nomasir quickly wastes the gold his father gifted to him but uses his father’s wisdom to overcome his personal finance challenges and become prosperous. Nomasir exemplifies Clason’s archetype of the wealthy child who must learn financial responsibility from the ground up to be worthy of his family’s wealth.

Dabasir is a character in “The Camel Trader of Babylon” and is also the fictional author of the clay tablets the archeologist Shrewsbury finds in Chapter 10. Dabasir falls into debt and takes a series of increasingly damaging evasive actions to avoid paying his creditors, until he is captured and enslaved. Dabasir represents people who have mismanaged their finances and tried to escape the hardship they have created. Dabasir’s fall from grace as a debtor functions as a warning not to live beyond your means nor to try to escape uncomfortable situations, as avoidance only makes matters worse. Clason uses Dabasir’s predicament to create a redemption arc based on Dabasir’s desire to live with self-respect with the “soul of a free man.” Dabasir’s enslavement is an allegory for the metaphorical enslavement of being deep in debt.

Sira is the only named female character in the text. She is one of the wives of the chief who buys Dabasir to tend to his camels. Sira listens to Dabasir’s story about his misfortune of falling into debt and enslavement, but she does not let him wallow in self-pity. Sira is Clason’s mouthpiece for the importance of maintaining one’s self-respect when it comes to money and not making excuses for past mistakes. Sira warns Dabasir not to be controlled by his indebtedness to others: “[N]o man can respect himself who does not pay his honest debts” (71). By changing his thinking to a “free” instead of an “enslaved” mindset, Dabasir can take control of his wealth and his life.