Through the application of theories developed by narratologists Gérard Genette and Mieke Bal, this essay examines characterization in Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca. Two characters are analyzed according to four principles of characterization as categorized by Bal: transformation, accumulation, repetition and relations. The main argument put forward is that while these four principles are used in interaction with each other to construct characters, they also contribute to the advancing of the plot, the mystifying of certain characters and as a way to create an impression of haunting. The significance of these findings is that they exemplify how two characters that figurate in the plot in very different ways can be characterized, using classifications and terms developed by narratologists.