Both main characters in Caleb Williams fall victim to their own faults throughout the course of the novel: Caleb lives to feed his curiosity, and Ferdinando allows pride to dictate his actions. The consequences make both of them tragic heroes—characters of great or virtuous standing who are fated for downfalls brought on by their own faults or choices (other literary tragic heroes include Oedipus or Dr. Victor Frankenstein). In Caleb Williams, these flaws are class-inflected: Caleb is from a lower class and has only risen in society through his intellectual curiosity, whereas Ferdinando has the entitlement of a man born into wealth.

Caleb notes early on that his most defining quality is his curiosity (60). It is not only his most obvious trait, but it is also his most fatal flaw. Caleb’s curiosity is what pushes him to begin keeping an eye on Ferdinando after hearing Mr. Collins’s account of his backstory. Caleb even states how, try as he might, he kept coming back to Ferdinando and he had to satisfy his curiosity. Caleb pushes too far, and once he satisfies his curiosity with the truth, he begins to feel its consequences in his relationship with Ferdinando. Ferdinando now keeps such a close eye on Caleb that Caleb no longer feels free, and he realizes that his prying has condemned him to slavery under Ferdinando.