Wilbur Whateley is the protagonist for the first half of The Dunwich Horror. He is the product of a strange lineage. His grandfather performed a spell that allowed the cosmic entity Yog-Sothoth to impregnate Wilbur’s mother, Lavinia. She gave birth to twins, one of which is Wilbur and one of which is a powerful entity that spends years locked inside the Whateley family home. Wilbur is the more human of the two brothers, at least physically. When dressed, he resembles a human, but there is an uncanny air about Wilbur that makes people suspicious and uncomfortable in his presence. He emits a foul odor, for example, and he grows far faster than most people. By the time he is approaching his early teens, he is nearly nine feet tall. Most people are willing to convince themselves that Wilbur is human rather than contemplate the alternative. Dogs, on the other hand, are not as capable of deluding themselves and are aggressive towards him.

People’s polite attitude toward Wilbur offers a convenient mask for reality. Just as Wilbur’s clothes hide the monstrous physical parts of his body, manners and etiquette allow him to hide his true intentions. Wilbur is violent and dishonest.