"His figure was pleasing and majestic; but when he was angry one of his eyes became so terrible, that no person could bear to behold it, and the wretch upon whom it was fixed instantly fell backward and sometimes expired."
Here, the narrator introduces Caliph Vathek, depicting him as being a volatile, threatening, and frightening figure. It is clear that Vathek is not a typical protagonist, as he has barely any favorable characteristics, and instead he is almost the antagonist of this text. Through Vathek, the reader is ultimately warned against selfish and greedy behavior.
"Nor did he think... that it was necessary to make a hell of this world to enjoy Paradise in the next."
Here, we might see Vathek as a rebellious figure, who resists traditional religious thinking. Instead of sacrificing his indulgent hedonism in favor of moral virtue and the hopes of one day reaching heaven in the afterlife, Vathek decides to sacrifice his hopes of heaven by indulging in his every whim. This idea firmly characterizes Vathek as being a "Gothic overreacher," whose transgressions might lead to his demise.
"He had studied so much for his amusement in the lifetime of his father, as to acquire a great deal of knowledge, though not a sufficiency to satisfy himself; for he wished to know everything, even sciences that did not exist."
In this passage, we can see Vathek's ambitious and prideful tendencies. Although it is a virtue to be knowledgeable, Vathek seeks something beyond knowledge, as it involves "sciences that did not exist." He is essentially transgressing into unknown territory, and this is something that leads to his downfall as it makes him vulnerable to dark powers.
