The unofficial wife of Major Ivan Matveyevitch (though treated as his wife). Principally the daughter of a medical officer, Marya is one of the rare characters who can run a household in a small fortress in the middle of a front line and remain loving and motherly amidst military savagery and destruction. In the middle of all that coarse military environment, she preserves her own honor, purity, and compassion. She approaches Hadji Murad and even Butler with mercy; at the end of the novel, she is the voice of conscience, looking at Murad's severed head with disgust and branding the Russian soldiers as 'murderers'.
Although the details of how she became attached to the major are not provided in depth, it is known that she is a loyal woman who grew up in difficult conditions, is honest, and follows her own conscience. She is the one who keeps the Major in order.
With her tall stature, freckled face, full features, and thick, combed-back blonde hair, she profiles as a young and healthy provincial Russian woman.
Butler
The novice officer who turns away her interest, but for whom she feels motherly affection.
Hacı Murat
The respected captive she values.
İvan Matveyeviç
The lover she is with and whose troubles she shares.