Silent Hill 2 Characters & Monsters Book 2

James Sunderland (Character)

Gender: Male

Age: 29

Status: Unknown (varies with ending)

Cause Of Death: Drowning (In Water ending only)

Features: Dark blond hair and green eyes

Occupation: Clerk

Description: James Sunderland is the protagonist of Silent Hill 2. As the game begins, James remarks that his wife, Mary Shepherd-Sunderland, has been dead for 3 years. Regardless, he has received a mysterious letter in Mary's handwriting, claiming that she is waiting for him in their "special place", somewhere in Silent Hill. When James arrives at the town, he becomes ensnared in a series of bizarre and nightmarish events which force him to question his sanity, morality, memory and personality.

                                                                                   Personality

James was originally envisioned with having 2 different sides to his personality.

Maria describes James as kind; Mary, in her letter to Laura, describes him as a little surly and says he does not talk much, but is sweet underneath his enigmatic exterior. James is typically courteous to other characters he meets in Silent Hill. He is polite and mild-tempered. For example, he tries to help Angela Orosco cope with her emotional distress and tries to touch her shoulder to comfort her but fails. When James first encounters Eddie Dombrowski, he becomes concerned for Eddie's welfare and advises him to leave the town. He also expresses concern for Laura, attempting to follow her through Silent Hill so she won't come to harm.

However, James's darker side is revealed in some of his actions. James lost some of his confidence and self-respect when Marry became ill. James is in deep grief and depression from his relationship with Mary and her death. He denies the murder of his wife, attributing her death to her disease. James may be perceived as cowardly, running away from his guilt and blame. Upon being confronted about the truth or something uncomfortable, James tends to avoid eye contact, looks down, turns away, or remains silent. James is rather bad at consoling people; he often falls short in regards to helping Eddie and Angela.

James is borderline suicidal, yet seems to deny his suicidal feelings. James originally came to Silent Hill to kill himself, and actually does so in the In Water ending. 

James' mental state is stilted and it shows through several questionable things throughout the game, including leaving his car door open; leaving his flashlight on while hiding from Pyramid Head; sticking his hand inside a hole in a wall after being pricked by something inside; dipping his hands inside a filthy toilet to retrieve a wallet and neglecting to wash his hands afterward; and asking a visibly armed Eddie if he's "gone nuts". James also says, "Did that just move or was it only my imagination?" when checking a corpse. If the player walks up to Angela again in the cemetery, she will ask, "Aren't you looking for someone?" and a forgetful James will reply, "That's right." and walk off. He also does risky things such as jumping down long, dark holes that appear to be bottomless.

His determination to uncover the truth about Mary's fate and his implied suicidal tendencies may explain his reckless and illogical behavior. James is in grief and mourning, and would naturally be somewhat traumatized by both Mary's and Maria's deaths. He tells Angela, "I guess I really don't care if [Silent Hill]'s dangerous. "Later, when Angela questions why James is looking for his wife if she's dead, he responds, "Don't worry-I'm not crazy... at least... I don't think so..."

                                                                                     Background

James worked as a clerk for a small company, possibly in Ashfield. His father is Frank Sunderland, who is the superintendent of an apartment building in Ashfield.