Ashley Wilkes - Definition and Overview

Ashley Wilkes is a fictional character in Gone With the Wind, the man with whom Scarlett O'Hara is obsessed. He loves Melanie, who is "the only dream he had that lived and breathed and never died in the face of reality." (She is also his cousin.) And, although he really loves Melly, he leads Scarlett to believe that he loves her.

The character was played by Leslie Howard in the film. Howard was reluctant to play the part, for it was the type of person he got no joy out of playing: Ashley is a dreamer, someone who never could take real life.