Who is Willard and Charlotte Russell from The Devil All the Time and what is their importance?

Willard is Arvin's father and Charlotte is his mother. Willard is portrayed as a man traumatized by his experiences in World War II that he seeks redemption for in increasingly obsessive prayer. Charlotte is relatively undefined as a character, but comes across as compassionate and sensitive, perhaps as beautiful inside as she is portrayed to be outside. When Charlotte contracts cancer and dies, Willard's psychotic hope that prayer will heal her is an essential component of the trauma that turns Arvin against religion. This, in turn, is an equally essential component of the book's overall thematic statement on the emptiness and futility of spirituality. It's also important to note that Willard's rules for revenge, as portrayed in the prologue, further define the character of his son Arvin, setting him on a course of action and belief that defines Arvin's journey through the entire narrative.