Tadzio is a fictional character from the novella "Death in Venice," written by Thomas Mann. He is a young Polish boy who captivates the protagonist, Gustav von Aschenbach, with his beauty and grace during a summer vacation in Venice. Tadzio represents idealized youth and artistic inspiration, embodying the themes of desire and obsession. In the story, Tadzio's presence profoundly affects Aschenbach, leading him to confront his own aging and mortality. The character serves as a symbol of unattainable beauty and the complexities of human emotion, ultimately influencing Aschenbach's tragic fate in the narrative.