The main subject of the poem, referred to directly as "you." This figure represents the reader, the writer, or humanity in general. The Addressee goes on a nighttime quest for words, attempting to locate them using a pseudo-scientific divining rod. This seemingly intellectual pursuit quickly forces a confrontation with deep psychological scars, an inescapable past, and violent internal struggles. Burdened by history, this figure leaves un-erasable footprints while walking and ultimately faces a foaming ray of light that carries a rotting, previously bitten piece of fruit.

Large, menacing dogs traditionally bred for war and blood sport. They invade the Addressee's body when a historical scar rips open and floods the land with blood. Unlike undomesticated predators that only eat to survive, these hounds celebrate a ferocious, wilder thirst and hunger. Representing the brutal, aggressive aspects of human nature instilled by people, their howling takes over the internal space during the long night.

An ambiguous natural element that intervenes in the Addressee's struggle during the night. As the last moon, it initially tries to help by throwing a bare, silver bone among the howling hounds. This meatless bone acts as an echo of a traditional Passover sacrifice but fails to provide long-term salvation. Ultimately, the moon turns into a threat, generating a foaming beam of light that forces the Addressee to confront a rotting, bitter piece of fruit from years ago.

A Jewish-Romanian polyglot who writes his poetry in German. Born Paul Antschel in Czernowitz, he survives forced labor in a Southern Moldavian work-camp and channels his traumatic experiences from World War II into his writing. He relies on metaphor and intentionally difficult syntax to process his lived experiences and family history in the Holocaust. His struggle with survivor's guilt shapes his approach to language, leading him to create complex works about the inescapability of the past.

A graphic artist living in Paris. She marries Paul Celan in 1951, integrating into his life as he becomes a French citizen. She accompanies him through his post-war artistic career and provides support as he engages with Jewish intellectual circles across Europe.

The son born to Paul Celan and Gisele Lestrange in Paris. He grows up in France as his father establishes a career publishing poetry and working as a translator across multiple languages.