The mother is a strict, demanding figure residing in a poor, rural setting in the British West Indies. She imparts generational knowledge regarding domestic duties, cooking, herbal medicine, and social etiquette to prepare her child for adulthood. Her tone is exacting and often critical, driven by a deep anxiety that her daughter might succumb to societal pitfalls or become a societal outcast. Despite her caustic delivery, she provides practical advice meant to empower her daughter to maintain independence and self-respect in a patriarchal society.

The daughter is a young girl in the British West Indies who has recently reached sexual maturity. She absorbs a relentless stream of commands regarding how to clean, cook, maintain clothing, and behave properly in her community. Though largely silent, she briefly interrupts the monologue to defend herself against assumptions about her behavior. She possesses a mix of innocence and budding independence, trying to understand how to manage the transition into womanhood and handle the expectations placed upon her.

The father is the male head of the household who requires domestic care from the women in the family. He represents the traditional gender expectations of the story's setting, existing as a figure for whom clothes must be properly ironed without creases. He does not speak or appear actively but serves as a symbol of the male figures the daughter must learn to accommodate and care for in her domestic life.

The wharf-rat boys are a group of young men in the community who loiter near the docks or shipyards. The mother views them as a physical and social threat to her daughter's reputation and safety. They represent the dangerous external influences that threaten to compromise a young woman's respectability if she is seen interacting with them.

The baker is a local tradesman in the community who sells bread. He represents the public commercial sphere where the daughter will eventually have to interact and assert herself as an adult woman. The mother uses him as an example of an external figure who might try to deny the daughter her right to verify the quality of goods.