The narrator of the poem serves as an observer and active participant in American life who celebrates the physical body as an extension of the soul. He deeply values the interconnectedness of all people, viewing every individual regardless of race, gender, or class as divine and worthy of praise. He acts as a guide, inviting the reader to appreciate the sacred nature of the human form through observation and physical closeness.

An eighty-year-old, vigorous, and highly respected man who serves as an idealized figure of American health and virtue. He is the father of five sons and many grandsons, maintaining an active lifestyle of hunting, fishing, and farming. His temperate habits, such as drinking only water, and his striking physical presence draw the personal love and admiration of all who know him.

A man placed on an auction block whose body is being sold by a careless auctioneer. The poem highlights his magnificent physical form and his profound potential as the father of future generations. His presence is used to argue for the sacredness and equality of all human bodies, showing that he contains the same blood, passions, and soul as any free person.

A woman similarly placed on the auction block, recognized by the narrator for her vital role in humanity's future. She is described as the teeming mother of mothers, possessing the same inherent sacredness, vitality, and divinity as any other person. Her physical form is presented as equal in value and wonder to any free individual on Earth.

A man selling enslaved people at an auction block. He is characterized as a sloven who fundamentally misunderstands his own business and the magnitude of a human form. He fails to see the historical, biological, and spiritual value of the bodies he attempts to price and sell.