Avis is a twenty-four-year-old woman accustomed to an insulated life of privilege in a university town. She functions as the narrator of the Everhard Manuscript, documenting her ideological awakening and subsequent participation in the socialist movement. Initially dismissive of socialist politics, she begins investigating the material conditions of the working class and the legal system that suppresses them. Her transformation drives her to abandon her elite status and commit entirely to the labor resistance.

Ernest is a former horseshoer and translator of German and French philosophy who leads the local Socialist Party. He possesses a muscular physique that contrasts sharply with the refined academics Avis usually encounters. He speaks fiercely against the capitalist system, demanding that people analyze society through concrete facts rather than abstract theories.

Dr. Cunningham is Avis’s widowed father and a physics professor at the State University of Berkeley. He frequently hosts dinner parties that function as sociological experiments, inviting guests from vastly different social strata. He maintains an optimistic view of the world and initially believes his independent wealth and academic tenure will protect him from corporate retaliation.

Bishop Morehouse is a sweet-tempered, scholarly clergyman. He initially preaches a traditional religious doctrine but undergoes a profound crisis of faith when Ernest exposes him to the grim living conditions of the working class. He attempts to apply Christian principles directly to social issues, urging the wealthy to distribute their riches to the poor.

Mr. Wickson is a prominent stockholder in the Sierra Mills and a powerful representative of the capitalist class. He makes no effort to hide his ruthlessness, openly threatening to use military force and suppress elections to crush any working-class resistance. He embodies the authoritarian regime that comes to be known as the Oligarchy.

Anthony Meredith is a scholar writing from the utopian city of Ardis in the year 419 of the Brotherhood of Man, seven centuries after Avis's era. He serves as the annotator of the manuscript, providing historical context, defining obsolete capitalist terms, and correcting what he perceives as Avis's romantic biases.

Jackson is a working-class man who lost his arm in an industrial accident at the Sierra Mills. He struggles to support his wife and three children in a dilapidated neighborhood. His failed legal battle for compensation serves as concrete proof to Avis of the systemic corruption in the courts.

Colonel Ingram is a highly connected corporate lawyer who defends the Sierra Mills. He utilizes his friendships with judges and intimidation tactics against workers to ensure the company avoids paying damages for workplace injuries.

Joseph Hurd serves as the legal representation for Jackson following his workplace accident. He struggles financially himself and admits to Avis that he would have taken a large portion of Jackson's compensation just to support his own family.

Wilcox is the retired university president at Dr. Cunningham's institution. Acting on behalf of wealthy donors, he pressures the professor to distance himself from socialist activists or face severe professional consequences.

Miss Brentwood is a wealthy socialite who organizes lectures in the private homes of the elite. She invites Ernest to speak at her club, mistakenly believing his working-class background makes him a harmless novelty.

Colonel Van Gilbert is a powerful corporate lawyer and a member of the elite Philomath Club. He reacts aggressively to Ernest's critiques of the capitalist class, accusing the young socialist of irrational demagoguery.

Mrs. Wickson is the wife of the powerful industrialist Mr. Wickson. Operating within the domestic and social spheres, she uses her influence to ostracize Avis from high society after Avis begins investigating the working conditions at the Sierra Mills.

Mr. Pertonwaithe is a wealthy stockholder in the Sierra Mills. He regards himself as a savior of society and unquestioningly dismisses the struggles of the working class as the natural order of things.

Mrs. Pertonwaithe is married to a Sierra Mills stockholder. Alongside Mrs. Wickson, she participates in blacklisting Avis from their elite social circles to protect their class interests.

Mary McKenna is a washerwoman whose husband falls ill, leaving her unable to pay rent on her wages alone. She naively waves an American flag to protest her eviction, resulting in her arrest and confinement in a psychiatric hospital.

O'Connor is the president of the Association of Machinists. He resists international labor solidarity, preferring to secure limited, immediate benefits for the specific workers he represents, effectively accepting the capitalist status quo.

John Carlson is a socialist comrade who assists Avis in building a small, hidden cabin in a sinkhole in the Sonoma Mountains. He provides physical labor and security for the resistance.

Peter Donnelly is a foreman at the Sierra Mills. He testifies against Jackson in court out of fear of retaliation from his employers, though he later joins an extremist anti-Oligarchy organization.

Timothy Donnelly is the son of Sierra Mills foreman Peter Donnelly. Unlike his father who leans toward radical resistance, Timothy joins the Mercenaries, the Oligarchy's secret military service.

Philip Wickson is the son of the ruthless Oligarch Mr. Wickson. He accidentally discovers the refuge in the Sonoma Mountains and interacts with the hidden socialist activists.

Anna Roylston is a dedicated member of the socialist resistance, known among her comrades as the Red Virgin. She rejects traditional domestic roles to serve the cause and frequently operates under various disguises.

Hartman is an undercover socialist spy embedded within the Oligarchy. He travels to Chicago with Avis to monitor the premature outbreak of violence, actively working to defuse explosives set by soldiers in the streets.

Garthwaite is a socialist resistance member who navigates the chaotic, violent streets of Chicago alongside Avis. He uses his knowledge of secret Iron Heel signals to help them evade capture by the Mercenaries.

Lora Peterson is a young revolutionist who joins the underground resistance efforts, assisting Avis with organizing spy networks and maintaining hidden operations.

Kate Bierce is a young activist in the socialist movement who assists with the covert operations managed from hidden refuges. She brings critical intelligence regarding spies tracking the revolutionaries.