Archy is a cockroach living in an urban newspaper office who was a human free-verse poet in a past life. He composes his thoughts by jumping onto the keys of a typewriter, an exhausting physical process that leaves him unable to press the shift key for capital letters or punctuation. Pragmatic and cautious, he questions behavior that contradicts survival and reason.

The Moth is an insect who entirely rejects the mundane routine of ordinary survival. He consciously abandons his sense and reason to pursue immediate, burning aesthetic experiences. He views fire as beautiful and argues that immolating himself in the pursuit of this beauty is superior to a long, boring life.

Mehitabel is an alley cat who exists within the same literary universe as Archy. Though she does not directly participate in the events of this specific poem, she represents the other urban animals that populate Archy's world and serve as subjects for his typed chronicles.