Kazuko is a 29-year-old divorced woman who recently moved from a lavish Tokyo estate to a small Chinese-style villa in Izu. She feels a profound sense of purposelessness as her aristocratic privileges vanish in post-war Japan. She attempts to adapt to rural life by working in the garden, though she often worries about superstitious signs, such as her fear that burning snake eggs cursed her family.

Kazuko's mother is a widow who maintains the elegant manners of the traditional Japanese elite. She struggles to adjust to her family's reduced circumstances after leaving Tokyo for the Izu countryside. Her health is fragile, and she frequently reflects on her past while attempting to preserve a sense of dignity for her children.

Naoji is Kazuko's younger brother who deserted the military and spends his time in Tokyo's bohemian circles. He struggles with severe alcohol and opium dependencies, which drain the family's remaining finances. He is deeply cynical and alienated, feeling rejected by both his fellow aristocrats and the commoners he tries to befriend.

Mr. Uehara is a married proletarian novelist living a decadent lifestyle in Tokyo. He acts as a mentor figure to Naoji but openly despises the aristocratic class. He spends large sums of money on drinking games in dark bars, masking a deep creative stagnation and personal exhaustion.

Uncle Wada manages the practical and financial realities of Kazuko's declining family. He organizes their move from Tokyo to the countryside and monitors their dwindling bank accounts. He suggests pragmatic but unpopular solutions to their poverty, such as recommending Kazuko take a job as a governess.

Doctor Miyake is an elderly former court physician with aristocratic roots. He travels to the countryside to treat Kazuko's mother when her condition worsens. He speaks with a rough manner that amuses his aristocratic patients but understands the severity of the illnesses he treats.

Kazuko's unnamed former husband dissolved their marriage several years before the family moved to Izu. He grew paranoid and jealous, eventually divorcing Kazuko after their baby was stillborn and spreading damaging rumors about her character.

Hosoda is a painter who was falsely accused of carrying on an affair with Kazuko. The rumors surrounding his supposed relationship with her contributed to the destruction of her marriage and her social standing.

Mrs. Nishuyama is a young, local woman living in Izu. When Kazuko accidentally starts a fire in her yard, Mrs. Nishuyama openly criticizes the former aristocrats, accusing them of treating rural survival like a childish game.