Lenehan is a thirty-one-year-old Dubliner who survives by placing bets on horse races and floating on the fringes of various social groups. Physically squat with scant grey hair and a prematurely aged face, he wears youthful clothing like a yachting cap and white rubber shoes. Though he acts the part of an enthusiastic and loyal listener, his jocularity is often forced, masking a deep cynicism and internal dissatisfaction with his lack of stable employment or a home.

Corley is a large, physically imposing man with a globular, oily head that sweats constantly. The son of a police inspector, he rejects respectable employment in favor of working as a police informant and orchestrating petty schemes. He views romance as a transactional exchange, routinely manipulating women for financial and personal gain while maintaining a highly suspicious attitude toward anyone who might cross him.

The Young Woman is a domestic servant working for a wealthy family in Dublin. She dresses carefully for her meetings with Corley, wearing a ragged black boa and a bunch of red flowers to make a good impression. Unaware of Corley's true name or intentions, she believes him to be a man of high social standing and acts eager to please him.

Corley's Father is a police inspector in Dublin. His established, respectable career and professional network represent the conventional path of law enforcement and social stability that his son deliberately avoids.

The Harpist is a weary street musician plucking heedlessly at the wires of his instrument. Both he and his harp project a sense of extreme exhaustion to the men passing by on the Dublin streets.