Poetry · Characters
Character guide
Key figures in Poetry by Oscar Wilde.
The Hermit
major
Also known as hunted
A solitary figure who serves as a narrator or focal character in several poems.
The Teacher of Wisdom
supporting
A philosophical figure who imparts knowledge and appears in a poem of the same name.
The Young Man
supporting
A youthful character often addressed or referenced in lyrical passages.
Queen Venus
supporting
Also known as Venus
The Roman goddess of love, appearing as a character in mythological contexts.
Narcissus
minor
A mythological youth who falls in love with his own reflection.
Anthony
minor
A historical or literary figure referenced in the poems.
Queen Henrietta Maria
minor
The queen consort of Charles I, appearing as a character in a poem.
The Warders
minor
Guardians or keepers mentioned in the narrative.
Athena
minor
The Greek goddess of wisdom, appearing in mythological references.
Byron
minor
The Romantic poet Lord Byron, referenced as a figure in the poems.
Christ
minor
Also known as Dear Christ, Lord Christ
The central figure of Christianity, invoked in religious poems.
Dante
minor
The Italian poet Dante Alighieri, referenced as a literary figure.
Cassandra
minor
A Trojan prophetess cursed to speak true prophecies no one believes.
Keats
minor
The Romantic poet John Keats, referenced in poems about art and love.
The Wretched Cyprian
minor
Also known as the Cyprian Queen
A sorrowful figure associated with Cyprus, likely Venus in a tragic aspect.
Young Hylas
minor
Also known as Hylas
A beautiful youth from Greek myth, companion of Heracles.
Gaston de Foix
minor
A French military commander from the Italian Wars.
Helen
minor
Also known as Queen Helen
Helen of Troy, the legendary beauty whose abduction sparked the Trojan War.
Persephone
minor
Also known as Singer of Persephone
The Greek queen of the underworld, daughter of Demeter.
Rosa Mystica
minor
A mystical rose, often a symbol of the Virgin Mary in poetry.
Poseidon
minor
Also known as huge Poseidon, bold Poseidon
The Greek god of the sea, appearing in mythological contexts.
Joseph of Arimathea
minor
The biblical figure who buried Jesus after the crucifixion.
Love
minor
Also known as Sweet, Flower of Love, Γλυκύπικροϛ Ερωϛ Sweet
The personification of love, addressed as a character in poems.
Mary
minor
The Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus, referenced in religious poems.
Ellen Terry
minor
Also known as Camma To Ellen Terry
A famous Victorian actress, addressed in a poem.
Bassanio
minor
A character from Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice.
Theodoric
minor
A historical king of the Ostrogoths, referenced in poems.
Pan
minor
Also known as old Pan, Great Pan
The Greek god of the wild, shepherds, and rustic music.
Dionysos
minor
Also known as young Dionysos, the Bassarid
The Greek god of wine, ritual madness, and ecstasy.
Endymion
minor
Also known as young Endymion
A beautiful youth from Greek myth loved by the moon goddess Selene.
Daphnis
minor
Also known as Young Daphnis
A Sicilian shepherd from Greek pastoral poetry.
Tamburlaine
minor
Also known as lordly Tamburlaine
A historical conqueror, subject of Christopher Marlowe's play.
Death
minor
Also known as the Lord of Death
The personification of death, appearing as a figure in poems.
Artemis
minor
The Greek goddess of the hunt and wilderness.
Pallas
minor
Also known as Pale Pallas, Pale
An epithet for the goddess Athena, meaning maiden or warrior.
Slander
minor
The personification of malicious gossip or defamation.
The Dryads
minor
Tree nymphs from Greek mythology, appearing in pastoral poems.
Lear
minor
The tragic king from Shakespeare's King Lear.
Roma
minor
The personification of the city of Rome.
Agamemnon
minor
The king of Mycenae and leader of the Greek forces in the Trojan War.
Apollo
minor
The Greek god of music, poetry, and prophecy.
Aeschylos
minor
The ancient Greek playwright, author of the Oresteia.
Milton
minor
The English poet John Milton, author of Paradise Lost.
Huntress Dian
minor
Also known as Dian
The Roman goddess of the hunt, equivalent to Artemis.
Proserpine
minor
The Roman queen of the underworld, equivalent to Persephone.
Jove
minor
The Roman king of the gods, equivalent to Zeus.
Bacchus
minor
Also known as young Bacchus
The Roman god of wine, equivalent to Dionysos.
Old Jeannette
minor
An elderly female character mentioned in a poem.
Mnemosyne
minor
The Greek goddess of memory and mother of the Muses.
Faun
minor
A mythological creature, half-man and half-goat, from Roman myth.
Ammon
minor
Also known as White Ammon
An Egyptian deity, often identified with Zeus or Jupiter.
Apidanus
minor
Also known as great Apidanus
A river god from Greek mythology, associated with a river in Thessaly.
Adonis
minor
Also known as young Adonis
A beautiful youth from Greek myth, loved by Aphrodite.
Panthea
minor
A female character from Greek myth or literature, possibly from Xenophon.
Antinous
minor
A beautiful youth from Greek myth, lover of the emperor Hadrian.
O Melancholy
minor
The personification of melancholy, addressed in a poem.
Eros
minor
The Greek god of love, equivalent to Cupid.
Mars
minor
The Roman god of war.
Charmides
minor
Also known as Young Charmides
A beautiful youth from Greek literature, subject of a poem by Wilde.
Amaryllis
minor
A stock name for a shepherdess in pastoral poetry.
Neptune
minor
The Roman god of the sea, equivalent to Poseidon.
Isabella
minor
A female character from literature, possibly from Keats or Shakespeare.
Beatricé
minor
The beloved of Dante Alighieri, appearing in his works.
Sphinx
minor
Also known as False Sphinx
A mythical creature with a human head and lion's body, from Greek myth.
Grave Odysseus
minor
The cunning hero of Homer's Odyssey, depicted as solemn.
Fate
minor
The personification of destiny or inevitable outcome.
Sin
minor
The personification of moral transgression, often in religious contexts.
Nilus
minor
The personification of the Nile River in Egyptian mythology.
Oreads
minor
Also known as the Oreads
Mountain nymphs from Greek mythology.
Reedy Styx Old Charon
minor
The ferryman of the dead across the river Styx in Greek myth.
