# Poetry — Character guide

> Key figures in Poetry by William Shakespeare.

- [Adonis](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/adonis.md): A beautiful youth loved by Venus, who meets a tragic end while hunting.
- [Venus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/venus.md): The goddess of love, who passionately pursues Adonis.
- [Lucrece](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/lucrece.md): A virtuous Roman wife whose rape by Tarquin leads to her suicide.
- [Tarquin](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/tarquin.md): The lustful prince who rapes Lucrece, sparking a political revolt.
- [Collatine](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/collatine.md): Lucrece's husband, whose boasting about her virtue incites Tarquin's crime.
- [Collatinus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/collatinus.md): A Roman nobleman and relative of Lucrece, present at the discovery of her rape.
- [Junius Brutus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/brutus.md): A Roman leader who vows revenge and leads the uprising after Lucrece's death.
- [Lucretius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/lucretius.md): Lucrece's grieving father, who witnesses her suicide.
- [Sinon](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/sinon.md): A Greek who tricked Troy with the wooden horse, used as a metaphor by Lucrece.
- [Priam](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/priam.md): The slain king of Troy, referenced in Lucrece's lament.
- [Philomela](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/philomela.md): A mythological figure who was raped and transformed into a nightingale, invoked by Lucrece.
- [Nestor](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/nestor.md): A wise Greek elder from the Trojan War, mentioned in passing.
- [Cupid](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/cupid.md): The god of love, appearing in Venus and Adonis.
- [Narcissus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/narcissus.md): A youth who fell in love with his own reflection, referenced in the poem.
- [Jove](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/jove.md): The king of the gods, invoked by characters in distress.
- [Fortune](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/fortune.md): The personified goddess of luck, blamed for misfortunes.
- [Death](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/death.md): Personified figure of mortality, addressed by Lucrece.
- [Time](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/time.md): Personified force of change and decay, referenced in the sonnets.
- [Muse](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/muse.md): The poetic muse, invoked in the sonnets.
- [Love](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/love.md): Personified love, a central theme in the sonnets.
- [Youth](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/youth.md): Personified youth, addressed in the sonnets as a fleeting beauty.
- [William Shakespeare](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/william_shakespeare.md): The author, mentioned in the endnotes or dedication.
- [Tereus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/tereus.md): A mythological king who raped Philomela, referenced in the poem.
- [King Pandion](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/pandion.md): Father of Philomela and Procne in Greek myth, mentioned briefly.
- [Poor Corydon](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/corydon.md): A shepherd figure from pastoral poetry, referenced in The Passionate Pilgrim.
- [Hector](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/hector.md): A Trojan prince and warrior, mentioned in Lucrece's tapestry.
- [Ulysses](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/ulysses.md): A Greek hero of the Trojan War, referenced in the poem.
- [Pyrrhus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/pyrrhus.md): A Greek warrior who killed Priam, depicted in Lucrece's painting.
- [Cynthia](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters/cynthia.md): A name for the moon goddess Diana, referenced in the sonnets.

HTML index: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_28_se/characters