The Speaker: John Keats himself, a passionate reader who feels amazed after reading Chapman’s translation of Homer.

Homer: The great ancient Greek poet, author of The Iliad and The Odyssey.

George Chapman: The English poet and translator whose translation of Homer’s works opened a new world to Keats.

Apollo: Greek God of poetry and the arts. Many poets write with devotion to him.

Cortez: A Spanish explorer. Keats compares his own discovery to Cortez seeing the Pacific Ocean for the first time.

His Men: Cortez’s soldiers, who silently look at the ocean in wonder.