The Study of Poetry Characters

Matthew Arnold: Matthew Arnold (1822–1888) was an English poet and literary critic. 

Homer: Homer (8th century B.C.E) was the ancient Greek figure credited with composing The Odyssey and The Iliad, epic poems that are considered foundational works in Western culture. 

Dante Alighieri: Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) was an Italian poet and the author of The Divine Comedy, a narrative poem that is considered the greatest poetic work in the Italian language. 

William Shakespeare: William Shakespeare (1564–1616) was an English poet and playwright who is often considered the supreme poet and dramatist of the English language. 

John Milton: John Milton (1608–1674) was an English poet and the author of Paradise Lost, a foundational work of English poetry. 

William Wordsworth: William Wordsworth (1770–1850) was an English poet of the Romantic period. 

Geoffrey Chaucer: Geoffrey Chaucer (1340s–1400) was an English poet and the author of the Canterbury Tales. 

Robert Burns: Robert Burns (1759–1796) was a Scottish poet who is considered the national poet of Scotland. 

Minor Characters

Saint Beuve: Saint Beuve (1804–1869) was a French literary critic. 

Napoleon Bonaparte: Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821) was Emperor of the French. 

Charles d’Héricault: Charles d’Héricault (1823–1899) was a French literary critic. 

M. Vitet: Ludovic Vitet (1802–1873) was a French politician and literary critic. 

John Dryden: John Dryden (1631–1700) was an English poet and literary critic. 

Alexander Pope: Alexander Pope (1688–1744) was an English poet.

Thomas Gray: Thomas Gray (1716–1771) was an English poet. 

Percy Bysshe Shelley: Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822) was an English poet of the Romantic era. 

Lord Byron: Lord Byron (1788–1824) was an English poet of the Romantic era.