Robert Creeley (Speaker)
Robert Creeley names himself as the speaker of the poem in the third stanza. This is interesting, given that this occurs after he mentions Virgil, one of the most famous and revered poets in the Western canon. Creeley's voice is characterized in contrast to much of the mythology he mentions. His tone remains largely understated, as he searches for moments of humanness in these stories. Inserting himself into the poem seems appropriate as he adopts the position of someone trying to find a contemporary reading of these stories.
Aeneas
The mythic hero Aeneas is mentioned multiple times in the poem. Son of the ruler Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite, Aeneas was a Trojan who fled the city of Troy after it fell to the Achaens. He went on to found the city of Rome, and his various adventures were recounted by Virgil in the epic poem, the Aeneid. In the context of the poem, Creeley attempts to find new meaning in his story and points to a moment where he shows human vulnerability.
Virgil
Virgil was a major Latin poet who wrote the Aeneid, an epic poem about the wanderings of Aeneas, the mythic founder of Rome. Creeley makes an indirect comparison between himself and Virgil in the third stanza of the poem.
Cumaean Sibyl
Sibyl was a priestess who appeared in the Aeneid. She assists Aeneas in his attempt to visit the underworld and provides him with important words of caution.
Hercules
Hercules is another mythic hero referenced in the poem. He is best-known for his twelve labors, a series of nearly impossible tasks assigned to him after he sought penance for killing his wife and child in a fit of madness.
