Private Gar
There are two sides to Gar. First, there is Private Gar, his more unconscious interior life. He is "the unseen man, the man within, the conscience, the alter ego, the secret thoughts, the id." Throughout the course of the play, he is portrayed as an almost complete opposite of Public Gar. He often takes on the opposite perspective of Public Gar, balancing him out and providing a counterbalance to whatever Public is thinking or saying. He is also sharper and more critical than Public Gar, and this quality becomes a motif throughout the play. He says the things that Public Gar is unable to say. There are times where Private can become overwhelmed with emotion, causing him to recite a speech to calm himself down. Private is most active in trying to get Public to communicate with his taciturn father, S.B.
Public Gar
Public Gar is "the Gar that people see, talk to, talk about." Public Gar is the main character of the play. Similar to his father, S.B., he seldom shows emotion of any kind, and instead prefers to keep everything inside. He often acts tough and performs a kind of subdued masculinity, but Private Gar reveals to the audience that inside, he is quite the opposite, jubilant, full of life and emotion. Public Gar is eager to get to America and leave his old life behind, but he is also unsure of this decision. While he finds his work demeaning, is humiliated by his recent heartbreak, and feels dissatisfied with his friendships, Public Gar is also not so sure he's ready to leave Ireland behind.
Madge
Madge is the O'Donnell's housekeeper. The stage directions describe her as "a woman in her sixties. She walks as if her feet were precious." She has worked for them for a long time, and therefore feels comfortable around the two of them and has many opinions about how they ought to treat one another. Madge is the closest thing to a mother figure for Gar, which is why he acts cheerful and most like himself around her. Madge has a sister and nieces and nephews whom she adores, but is disappointed when her niece does not name her daughter after her. She is a warm and maternal presence in the play, but is also grappling with her own disappointments and sadness, which often goes unnoticed by the men in her life.
S.B. O'Donnell
S.B. O'Donnell is Gar's seemingly emotionless father. The stage directions tell us that "He is in his late sixties... a responsible, respectable citizen." A shop owner who loves his routine, he barely acknowledges Gar's imminent departure. Private Gar is able to predict S.B.'s every move, from every comment to his nightly game of chess with his friend, Canon. S.B.'s relationship with Gar is awkward and cold, but there are rare glimpses into S.B.'s true feelings and sadness about Gar's departure, such as when he touches Gar's things in the middle of the night and when he recalls to Madge the time that the young Gar left school in order to work at his shop.
Kate Doogan
Kathy Doogan, more commonly referred to as Kate, is Gar's ex-girlfriend. Her father is a senator and she is used to an upper-class lifestyle, which puts some strain on her relationship with the more working-class Gar. In spite of this, she loves Gar and encourages him to ask her father for her hand in marriage, and gets very disappointed when he does not. When the couple splits, Kate marries Francis King, a well-to-do son of a family friend of the Doogans.
Master Boyle
Master Boyle is Gar's old schoolteacher.The stage directions describe him as "around sixty, white-haired, handsome, defiant. He is shabbily dressed." Gar feels more paternal attachment to Boyle than he does to S.B, and he is haunted by the fact that Boyle once dated his mother. Boyle meets Gar with good intentions: he visits to present him with a book of poems and to tell him he'll miss him. However, Boyle also gives off a pathetic, regretful air, shown in the way he laments over his missed opportunities and asks for money from Gar to go have a drink at the pub. In some ways, Boyle represents how Gar feels about Ireland itself; Gar loves him dearly, but is also repelled by his desperation and sentimentality.
Lizzy Sweeney
Lizzy is Gar's aunt, a sister of his mother's. She is described as "a small, energetic woman, heavily made-up, impulsive." Her actions show her erratic emotions that sometimes overwhelm her. Her speech is blunt, and she shows a lot of affection towards Gar due to the fact that she cannot have children but longs for a child's presence to fill her home. She is the reason that Gar is going to Philadelphia in the first place, and Gar has mixed feelings about living under her roof and having her act as his surrogate mother.
Ned
Ned is the leader of Gar's friends. He is cocky, boisterous, and crude in his descriptions of women, even though it is all a lot of bluster. He has a tendency to exaggerate his exploits in an effort to seem more impressive and as masculine as possible. He proves to be kinder and more loving when he gifts Gar with a belt as a farewell present and tries to give a sentimental goodbye.
Joe
Joe is the youngest member of the Boys. He is described as being "patently gauche, innocent, obvious." Being the youngest, he has an air of innocence to him since he hasn't been completely pressured to appear as masculine as the others yet. Due to his naivety, he takes everything literally. Joe is the only one who attempts to make Gar feel like he will be missed.
