The wife
The wife is the narrator of the poem ‘’A Cry from and Indian Wife’’. She addresses both her husband and the white soldiers getting ready to go to battle and kill one another.
The husband
The husband is mentioned briefly in the poem ‘’ A Cry form an Indian Wife’’ and he is described as a brave man, ready to go to battle.
The Indian men
The Indian men are mentioned in the poem ‘’ A Cry form an Indian Wife’’ and they are the ones who fight for the freedom of their lands and the ones who fight to protect their families against the white men.
The white men
The term is used in a general way to make reference to the white men who came to America and destroyed the Indian way of life. The character is mentioned in the poem ‘’ A Cry form an Indian Wife’’.
The bison and the prairie cows
The two animals mentioned above are used as symbols for the traditional Indian way of life. Because the said animals disappeared, the traditional way of life also no longer exists. The animals are mentioned in the poem ‘’ A Cry form an Indian Wife’’.
The soldiers
The soldiers are presented in the poem ‘’ A Cry form an Indian Wife’’ in a rather positive manner and are described as being innocent. The reason why the Indian Wife sees them as innocent is because they are only following orders and thus are not the ones responsible for the pain they cause.
The ones who sent the soldiers
In the poem ‘’ A Cry form an Indian Wife’’, the narrator talks about the people who sent the soldiers to fight the Indians. In her opinion, those men are the evil ones and they should be the ones to suffer, not the soldiers sent on the battlefields.
The white women
The white women are another category in the poem ‘’A Cry form an Indian Wife’’. The narrator presents them as being white and fair and praying for the safe return of their husband and sons. In this sense, the Indian Wives are similar to the white women since they all want to have their loved ones home.
Joe
Joe is the major character in the poem ‘’Joe’’. He is a nine year old boy who lives in a white settlement and who spends his time husking corn. He is depicted in the poem as returning home after spending a day in the fields.
The old Indian woman
The old Indian woman appears in the poem ‘’The Corn Huskers’’. The Indian woman is frail and is used here as a symbol for the dying Indian nation.
