The narrator
The narrator is an ordinary person, whose name is not stated. On the train he meets Posdnicheff, who tells him the story of his life. The narrator is only an accidental listener.
Posdnicheff
Posdnicheff is the protagonist of the story. He is an old man already with grey hair in his head. He tells the narrator the main events of his life, mostly those which led him to killing his wife. He was a rich man and had married a beautiful woman hoping for happy life. But they never were happy, since constant quarrels and fights made their lives unbearable. Their relationship came to the point where she betrayed him. In the state of jealousy he killed her; the court had justified him as he was a betrayed husband.
Posdnicheff’s wife
Posdnicheff does not tell the name of his wife. But he pictures her as a beautiful woman he fell in love with at the first sight, as least he thought he had. However, a happy relationship cannot be built only on beauty; they quarreled all the time, and their lives were really miserable. When Troukhatchevsky appeared in her life she liked him at once, and later he became her lover.
Troukhatchevsky
Troukhatchevsky is not a very pleasant person basing on the words of Posdnicheff. But still he had charm enough to seduce a married woman. He is a violin player, and with the help of music he made his advances to Posdnicheff’s wife, and succeeded.
