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Contents
The father and central figure. Joe is practical, charming, and genuinely loves his family. He shipped the defective parts to save his business and convinced himself it was the right call. He spends the play defending that decision until the evidence makes it impossible. His suicide at the end is his only admission that he was wrong.
Joe's wife and Larry's mother. Kate refuses to accept that Larry is dead, and her refusal protects Joe's guilt from becoming complete. She is the emotional center of the family's denial. When Ann's letter destroys the illusion, Kate has nothing left to protect.
Joe's surviving son. Chris came home from the war believing in collective responsibility. He wants to marry Ann and move forward, but he also needs his father to be a good man. When Joe's guilt is confirmed, Chris is devastated because it means his entire moral framework was built on a lie.
Larry's former girlfriend, now in love with Chris. Ann has kept Larry's final letter for years. She uses it as a last resort when Kate refuses to accept the marriage. Ann is the character who finally forces the truth into the open.
Ann's brother, a lawyer who has just visited his father in prison. George arrives angry and ready to expose Joe. He's the outside pressure that starts cracking Joe's story. Joe almost wins him over with charm and nostalgia, but Kate's slip about Joe's health reignites George's suspicion.
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