# Narrator — Poetry character guide > Narrator in Poetry by James Joyce. **Role:** major **Also known as:** Unknown, I, me, my, mine **First appearance:** 0000-chamber-music ## Snapshot A printer-poet and lover who sets his press against Dublin's pieties while his heart keeps time with rain, cattle, and vanished kisses. ## Who they are He moves through Joyce's poems as both craftsman and suitor: a Dublin printer who boasts of setting folklore and poets but draws the line at libels on 'Stepmother Erin,' and a first-person voice who walks out by Donnycarney, watches cattle driven above Cabra, and hears an army charging on the land. His tension is double — public conscience versus private longing — and he confesses both with the same rueful, singing cadence. He matters because every early-middle poem passes through his ear: love, exile, and Irish grievance all arrive in his one unmistakable voice. ## Relationships ### [Love](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/characters/love) _romantic_ The narrator is deeply in love with Love, who is an idealized or personified figure of affection, creating a passionate but possibly unrequited dynamic. ### [Beloved](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/characters/beloved) _romantic_ The narrator is intensely devoted to the Beloved, who represents a specific person of desire, with interactions suggesting longing and emotional intimacy. ### [Rahoon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/characters/rahoon) _social_ The narrator interacts with Rahoon as a peripheral figure, possibly a location or minor character, with limited emotional depth. ### [Players](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/characters/players) _social_ The narrator observes or interacts with Players as performers or symbolic figures, indicating a detached or theatrical relationship. ## In the story ### [Chamber Music](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/chamber-music) The voice expressing desire and melancholy throughout the chapter. ### [I: Strings in the Earth and Air](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/i-strings-in-the-earth-and-air) The observing voice that describes the music and Love's presence. ### [II: The Twilight Turns from Amethyst](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/ii-the-twilight-turns-from-amethyst) Observes the twilight and the scene with the piano player. ### [At That Hour When All Things Have Repose](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/iii-at-that-hour-when-all-things-have-repose) The speaker who addresses the lonely watcher and invokes the harps. ### [IV: When the Shy Star Goes Forth in Heaven](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/iv-when-the-shy-star-goes-forth-in-heaven) The singer who visits the beloved at eventide. ### [V: Lean Out of the Window](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/v-lean-out-of-the-window) The speaker who abandons reading and his room to follow the sound of singing. ### [VI: I Would in That Sweet Bosom Be](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/vi-i-would-in-that-sweet-bosom-be) The speaker who yearns for closeness and peace in the beloved's embrace. ### [VII: My Love Is in a Light Attire](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/vii-my-love-is-in-a-light-attire) Observes and describes the beloved's movements in the spring orchard. ### [Who Goes Amid the Green Wood](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/viii-who-goes-amid-the-green-wood) The speaker who observes and celebrates the beloved's presence in the green wood. ### [IX: Winds of May, That Dance on the Sea](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/ix-winds-of-may-that-dance-on-the-sea) The speaker who calls out to the winds and expresses longing for the beloved. ### [X: Bright Cap and Streamers](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/x-bright-cap-and-streamers) The speaker who describes the singing lover and ultimately responds to the call. ### [XII: What Counsel Has the Hooded Moon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xii-what-counsel-has-the-hooded-moon) Addresses the beloved, asserting his own wisdom over the moon's. ### [XIII: Go Seek Her Out All Courteously](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xiii-go-seek-her-out-all-courteously) The speaker who sends the wind as a messenger to his beloved. ### [XIV: My Dove, My Beautiful One](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xiv-my-dove-my-beautiful-one) The speaker who waits by the cedar tree and calls to the beloved. ### [XV: From Dewy Dreams, My Soul, Arise](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xv-from-dewy-dreams-my-soul-arise) The speaker who urges the soul to arise from dewy dreams. ### [XVI: O Cool Is the Valley Now](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xvi-o-cool-is-the-valley-now) The speaker who invites the beloved to the valley. ### [XVII: Because Your Voice Was at My Side](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xvii-because-your-voice-was-at-my-side) The speaker who acted on the beloved's influence and caused pain to a friend. ### [XVIII: O Sweetheart, Hear You](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xviii-o-sweetheart-hear-you) The speaker who tells of his sorrow and the comfort he finds in love. ### [XIX: Be Not Sad Because All Men](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xix-be-not-sad-because-all-men) The speaker who offers comfort and reassurance to the beloved. ### [XX: In the Dark Pine-Wood](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xx-in-the-dark-pine-wood) The speaker who invites the beloved to the pine-wood. ### [He Who Hath Glory Lost, nor Hath](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxi-he-who-hath-glory-lost-nor-hath) The speaker who describes the lost glory and isolation of the protagonist. ### [XXII: Of That So Sweet Imprisonment](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxii-of-that-so-sweet-imprisonment) The speaker who yearns for imprisonment in the beloved's arms. ### [XXIII: This Heart That Flutters Near My Heart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxiii-this-heart-that-flutters-near-my-heart) The speaker who treasures the beloved's heart and reflects on love's fleeting nature. ### [XXIV: Silently She’s Combing](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxiv-silently-she-s-combing) The observer who speaks directly to the beloved, pleading for her to stop combing her hair. ### [XXVI: Thou Leanest to the Shell of Night](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxvi-thou-leanest-to-the-shell-of-night) The speaker who addresses the lady and interprets her fearful mood. ### [XXVII: Though I Thy Mithridates Were](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxvii-though-i-thy-mithridates-were) The speaker reflects on his own immunity and vulnerability, and critiques his own poetic expression. ### [XXVIII: Gentle Lady, Do Not Sing](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxviii-gentle-lady-do-not-sing) The speaker who addresses the lady and reflects on love's weariness. ### [XXIX: Dear Heart, Why Will You Use Me So?](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxix-dear-heart-why-will-you-use-me-so) The speaker who questions and laments the beloved's treatment. ### [XXX: Love Came to Us in Time Gone By](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxx-love-came-to-us-in-time-gone-by) Reflects on past love and the passage of time. ### [XXXI: O, It Was Out by Donnycarney](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxxi-o-it-was-out-by-donnycarney) The speaker who recalls walking with his love and receiving her kiss. ### [XXXII: Rain Has Fallen All the Day](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxxii-rain-has-fallen-all-the-day) The speaker who observes the rain and fallen leaves, and invites the beloved to walk and talk among memories. ### [XXXIII: Now, O Now, in This Brown Land](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxxiii-now-o-now-in-this-brown-land) The speaker who reflects on the end of love and walks with the beloved. ### [Sleep Now, O Sleep Now](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxxiv-sleep-now-o-sleep-now) The speaker whose heart is addressed and who offers a kiss for peace. ### [All Day I Hear the Noise of Waters](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxxv-all-day-i-hear-the-noise-of-waters) The speaker who hears the waters and feels the cold winds. ### [XXXVI: I Hear an Army Charging Upon the Land](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/xxxvi-i-hear-an-army-charging-upon-the-land) The speaker who hears the army and moans in sleep, expressing despair and longing. ### [Gas from a Burner](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/gas-from-a-burner) The printer speaking in first person, defending his actions and attacking the writer. ### [Pomes Penyeach](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/pomes-penyeach) The central voice throughout the poems, expressing personal longing and reflection. ### [Tilly](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/tilly) The speaker contrasts his own suffering with the herdsman's comfort. ### [Watching the Needleboats at San Sabba](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/watching-the-needleboats-at-san-sabba) Observes the needleboats and reflects on the cries of young hearts and the sighing grasses. ### [A Flower Given to My Daughter](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/a-flower-given-to-my-daughter) The speaker who observes and compares the rose to his daughter. ### [She Weeps Over Rahoon](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/she-weeps-over-rahoon) The speaker who weeps and recalls the dark lover. ### [Tutto è Sciolto](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/tutto-sciolto) The speaker, remembering a past love under the evening sky. ### [On the Beach at Fontana](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/on-the-beach-at-fontana) The speaker who wraps the boy and feels the ache of love. ### [Simples](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/simples) The speaker who observes the child and asks for protection from her allure. ### [Flood](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/flood) The observing voice describing the flood and its mood. ### [Nightpiece](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/nightpiece) The observing consciousness describing the night's eerie, sacred imagery. ### [Alone](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/alone) The speaker whose soul is filled with delight and shame at the whispered name. ### [A Memory of the Players in a Mirror at Midnight](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/a-memory-of-the-players-in-a-mirror-at-midnight) The speaker delivers a bitter critique of love and the flesh. ### [Bahnhofstrasse](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/bahnhofstrasse) The speaker who walks the grey way, mocked by signs and stars. ### [A Prayer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/chapters/a-prayer) The speaker who yields and pleads for mercy and union. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/characters/narrator - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_11_se/characters