In the Penal Colony characters

Appears from the start

A foreign visitor invited to observe an execution on a remote penal island. He listens carefully to the officer's explanation of the colony's elaborate apparatus but remains detached from the system and unwilling to endorse it.

Appears from the start

The last devoted defender of the former commandant's judicial system. He maintains and operates the execution apparatus, explains its workings with reverence, and hopes the visiting explorer will help preserve it.

Appears from the start

A prisoner sentenced for disobedience and disrespect toward a superior. He does not understand the officer's language and has not been told either the charge or the sentence awaiting him.

Appears from the start

A guard assigned to hold the condemned man and assist at the execution. He shares the prisoner's limited understanding of the officer's explanations and watches events with curiosity.

Appears from the start

The colony's deceased former ruler, designer of the execution machine, and author of its procedures and inscribed judgments. His remaining followers regard his severe order as a lost ideal.

Appears from the start

The island's current ruler, who has reduced support for the old commandant's apparatus without openly abolishing it. The officer regards his reforms and public meetings as threats to the former system.