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Mark Antony
A once fierce and feared general who rules the Roman Empire along with the two other triumvirs: Octavius Caesar and Lepidus. When the play opens, Antony has neglected his duties as a ruler in order to live in Egypt, where he carries on a highly visible love affair with Queen Cleopatra. His loyalty is divided between the Roman and Egyptian worlds; he is torn between the sense of duty and the desire to seek pleasure, between reason and passion. While he feels the need to reaffirm the honor that has made him a celebrated Roman hero, he is also madly in love with Cleopatra.
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Cleopatra
The queen of Egypt and Antony’s lover. A highly attractive woman who once seduced Julius Caesar, Cleopatra delights in the thought that she has caught Antony like a fish. In matters of love, as in all things, Cleopatra favors high drama: her emotions are as volatile as they are theatrical, and she always gives a top-notch performance. Although she tends to make a spectacle of her emotions, one cannot doubt the genuine nature of her love for Antony. Shakespeare makes clear that the queen does love the general, even if her loyalty is sometimes misplaced.
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Octavius Caesar
The nephew and adopted son of Julius Caesar. Octavius rules the Roman Empire with Antony and Lepidus. Relations between Octavius and Antony are strained throughout the play, for the young triumvir believes that Antony squanders his time and neglects his duties while in Egypt. Ambitious and extremely pragmatic, Octavius lacks Antony’s pedigree as a general, but his careful and stoic reasoning enables him to avoid Antony’s tendency toward heroic or romantic folly. Destined to be the first Roman emperor (later renamed Octavius Augustus), he symbolizes “Western” values in the play, which stand opposed to the exotic lures of Cleopatra’s “East.”
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Enobarbus
Antony’s most loyal supporter and advisor. Worldly and cynical, Enobarbus is friendly with the subordinates of both Pompey and Octavius, yet he stays faithful to his master even after Antony makes grave political and military missteps. He abandons Antony only when the general appears to have given up on himself.
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Marcus Aemilius Lepidus
The third member of the triumvirate of Rome and the weakest, both politically and personally. Lepidus’s rather desperate attempts to keep the peace between Octavius and Antony fail when Octavius imprisons him after the defeat of Pompey.
Pompey
The son of a great general who was one of Julius Caesar’s partners in power. Pompey is young and popular with the Roman people, and he possesses enough military might to stand as a legitimate threat to the triumvirs. He fancies himself honorable for refusing to allow one of his men to kill the unsuspecting Octavius, Antony, and Lepidus when they are his guests.
Octavia
Octavius Caesar’s sister. Octavius marries Octavia off to Antony to cement an alliance between the two triumvirs. She is a victim of Antony’s deception, and her meekness, purity, and submission make her the paradigm of Roman womanhood—and Cleopatra’s opposite.
Charmian and Iras
Cleopatra’s faithful attendants.
The Soothsayer
An Egyptian fortune-teller who follows Antony to Rome and predicts that his fortune will always pale in comparison to Octavius’s.
Dolabella
One of Octavius Caesar’s officers. Dolabella is assigned to guard the captive Cleopatra.
Agrippa
One of Octavius Caesar’s officers. Agrippa leads the retreat from Antony’s unexpectedly powerful forces.
Camidius
A general in Antony’s army. After the battle in which Antony follows Cleopatra’s lead and flees, Camidius surrenders and defects to Octavius’s side.
Ventidius
A Roman soldier under Antony’s command. Ventidius leads the legions to victory against the kingdom of Parthia. Although a competent fighter, he cautiously decides not to push his troops further into battle for fear that winning too much glory would sour his relationship with Antony.
Scarus
A brave young soldier serving under Antony. Scarus is seriously wounded in the battle against Octavius’s army, but he begs for the opportunity to earn more battle scars.
Proculeius
One of Octavius’s soldiers, who proves untrustworthy.
Diomedes
Cleopatra’s servant. She employs Diomedes to bring to Antony the message that she has not committed suicide but is still alive.
Eros
An attendant serving Antony. Eros’s love for his master compels him to refuse Antony’s order to kill him. Instead, Eros kills himself.
Menas
An ambitious young soldier under Pompey. During the dinner party that Pompey hosts for the triumvirate, Menas asks for permission to kill Octavius, Antony, and Lepidus, which would result in the control of the world falling into his master’s hands.
Seleucus
Cleopatra’s treasurer, who betrays his master.
Countryman
An Egyptian who brings a basket of figs containing poisonous snakes to Cleopatra. In some editions of the play, this character is known as “Clown.”
Dercetus
One of Antony’s soldiers.
