Jenny
Jenny is one of the main characters of the film, a poor girl who attracts the attention of Oliver through the way she behaves herself. Even though Jenny does not come from a privileged background, she is portrayed as a strong woman who knows what she wants and who does not let herself be impressed by Oliver's money or by his family's status. Because of her attitude, Oliver sees her as an alluring and intriguing person, the two qualities which attract him to her.
Overbearing father
Another important image is the way in which Oliver's father is portrayed in the film. In comparison with Oliver, who is capable of love and who uneasy to approach, his father is cold and distant, his own son calling him "Sir". The cold attitude Oliver sometimes exhibits is as such seen as the result of his father's cold and distant attitude.
Barret Hall
Oliver is the grandchild of the man who, because of his generous donation had a hall named after him at Harvard. Jenny assumed Oliver felt happy to see the name of the hall every single day when passing by it. The image of the hall however reminds Oliver every single day of the expectations his family expected him to fulfill and the pressure he was under.
The distance between the parents
When Oliver takes Jenny to see his parents for the time, the first image the viewer sees is that of Oliver's parents sitting on two separate couches, with as much distance between them as possible. This image shows that Oliver's father was cold not only towards his son, but towards his wife as well. This created a lost of friction in the family and resulted in Oliver distancing himself from his parents completely.
