William Mandella
William Mandella acts as the protagonist and the hero of the novel. He is an incredibly intelligent and physically active individual who is chosen to join a military force to fit against aliens. Their mission is a success and Mandella returns to earth with fellow soldier Margyay Potter who acts as his lover. After returning to earth he experiences alienation and is subsequently sent on another mission. This demonstrates his nature as he is perseverant and brave- willing to sacrifice his time and potentially his life for the greater good.
Marygay Potter
Similar to Mandella, Marygay is also an individual who is very educated, healthy and fit. In fact, this was a requirement for all of the soldiers. Moreover, her ability to succeed in the grueling training prior to fighting the aliens shows her grit and strength. She is also portrayed as brave and heroic through her attempts to defend earth from aliens. She can be described as patient and reasoned as she remains devoted to her lover Mandella despite him being away for a long time. Additionally, she is head-strong and unable to be unduly influenced by the herd mentality which is shown through her resistance to homosexuality which is encouraged by the government.
Man
Man refers to the collective species of clones of mankind. They are also able to communicate with the alien species known as Taurans. Moreover, man establishes a number of colonies based on heterosexuality in case the homosexual values of the government are proved as ineffective. This demonstrates Man's intelligent qualities and ability to solve problems efficiently.
Taurans
Taurans are the alien species which fight with the UNEF troops. As they are easily defeated on Charon it demonstrates that they are not particularly strong or lethal. However, their ability to develop enhanced technology and increase trained soldiers shows their persistence. As a result, they can be perceived as a formidable enemy capable of great reasoning. Yet, despite this they are still ultimately defeated. The Taurans were not responsible for destroying the colonial vessels which incited the conflict with the humans. So, the Taurans can be perceived as not inherently evil or antagonistic.
