It is important to recognize that because Panama's plot is so complex, understanding and analyzing its characters must rely heavily on scrutinizing the plot. The following discussion will focus only on characters central to the plot.

Jules Dingier, who served as the chief engineer of the French Interoceanic Canal Company, never appears alive in Panama; however, Adams's musings about Dingier are a key to understanding the story. Dingier, "a man whose faith in the power of moral rectitude against disease had not been enough to save his family from malaria," believed that disease would not affect those who lived pure lives. Ironically, his wife and children died of malaria, and he returned to France where he later died. Adams is intrigued to learn that before leaving Panama, Dingier saw his wife's favorite horse and, in a fit of rage, shot it. Adams feels a kinship with Dingier, having...