The Speaker

In most poems, the speaker is the principal character. In this poem, though, given its historic focus, the speaker is reporting on geographically far-off events in which he played no part. The personal pronoun "I," which normally differentiates the speaker's role, does not even appear in the poem, only the plural "our" (4). The speaker remains a distant, though never detached, observer. The poem is still, however, very much in his voice. It takes the form of a prayer from the speaker to God, imploring him to remember and avenge the martyred Waldensians.

God

The most active figure in the poem is God. The poem is addressed to him, much in the way that a prayer is: "Avenge, O Lord," it begins (1). Both the merciful and the vengeful aspects of the Christian god are called upon. The familiar image of God as a careful and loving shepherd is...