Mr. Nilson is the central character in the story, and the story is told from his point of view through a third-person narrator. The narrator grants access to Nilson’s thoughts and feelings as well as to his limitations and blind spots. Though his age is not disclosed, Nilson presumably is a middle-aged man judging from his status and reputation. He is described mainly by external features: his clothing, accessories, quirks, and habits. This strategy designates Nilson as an external man—a man of surface appearance with little emotional or intellectual depth. He is a product of the social conventions of his world, and his life is shaped by the expectations of others. The few objects that are described in the story are markers of his status and relative affluence, suggesting that he is a thoroughly materialistic man.

Nilson is successful at what he does—and what he does involves money. At the outset of the story, and placed immediately after his name, the phrase “well known in the City” suggests that his reputation is the most important thing to him (Paragraph 1). As “the City” refers to the one-square-mile heart of London, the financial district, one can infer that Nilson works with money as an investor or speculator.