Irene is the protagonist of the story and the character who experiences the most personal transformation. Irene begins her adventures as an eight-year-old girl who is a princess in all senses of the word: “[T]he princess was a sweet little creature […] but she got older very fast” (1). She lives in a farmhouse apart from the castle and is visited by her father once or twice a year, primarily being cared for by her nurse, Lootie. The narrator likens Irene’s eyes to stars, foreshadowing her connection to her great-great-grandmother, who has a supernatural relationship with the moon and stars. Irene also shares her grandmother’s name, which in Greek means “peace”—an important concept in Christianity.

The novel thus implies that Irene is no ordinary child and that What It Means to Be a Princess extends well beyond the typical politeness and authority that one would expect of a member of the royal family. Irene’s princess-like qualities include her courage, her honesty and insistence upon admitting her wrongdoings, and her kindness towards others. The author regularly inserts asides discussing just how much Irene acts like a princess, such as when he notes “that the truest princess is just the one who loves all her brothers and sisters best, and who is most able to do them good by being humble towards them” (159).