| | | | One |
| | Professor | | The narrator's journalism
professor in graduate school. |
| | | | Nut Graf - Journalism slang. Refers
to the part of an article, usually following the lead, that gives a
condensed overview of its news value. |
| | Gary | | The narrator's friend. |
| | Mary | | The narrator's friend. |
| | Ashley | Montagu | 20th century anthropologist
and humanist. |
| | | | Psychosclerpsos - The hardening of the
mind. The reluctance of adults to reveal ignorance. |
| | Abby | | The narrator's ten-year-old niece. |
| | Mike | | The narrator's partner. Teaches
kindergarten in a Boston public school. |
| | Hans Christian | Andersen | Wrote "The Emperor's
New Clothes" in 1837. |
| | | | Grimm Brothers - Wrote "Rumplestilskin"
in 1812. |
| | | | Lauren and Hardy - Classic comedy team. |
| | | | Abbott and Costello - Classic comedy
team. |
| | Wallace | Shawn | Actor. |
| | Vizzini | | A character in Princess Bride
played by Wallace Shawn. |
| | Andre | the Giant | Actor. |
| | Fezzik | | A character in Princess Bride played
by Andre the Giant. |
| | | | Schadenfreude - Pleasure derived from the
misfortune of others. |
| | Steve | Carell | Actor. |
| | Michael | Scott | A character in The Office
played by Steve Carell. |
| | Mark | Edmundson | Scholar. |
| | | | Two |
| | Jane | Smiley | Novelist. |
| | Will | | The narrator's friend. |
| | | | Superman School - A two-year training
program for United States Air Force Special Operatives who perform high-risk
combat missions. |
| | Sebastian | Junger | Writer. |
| | Rick | Smith | Para rescue jumper. |
| | John | Spillane | Para rescue jumper. |
| | Blaise | Pascal | French mathematician and
philosopher. |
| | Christopher | Chabris | Psychologist and author
of The Invisible Gorilla: How Our Intuitions Deceive Us. |
| | Daniel | Simons | Psychologist and author of The
Invisible Gorilla: How Our Intuitions Deceive Us. |
| | Robert A. | Burton | Neurologist. |
| | Plato | | Greek philosopher. |
| | Socrates | | Greek philosopher. |
| | Saint Thomas | Aquinas | Italian Dominican friar
and priest. |
| | William | Empson | British literary critic. |
| | Aristotle | | Greek philosopher. |
| | Coprenicus | | Polymath. |
| | Christopher | Ricks | British literary critic. |
| | Robert | Creeley | Poet. |
| | George H. W. | Bush | Then-Vice President. |
| | Gary | Klein | A pioneer and leader in the field
of NDM. |
| | Carol | Travis | Psychologist. |
| | Elliot | Aronson | Psychologist. |
| | Melvin | Lerner | Psychologist. |
| | Ian | Herbert | Journalist. |
| | Elizabeth | Loftus | A psychologist whose
research on the malleability of human memory has gained worldwide attention. |
| | | | Three |
| | Andy | | The narrator's brother. |
| | Valerie | | Professor Emerita of Art at a small
New England college. |
| | Lisa | Delpit | An educator, author, and
Macarthur Fellow. |
| | Christine | Sleeter | An education reformer and
antiracism activist. |
| | Jane | | The narrator's friend. |
| | Mr. | W | Jane's neighbor. |
| | Mrs. | W | Jane's neighbor. |
| | Karen | | Jane's younger sister. |
| | Heinrich | Himmler | German politician and former
Reichsfuhrer-SS. |
| | | Hitler | Dictator of Nazi Germany. |
| | W.G. | Sebald | German writer and academic. |
| | Yishai | | A lawyer and law professor who grew
up in Israel. |
| | Frances | Pratt | President of the NYACP, NY
branch of the NAACP. |
| | Anya | Malcolm | A college student at a large
West Coast school. AKA: Adam Malcolm. |
| | | | Four |
| | David | Lodge | Wrote the 1975 novel Changing
Places. |
| | D.H. | Lawrence | English novelist. |
| | Sissela | Bok | Philosopher. |
| | Pam | | The narrator's friend. A social
worker-turned-psychiatrist. |
| | Jessi | | A midwife. |
| | Stokley | | The narrator's friend. A reference
librarian. |
| | Sara | | Stokley's boss. |
| | Anthony | Leiserowitz | Director of the Yale
Project on Climate Change Communication. |
| | Bill | Moyers | Former White House Press
Secretary. |
| | Rob | Portman | Republican Senator. |
| | | Obama | Former President. |
| | David | Blankenhorn | The founder and President
of the Institute for American Values. |
| | Jonathan | Rauch | A journalist and activist in
favor of gay marriage. |
| | W.D. | Winnicot | British psychoanalyst. |
