The Captain is a former military man who has turned to science in the later stages of his life. Though his family is struggling financially, he is still determined to act as the head of the household and retain his authority over its women. The Captain's military past lingers in his personality: He retains his rank and responsibilities and sees the world in stark, combative terms. The Captain is convinced that all of life is war, so everyone he meets is either an enemy or an ally. As a military man, he seeks to win by any means necessary—even against his own family. It is significant that the Captain has no other name—he is only an empty shell of a man, defined solely by rank and ideology.

The Captain is swept up in a power struggle against Laura and the other women he perceives as enemies. As the Captain and Laura debate what is best for Bertha's future, he asks Bertha what she would like to do with her life—but her instant acquiescence to what he wants suggests that he is not really interested in her opinion. He has already planned her future and disdains the idea that she could have wants unaligned with his own.