A round character is one who is complex, one who we might have to write several pages about in order to adequately address the nuances of his characterization. Jerome is a round character. He is a somewhat unusual child who grows up to have a rather typical adult life: finding a career that pays the bills and a spouse who makes him feel content. The strange story of his father's death seems to impact him at each stage of his maturation, and he develops multiple ways of telling the story of it in order to satisfy different audiences, though he loathes the way in which people seem to feel amused by the story. His first question when he learns of the accident is what happened to the pig, because he wants to construct an accurate mental picture of the event in order to truly understand what happened to his father. He does not seem to cry, though he does mourn the loss of his father, especially when Jerome faces the possibility of soon becoming a father himself.

A flat character is one who is fairly simple, one who it would only take a couple of sentences at most to describe accurately. Mr. Wordsworth, the school housemaster who breaks the news to Jerome, is a flat character. He has a very difficult time delivering the news of this tragedy, and he misinterprets Jerome's reaction as callousness. Jerome's aunt is another flat character, as is Jerome's fiancee, Sally. His aunt basically lives to tell the strange story of her brother's death, as though it is the only exciting thing ever to happen to her. Sally loves Hugh Walpole, wants to have babies, and responds with the same question as he did to the story of Jerome's father's demise.