In "The Lady, or the Tiger?" there really are only three
major characters. The princess is the primary character, of course, but she and her
actions are clearly influenced by the two characters you mention in your question--the
king (her father) and the courtier (her lover). Each of them is clearly characterized
by both the description of the narrator (direct) as well as their actions
(indirect).
The king is, indeed, semi-barbaric. We know
that because the narrator describes him this way in direct
characterization:
He was a man of exuberant fancy, and, withal, of
an authority so irresistible that, at his will, he turned his varied fancies into
facts.... When every member of his domestic and political systems moved smoothly in its
appointed course, his nature was bland and genial; but, whenever there was a little
hitch, and some of his orbs got out of their orbits, he was blander and more genial
still, for nothing pleased him so much as to make the crooked straight and crush down
uneven places.
Indirectly, we
know he is semi-barbaric because he creates this spectacularly unjust and vicious form
of "justice," because he blandly sentences the man his daughter loves to this court of
justice, and because he is able to sit and watch without feeling the consequences of his
actions.
The courtier is, the narrator says in direct
characterization, a perfect example of a classic romantic hero; and it's not surprising
the princess falls for him.
[He] was a young man of that fineness of blood
and lowness of station common to the conventional heroes of romance who love royal
maidens. This royal maiden was well satisfied with her lover, for he was handsome and
brave to a degree unsurpassed in all this
kingdom....
Indirectly, we
know that he dared to love a princess and that he was not surprised to get caught and be
placed in the arena for justice. The best indicator of his character (which comes
through indirect characterization) is the fact that he knew the princess would find out
which door held the tiger and which held the fairest maiden in the land--and was willing
to allow her to decide his fate. That is a stunning display of trust; and, given the
princess's semi-barbaric tendencies, he has to know it's possible this will be his last
act on earth.
The reason the reader truly does not know
which door he will open is due to the courtier as much as the princess. We know the war
which is raging in her between despair at losing her lover and awful jealousy at the
thought of losing him to another woman. What is going though the courtier's mind is
hidden from us except for one clear fact--he knows she will have the secret of the
doors. It's his decisive move to the door she indicates (again, indirect
characterization) which leaves us in such suspense.
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