Characters

The main character of Hanif Kureishi’s short story “The Decline of the West” is Mike. Mike is the only character whose perspective we have direct access to, and thus the narration mostly follows his point of view. He is not a developing character, since his way of acting and thinking remain the same throughout the story.

Mike’s family members are secondary characters, and they are also not developing. Imogen is Mike's wife who runs the house, Tom is the disobedient older child, and Billy is the affectionate younger child who is his father’s favourite.

The story also features minor characters such as Mike’s colleagues, Mike’s and Imogen’s friends, and Mike’s father.

You can find the full characterisations of Mike, Imogen, Tom, and Billy in the following sections.