Characters

The most important characters in the short story “The Red Line” by Charles Higson are an unnamed man (who becomes the killer at the end of the story), Berto, and Denise. Cathy (Berto’s love interest), her boyfriend, and other passengers on the Underground also appear in the story. 

We are not given many details on the unnamed man’s background. The story revolves around his obsession with his physical appearance and with imitating an American musician called Bob Seger, which eventually leads to mental instability and to his decision to kill Berto.

Berto is the victim of the unnamed man and is another important character in the story. He eventually becomes the victim of his own fear and other people's prejudice, and ultimately ends up as the random victim of a killer.

Denise is a passenger on the same Underground carriage as Berto and the killer. She is a developing character in the story, as her mental state deteriorates by the end of the story.

You can find their characterisations in the following pages.