Born Red

The book is a recreation of a diary of Gao Jianhua, who later changed his given name to "Yuan", spanning 1966 to early 1969.[8] According to Gao Yuan's testimony, originally the Red Guards had a noble goal in ending corruption but the movement deteriorated.[9] At first the students at the school of Gao Jianhua (now Gao Yuan) gain the power to attack their teachers and leave school when they were not supposed to.[10] In one portion of the story, the students, now free from school, travel around China, often while having no money.[9] In the absence of the school's discipline, the students begin to turn on one another.[11] Pye wrote that the "playfulness" of the movement decays into a "wanderlust of street-smart, child delinquents" who abuse others and kill defenseless people.[12] Ultimately, out of Gao Jianhua's class of 50 students, over 6 were killed due to injuries, murder, or suicide. Almost that number of the almost 200 teachers at Gao Jianhua's school died.[9]

At the end, according to the book, the perpetrators of the killings were expelled from the Communist Party. According to Timothy Tung, a book reviewer for The New York Times, the perpetrators "were let off easily".[9] The postscript stated that one of the leaders became a wealthy capitalist and had asked Gao Yuan to return to China "soon or you'll be left behind!"[9]

Tung concluded that "This book is the most detailed account of those difficult years I have read. Have the horrors been exaggerated? The book was written from memory and reads like a novel. One cannot help questioning the accuracy of some of the details. But incredible as the events may seem, they are believable."[9]

• Gao Jianhua (S:高建华, T:高建華, P: Gāo Jiànhuá)
  • Gao Jianhua, born in 1952,[1] is a member of Class 85 of Yizhen Number One Middle School, and the main character.[13] Jianhua, who lives in Yizhen, is 14 years old when the Cultural Revolution begins.[7]
  • The author, Gao Yuan, was originally known as Gao Jianhua (Jianhua means "construct China"), but he changed his name because, after the Cultural Revolution, he believed that it was too common. Gao's grandfather had an alternate name, after the poet Qu Yuan. Gao also said that his new given name means highland, which describes the edge of the loess plateau in northern China, where he was born.[6]
• Gao Shangui (高山桂 Gāo Shānguì)
  • Shangui is Jianhua's father. His name means "mountain laurel".[14] He serves as a county government head in Hebei.[7] Despite being a loyal Communist veteran, he is persecuted by the Red Guards.[9]
• Gao Weihua (S:高维华, T:高维華, P: Gāo Wéihuá)
  • Jianhua's older brother, born around 1950 during the beginning of the Korean War. His name means "safeguard China".[1]
• Gao Zhihua (S:高指华, T:高指華, P: Gāo Zhǐhuá)
  • Jianhua's first younger brother. His name means "command China".[1]
• Gao Xinghua (S:高兴华, T:高興華, P: Gāo Xīnghuá)
  • Jianhua's second younger brother. His name means "make China flourish".[1]
• Gao Meiyuan
  • Jianhua's first younger sister. Her name suggests beauty and refinement.[14]
• Gao Yiyuan
  • Jianhua's second younger sister. Her name is a reference to Yizhen, where she was born.[14]

Yizhen Number One Middle School (nicknamed "Yizhong") is Gao Jianhua's school, and many of the main characters originate from the school.

Gail Hershatter of The American Historical Review said that Gao Yuan's peers "were capable of extreme dedication, courage, generosity, selfishness, and murderous violence", whether as individuals or as part of the political factions that arose.[15] Many of the members of Class 85 were known amongst each other by a series of nicknames.[13]

• Erchou (二臭 Èrchòu)
  • Erchou is a member of Class 85. His nickname means "two foul odors" and refers to his flatulence. Gao Yuan said that Erchou blamed sweet potatoes for the predicament.[13] Erchou later becomes Jianhua's ally in their Cultural Revolution political faction.
• Little Bawang (小霸王 Xiǎo Bàwáng)
  • Little Bawang is a member of Class 85. His nickname means "little overlord" and refers to a general from the Three Kingdoms period.[13] Bawang becomes a member of a rival political faction.
• Little Mihu (小迷糊 Xiǎo Míhu)
  • Little Mihu is a member of Class 85. His nickname means "little muddle", and he received it because he was accident prone and often tripped over chamberpots.[13] Mihu becomes a member of a rival political faction.
• Wen Xiu – The Class 85 homeroom teacher
• Lin Sheng – The vice principal. His students drive him to suicide.[11]
• Wuxiang (五香 Wǔxiāng) – The cook, who likes the male students. His name means "five spices".[16]
• Shuanggen (S:双根, T:雙根, P: Shuānggēn) – His name means "double roots".[17] He travels with Jianhua to the urbanized areas. He later joins the rival political faction.
• Sanxi (三喜 Sānxǐ)
  • His name means "triple happiness".[18]
• Yuanchao (援朝 Yuáncháo)
  • His name means "aid Korea".[18]
• Kangmei (抗美 Kàngměi)
  • Yuanchao's younger sister. Her name means "resist the United States".[18]
• Huantian (S:换天, T:換天, P: Huàntiān)
  • Her name means "changing heaven".[18]