Reviews tagging 'Rape'

Human Acts by Han Kang

69 reviews

tivvny's review against another edition

challenging dark informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Han Kang digs into the wounds left in the aftermath of the Gwangju Uprising, exploring not only the brutality and inhumanity that we are all capable of, but also the human acts of hope, courage and resilience that we can aspire to achieve. Human Acts carefully blends historical fiction and a tiny bit of speculative fiction to illuminate different voices that strive to speak the same truth, individually shaped by the unique (though also not-so-unique, highlighting the sheer number of victims of the crackdown on university and high school students during this period) experiences faced by the characters in the story. Although the time we get with each character is short, this does not detract from the impact and power of their stories - you deeply feel for the hardships experienced by the survivors (and victims) of the uprising, their anger, and their pain. The shocking revelations and unanticipated bombs characteristic of Han Kang are effective in not only emphasising the cruelty in these moments but the tragedy they invoke. I struggled with Han Kang's The Vegetarian due to the prose falling in and out of metaphors and elusive language, but Human Acts I think perfectly blends Han Kang's style with more straightforward language which helped maintain my focus and attention (this may be in part reflective of the Gwangju dialect that Han Kang integrated into some of the perspectives as noted by the translator). In short, a great pageturner that uncovers a part of history that you may not have encountered before, and though essentially an overwhelmingly dark read, it provides a sliver of hope that reflects the vicissitudes of our own humanity. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Sexual violence, Torture, and Rape

panicpoet's review

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Sexual violence, Death, Alcoholism, Violence, Torture, Police brutality, and Gun violence

Moderate: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts

areen's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

5.0

this was a masterpiece. the way han kang captured different kinds of people being affected by the uprising in such a vivid way was incredible. the 2nd story left me speechless.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Violence, Grief, Gun violence, Medical content, Police brutality, Rape, and Sexual assault

cyberhavok's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Violence, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Gun violence

Minor: Alcoholism, Death of parent, Infertility, and Suicide

abbyarm's review against another edition

sad tense medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture and Violence

Moderate: War, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Rape, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

mjtal's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Police brutality, and Violence

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Child death

Minor: Suicide and Cancer

signeskov's review

dark emotional informative slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Grief, Sexual assault, Rape, Murder, Violence, Torture, Death, and Blood

Moderate: Suicide, Confinement, and Alcoholism

emmalouisereads's review against another edition

challenging dark informative sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This is quite a tough read. It portrays the atrocities of the event very vividly.

The book uses different writing styles, such as some chapters being in second person (although not the same consistent ‘you’ throughout), and one chapter told from the perspective of one of the dead. Although these were interesting, I personally found it quite hard to follow the plot because of it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Child death, Suicide, Blood, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Gore, Body horror, Death, Rape, Sexual violence, War, Confinement, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Alcoholism

fynn_jls's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Child death, Death, Rape, and Torture

Moderate: Sexism

aliciawithoutkeys's review against another edition

dark informative sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Torture, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Death, Gun violence, and Sexual violence