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florismeertens's review
Op veel manieren een typische modernistische roman, met een jonge filosofische betweter, de hopeloze zoektocht naar betekenis, de desillusie in politiek, de storende misogynie. Was de hoofdpersoon Myong-Jun meer intentioneel irritant geweest (à la Holden Caulfield), dan was het een stuk beter geweest.
Maar de innerlijke beschrijvingen waren vaak mooi, de sociale context was verhelderend en leerzaam, en het concept van "The Square" werkte wel! Dus hee, ik mag niet te veel klagen.
Maar de innerlijke beschrijvingen waren vaak mooi, de sociale context was verhelderend en leerzaam, en het concept van "The Square" werkte wel! Dus hee, ik mag niet te veel klagen.
spacestationtrustfund's review against another edition
2.0
『광장』 (la place) par Choe Inhun (최인훈). Traduction de Choe Yun (최윤) et Patrick Maurus.
À travers les reniements successifs d'un jeune étudiant molesté parce que son père est communiste, contraint de passer de « l'autre côté » puis, avec la guerre civile, revenu torturer ses anciens amis, Choe Inhun a donné à la Corée son plus illustre « classique » de la division. La prose est assez raffinée mais le protagoniste est haïssable, voire détestable.
À travers les reniements successifs d'un jeune étudiant molesté parce que son père est communiste, contraint de passer de « l'autre côté » puis, avec la guerre civile, revenu torturer ses anciens amis, Choe Inhun a donné à la Corée son plus illustre « classique » de la division. La prose est assez raffinée mais le protagoniste est haïssable, voire détestable.
thepoptimist's review
3.0
A story written by a then 24 year old Choi In-Hun follows our philosophy student protagonist Lee Myong-jun torn between North and South Korea. Lee is exactly the sort of introspective, narcissist 20-something philosophy student you’d expect, wrestling with his righteous indignation and somewhat misogynistic tendencies. He wears his overly earnest heart on his sleeve and is frankly a mess. Disillusioned by the corruption of the South he escapes to the North but instead of finding the excitement of revolution discovers a flattened, ash-grey world. In the end he chooses to escape to a third place, a neutral county.
The book reminded me of my uncle who wrestled with the same demons and disappeared one day. Given up for dead it was only 40 years later that my mother learned he had left for North Korea. His name appeared in the national paper as part of reunification efforts and my mother went to meet him in North Korea. Unlike Lee, he wasn’t afforded the option of a third, neutral path and eked out a meager living as a university professor in the North. Living well by North Korean standards he was still emaciated, with crooked yellowed teeth in a borrowed suit confiding in my mother that all the gifts being handed over as a result of tearful reunions would never be seen by their intended recipients.
The book reminded me of my uncle who wrestled with the same demons and disappeared one day. Given up for dead it was only 40 years later that my mother learned he had left for North Korea. His name appeared in the national paper as part of reunification efforts and my mother went to meet him in North Korea. Unlike Lee, he wasn’t afforded the option of a third, neutral path and eked out a meager living as a university professor in the North. Living well by North Korean standards he was still emaciated, with crooked yellowed teeth in a borrowed suit confiding in my mother that all the gifts being handed over as a result of tearful reunions would never be seen by their intended recipients.
mxpringle's review
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
coolowlzy's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
jolimali's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
mselaceyenglish's review
2.0
"... with a feeble heart withered like a pickled cabbage in a wrinkled raincoat...".
This was a hard slog to finish. The frequent flashbacks and flashforwards, unusual imagery and farcical characters made this an awkward reading experience. A disappointing first dip into Korean literature.
This was a hard slog to finish. The frequent flashbacks and flashforwards, unusual imagery and farcical characters made this an awkward reading experience. A disappointing first dip into Korean literature.
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