Yumi

 Yumi seems to be the most unlucky girl in the world. She has a horrible childhood, and is forced to flee with her sister. Then, her sister dies in her sleep. Then, she has to become a seamstress despite her only dream being to go to America. Then, she has two miscarriages. And lastly, she dies tragically while saving her son. She seemed to do everything right, and try so hard, only to be let down at every turn. This could correlate to the Korean struggle. In almost every case, no matter how hard a Korean at the time tried, there was no room for social mobility. Essentially, a Korean in Japan was cursed from the beginning, like Yumi. However, where Yumi differs from the average Korean is that she does not feel the need to be Japanese. The narrator, when speaking Yumi’s thoughts, says, “But she could not imagine clinging to Japan, which was like a beloved stepmother who refused to love you," (295). Yumi recognizes the obsession many Koreans understandably have with Japan. However, she sees how it does not benefit her. Why love something that will never love you back? Yumi’s life is full of disappointments, but at least she had her son for a little bit. And in the end, she died saving his life. Maybe this speaks to the Korean obsession with Japan, and how Koreans were willing to die for a country that could not/ would not save them. 


Comments

  1. Isabella FernandezMarch 7, 2022 at 12:18 PM

    I completely agree, I do think that Yumi is a perfect example of Korean struggles on their fight towards acceptance. She was faced with various hardship and did her best to overcome them all. However, there came to a point where even she, as strong as she may have been, could not keep fighting, and I think that shows the point that many Koreans have reached.

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  2. Jenna ChinnMarch 7, 2022 at 8:42 PM

    I really like this point. Yumi is a prime example of doing everything right but still not succeeding. Her struggles, along with those of Sunja and her family, demonstrate how hard work often isn't enough to overcome systemic disadvantages.

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  3. AnonymousMarch 7, 2022 at 11:58 PM

    I like the link to social mobility and how Yumi does her best to be successful yet she is help back by her race and thus she aspires for something that she will never get. This aspiration and adoration is a love that is not reciprocated and she is lost.

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  4. Critical Thinkers and WritersMarch 8, 2022 at 12:47 PM

    This is a strong analysis of Yumi that also correlates with the novel's title, after the gambling game pachinko: no matter how hard Yumi (and so many other of the Korean characters) tries, the game is rigged against them. They can't do anything other than play, despite continuing to lose.

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