“The vegetarian” by Han Kang is a Nobel Prize-winning psychological horror novel. It follows the life of Yeong-Hye, a Korean woman who one day, after a dream, decides to become vegetarian. This unexpected decision triggers reactions from her husband and family.
Kang explores themes of women’s bodies sovereignty and patriarchal violence through a heartbreaking story. The narrative tracks through a progressive harm to the main character and the development of her mental deterioration. The realism in the novel is fundamental to make the reader consider and reflect the social structures, education, and how family, as an institution, could become an insecure space to inhabit. Three narrators compose a polyphonic structure where her husband (first person), and brother-in-law and sister (third person) explore the experience of Yeong-Hye and her transmutation exposing dark family dynamics. This produces the feeling of a pervasive unease and progressive harm.
I genuinely loved this book even though my heart broke. It made me feel a deep sadness that was meant to evoke. I absolutely recommend this book to everyone over 18, it needs to be understood by an adult mind and discussed. 5 out of 5.
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