THE VEGETARIAN by Han Kang (Hogarth Books, 2015)
By turns surreal and nightmarish, this is a short but complex novel which is full of secrets.
In very broad terms I would describe it as a book about descending into silence and , quite possibly , incurable madness.
The main character is Yeong-hye who is, by all accounts, an unremarkable woman. In the words of her brother-in-law: “The only thing that was especially unusual about her was that she didn’t eat meat”.
Her husband is beyond himself with a combination of rage and repulsion over his wife’s sudden change in eating habits. Her father turns to violence and attempts to force feed her meat. She tries to kill herself and is eventually institutionalized. She gives the impression that she would be happy to die and/or become a tree. Continue reading
