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We Do Not Part

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2021 novel by Han Kang In this Korean name, the family name is Han.
We Do Not Part: A Novel
AuthorHan Kang
TranslatorChoi Gyungran, Pierre Bisiou (French)
e. yaewon, Paige Aniyah Morris (English)
LanguageKorean
GenreLiterary fiction
PublisherMunhakdongne (Korean)

Grasset (French)

Hogarth Press (English)
Publication dateSeptember 9, 2021 (Korean)

August 23, 2023 (French)

January 21, 2025 (English)
Publication placeSouth Korea
Pages332 (Korean)

336 (French)

272 (English)
AwardFrench
ISBN978-8954682152
Preceded byGreek Lessons 

We Do Not Part: A Novel (Korean: 작별하지 않는다; RR: Jagbyeolhaji anhneunda; lit. No goodbye) is a 2021 novel by South Korean novelist Han Kang, published by Munhak. The novel follows a woman named Kyungha as she travels to Jeju Island on behalf of her friend, Inseon, and reflects upon the legacy of the Jeju massacre. Han considers the novel to form "a pair" with her previous work, Human Acts.

In 2023, a French translation by Choi Gyungran and Pierre Bisiou was published by Éditions Grasset. It went on to won the Prix Médicis for Foreign Literature in 2023, making Han the first Korean author to receive the prize. In the same year, the novel was shortlisted for the Prix Femina. Han also received the Émile Guimet Prize for Asian Literature for the novel in 2024.

An English translation by e. yaewon and Paige Aniyah Morris, published by Hogarth Press, is scheduled to release on January 21, 2025.

Synopsis

The novel follows a woman named Kyungha, who lives alone in Seoul, as her long-time friend, Inseon, calls her from one of the city's hospitals after a work incident. Inseon tasks her with going back to her house on Jeju Island in order to feed Ama, her bird, which leads Kyungha through a treacherous, difficult journey through the island during a harsh snowstorm. There, as she races against time to ensure the bird's survival, she learns more about Inseon's family and, as a result, contends with the history of the island which she stands upon.

Jeju massacre

Main article: Jeju massacre
A monument to the victims of the Jeju massacre at Jungmun Saekdal Beach

History

Immediately after World War II and Korean liberation from the Empire of Japan, the United States moved to establish rule on Jeju Island through the newly formed United States Army Military Government in Korea which intended to prevent the rise of communism. As a result, the government's restrictive, sometimes militant policies led to social and political unrest. In particular, on March 1, 1947, Jeju citizens demonstrated in celebration of the March 1st Movement, leading to an incident of police brutality in which six people were shot and killed. Through early 1948, including on April 3, 1948, communist rebels ushered in a wave of violence across Jeju Island which the ruling government failed to intervene on. In addition, massive protests—including violent actions by right-wing militants—had been forming against an upcoming United States-run election on May 10 that would potentially establish the First Republic of Korea. The republic ultimately formed after May, and afterward, the newly elected Syngman Rhee moved to militarily suppress rebel violence on Jeju Island with support from the United States. Violence on the island thus worsened by 1949. Historians have discussed the true death toll of the Jeju massacre, with estimates in the tens of thousands of lives.

Novel

We Do Not Part, mostly taking place on Jeju Island decades after the Jeju massacre, makes mention of the island's history as the protagonist, Kyungha, travels through it on behalf of her friend, Inseon. The book also alludes to the violence of the Manchukuo Imperial Army, the Bodo League massacre, and the involvement of South Korea during the Vietnam War. In her lecture delivered as a laureate of the Nobel Prize in Literature, Han stated,

Whereas, until the autumn of 2021, when We Do Not Part was published, I had considered these two problems to be the ones at my core: Why is the world so violent and painful? And yet how can the world be this beautiful? For a long time, I believed that the tension and internal struggle between these sentences was the driving force behind my writing.

Han's work as a novelist has historically attempted to approach various incidents of violence in South Korea's history after the Second World War. Her novel, Human Acts, similarly concerned the legacy of the Gwangju Uprising. In The Yale Review, following Han's awarding of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature, writer and professor Yung In Chae stated, regarding this novel and Han's others:

This is the power of Han Kang: With little more than paper and ink, she acts as a conduit for the memories of generations that suffered state violence, passing them on to generations that inherited these traumas but not necessarily the long-suppressed facts beneath them. She makes that pain legible, indelible, meaningful.

Production

Han stated that she worked on the novel over the course of seven years and occasionally expressed fears to her editor that she wouldn't be able to finish the book due to its heavy topics. She then stated that completing it was her "happiest moment".

We Do Not Part has undergone several different titles prior to its English translation. Many English, Korean, and French publications have referred to the book as I Do Not Bid Farewell. After winning the Prix Médicis for Foreign Literature in 2023, Han stated that the English translation would be published under the same name as the French translation, Impossibles Adieux, or Impossible Goodbyes. In an interview with the Nobel Foundation, Han referred to the book both by its official English title as well as I Do Not Bid Farewell and Impossible Goodbyes.

On November 10, 2024, an excerpt of the English translation appeared in The New Yorker, titled "Heavy Snow".

Critical reception

Korean

Son Yun-seo wrote, for Sideview, that Han was able to powerfully articulate the Jeju massacre as an unforgettable tragedy that still deserved attention in the present day. In particular, Son drew a connection between Inseon's constant pricking of her finger to keep its nerves alive with the bigger picture of constantly never forgetting to mourn the lives lost in the Jeju massacre.

Sanjini Publishing House observed two of the book's strongest points as being the Jeju massacre but also Han's attention to the image of snow. The reviewer argued that snow was used in order to join past and present in various scenes of the book including Kyungha's snow-covered face upon falling unconscious, as well as Inseon's family members removing snow from corpses to identify them. Ultimately, the reviewer concluded that the novel, like Han's other novels, exposed South Korea's complicated relationship to historical violence.

A reviewer at Sungkyunkwan University stated that the book's purpose was not to directly show the events of the Jeju massacre but rather to convey its horror through characters like Inseon's family members—though, to the reviewer, the events still proved to be horrific even through indirect storytelling.

After Han's awarding of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature, South Korean sales of We Do Not Part, as well as Han's other novels, skyrocketed. Online retailer Yes24 specifically reported a "9000-fold increase" in sales of We Do Not Part following the Nobel Foundation's announcement. Bookstores initially struggled to keep up with demand, thus placing the novel on backorder, and many copies were subsequently sold on secondhand websites with marked up prices.

French

Thierry Clermont, writing for Korean Literature Now, stated "Impossibles Adieux is an entrancing work, one that casts a subtle but hypnotic spell... In its pages we find lessons in comradeship, friendship, an acknowledgement of what is kept and lost between generations, as well as the importance and burden of that transmission—and of love, which can also be a source of 'terrible pain.'" He then compared Han's writing style to that of Yasunari Kawabata and W. G. Sebald and observed the novel's "strange and sometimes disturbing atmosphere, a kind of gentle, muffled space between fantasy and reality... all sorts of images and dreams."

English

In a starred review, Kirkus Reviews called the book "A mysterious novel about history and friendship offers no easy answers" and stated "Even through the veil of translation, the quiet intricacy of the author’s prose glitters throughout" with particular attention to Han's descriptions of snow. The reviewer also mentioned Han's subtle interweaving of Korean history, in particular its history of violence, as the protagonist Kyungha makes her journey to a Jeju Island village on behalf of her friend Inseon.

Also in a starred review, Publishers Weekly called the book "an indelible exploration of Korea’s historical traumas" in its tackling of the Jeju massacre, which took place from 1948 to 1949, and remarked on the "dreamy yet devastating prose" rendered by Han and translated by e. and Morris. Ultimately, the reviewer concluded it was "a meticulously rendered portrait of friendship, mother-daughter love, and hope in the face of profound loss. Han is at the top of her game."

Many publications, like The Atlantic and The Boston Globe, remarked on Han's further tackling of South Korean history in a similar fashion to Human Acts. Leigh Haber, writing for the Los Angeles Times, called We Do Not Part an "exquisite and profoundly disquieting latest novel" and found "no answers" in Han's mysterious, eerie, and haunting narrative. Haber also observed that "Han's prose is translucent, shot through with poetic turns" and found a "reportorial tone" in the sections where Inseon's narrates her family's experiences of the Jeju massacre. People's World lauded Han's mention of the American involvement in the Jeju massacre, writing: "This novel not only reveals the emotional toll that Human Acts took on the author but also deepens and expands on the theme of government aggression, torture, and widespread killings."

Hannah Bae, writing for Datebook, observed Han's interplay between reality and dream, life and death, and past and present through "leaps between narrators, time, place and states of being." Bae particularly observed Han's recollection of the Jeju massacre through Inseon's family background and Kyungha's investigation of it, concluding that "The fragility of the human body—and human society—is a recurring theme in Han’s work, and 'We Do Not Part' furthers her exploration."

Lists and accolades

Many English-language publications in the west highly anticipated the release of We Do Not Part, as it marked Han's first English translation since her awarding of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature. Book Riot predicted that the Nobel Prize would instantly make Han's next book—We Do Not Part in this case—one of the biggest books of 2025.

The New York Times, the South China Morning Post, Elle, and many other publications placed the novel on their recommended reading lists for 2025. Fashion Journal and Scary Mommy called it one of the most anticipated, exciting book releases in 2025. The Korea Times mentioned it in their list of books comprising the "wave of Korean literature" to hit English-language markets in 2025.

See also

References

  1. Han, Kang (2021). Chakpyŏl haji annŭnda. Munhak Tongne changp'yŏn sosŏl (1-p'an ed.). Kyŏnggi-do P'aju-si: Munhak Tongne. ISBN 978-89-546-8215-2. OCLC 1267975909.
  2. Hwang, Dong-hee (2024-10-10). "Exploring works of Han Kang". Korea Herald. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  3. ^ "Acclaimed author calls history 'question of human nature' : Korea.net : The official website of the Republic of Korea". www.korea.net. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  4. "Han Kang's novel shortlisted for 2 prestigious French awards". The Korea Times. 2023-10-28. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  5. "Han Kang wins Emile Guimet Prize for Asian Literature". 동아일보. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  6. Han, Kang; yaewon, e; Morris, Paige Aniyah (2025). We do not part. London; New York, NY: Hogarth. ISBN 978-0-593-59547-3.
  7. ^ Letman, Jon (2023-04-03). "75 Years After Jeju 4.3 Massacre, Koreans Want a US Apology". Inkstick. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  8. The National Committee for the Investigation of the Truth about the Jeju April 3 Incident (December 15, 2003). "The Jeju April 3 Incident Investigation Report" (PDF). Office of the Prime Minister, Republic of Korea. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 21, 2015. Retrieved August 17, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. "United Nations Resolution 112: The Problem of the Independence of Korea". United Nations. 2007. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
  10. "South Korea's Forgotten Anti-Communist Killings". The Dial. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  11. "The Nobel Prize in Literature 2024". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  12. Kim, Victoria (December 6, 2024). "Atrocities Made a South Korean City Infamous. A Novelist Made It Immortal". The New York Times.
  13. "Yung In Chae: "Why Han Kang's Nobel Matters"". The Yale Review. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  14. Jae-yeon, Woo (2023-11-14). "After award-winning book on tragic history, Han Kang loves to go more personal, upbeat | Yonhap News Agency". Yonhap News Agency. Archived from the original on 2023-11-21. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  15. "Han Kang's 'I Do Not Bid Farewell' wins French literature award". The Korea Times. 2024-03-01. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  16. "When Han Kang, the 2024 winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, spoke to Le Monde". 2024-10-10. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  17. Bartholomew, Jem (2024-10-15). "'I emerged painfully transformed from her books': Han Kang readers on her Nobel literature prize". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  18. "The Nobel Prize in Literature 2024". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  19. Kang, Han (2024-11-10). ""Heavy Snow," by Han Kang". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  20. "[청년시선-나의 인생작] 책 '작별하지 않는다' 리뷰". 사이드뷰 (in Korean). 2024-04-17. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  21. "잊을 수 없는, 잊어서는 안되는 이야기 『작별하지 않는다』서평". 부산에서 책 만드는 이야기 : 산지니출판사 블로그 (in Korean). 2022-04-01. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  22. "작별하지 않는다 (한강 장편소설) | 성균관대학교 오거서". Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  23. Park, Ju-min; Lee, Joyce (2024-10-10). "Nobel Prize winner Han Kang's books fly off the shelves in South Korea". Reuters.
  24. "Han Kang's Nobel Prize boosts book market". m.koreaherald.com. 2024-10-13. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  25. Kyung-min, No (2024-10-13). "Han Kang's works fetch premium prices for limited editions". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  26. Korea, L. T. I. "Impossibles Adieux: A Tragic Yet Tender Journey Into the Depths of Winter". Korean Literature Now - KLN (in Korean). Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  27. We Do Not Part. Kirkus Reviews.
  28. "We Do Not Part by Han Kang". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  29. Shulevitz, Judith (2025-01-14). "Where Han Kang's Nightmares Come From". The Atlantic. ISSN 2151-9463. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  30. Oldweiler, Cory (2015-01-14). "In Han Kang's latest, old friends revisit wartime dreams - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  31. Haber, Leigh (2025-01-15). "The latest Nobel laureate's work is haunted by questions. Don't expect answers". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  32. Farrell, Jenny (2024-12-06). "Han Kang's fight against violence, revisionism, and alienation". People's World. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  33. Bae, Hannah. "Review: In 'We Do Not Part,' Nobel Prize winner Han Kang implores readers to listen to the dead". Datebook | San Francisco Arts & Entertainment Guide. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  34. O, Gilyoung (2024-12-20). "Opinion: Conflict in South Korea reopens the very wounds examined in this year's Nobel laureate's work". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  35. O'Neal, Jeff (2024-10-10). "Han Kang Wins the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature". BOOK RIOT. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  36. "20 Books Coming in January". The New York Times. 2024-12-26. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  37. "New Korean books in English to look forward to in 2025". South China Morning Post. 2025-01-08. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  38. Mitchell, Rebecca (2025-01-14). "All The Books We're Excited To Read In 2025". ELLE. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  39. Henry, Daisy (2025-01-10). "The most exciting new release novels coming in 2025". Fashion Journal. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  40. "11 Of The Most Anticipated Books Of 2025, From Memoirs To Romantasy". Scary Mommy. 2025-01-06. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  41. "From sci-fi to healing fiction, Korean books cross borders in 2025". The Korea Times. 2025-01-04. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
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