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This study employs psychoanalytical criticism to examine selected works by South Korean novelist Han Kang,
with a particular emphasis on The Vegetarian and Human Acts. Utilizing Freudian and Lacanian
psychoanalytic theories, the research investigates the underlying motivations, traumatic experiences, and
suppressed emotions in Kang's characters. The analysis explores how these psychological aspects mirror both
personal challenges and wider social issues in post-war South Korea. By uncovering the intricate relationships
between personal identity, trauma, and desire, this study offers a novel interpretation of Kang's literature that
goes beyond conventional readings. The paper enhances the expanding body of research on modern Korean
literature by presenting a psychoanalytic framework that deepens our comprehension of Han Kang's critique of
societal norms and historical trauma.
Psychoanalytic criticism, rooted in the theories of Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan, examines the
subconscious mind, suppressed longings, psychological wounds, and the intricacies of human mental processes
in literary works. Han Kang, a renowned South Korean writer, is recognized for her profound psychological
examination of human anguish, trauma, and self-concept. Her novels, particularly The Vegetarian (2007) and
Human Acts (2016), provide fertile ground for psychoanalytic scrutiny. This research employs psychoanalytic
theory to analyze Han Kang's selected writings, emphasizing how subconscious influences mould characters'
actions and encounters. Specifically, it delves into how repression, trauma, and desire function within the
framework of post-war and post-authoritarian South Korea, mirroring the nation's collective psychological
wounds. This analysis seeks to investigate how psychoanalysis enhances our comprehension of Han Kang's
depiction of psychological distress and the human experience. In doing so, the study underscores how personal
psychological struggles intertwine with historical and cultural trauma, offering a multifaceted interpretation of
Han Kang's literary works.
While Han Kang’s novels The Vegetarian and Human Acts received significant attention for their feminist,
historical, and socio-political aspects, there remains a lack of scholarship that employs a concentrated
psychoanalytic perspective—specifically Freudian and Lacanian theories—to explore the ways in which
repressed emotions, trauma, and desire affect both individual and collective identity in post-war South Korea.
The difference highlights the issue of how unresolved trauma and psychological suppression, as shown in Han
Kang's characters, reflect broader historical and cultural wounds in South Korean society. Thus, the challenge
is to see how psychoanalytic criticism can uncover deeper meanings in Han Kang's writings and provide a
better understanding of the relationship between individual suffering and collective memory.
This research employs a , incorporating both and
psychoanalysis to interpret Han Kang’s novels. The methodology involves:
1. : Close reading of The Vegetarian and Human Acts to identify unconscious motivations,
repressed memories, and desires within the characters’ psyche.
ISSN No. 2321-2705 | DOI: 10.51244/IJRSI | Volume XII Issue VIII August 2025
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2. : Key psychoanalytic concepts such as repression, trauma, the
unconscious, and Lacan’s notion of the Mirror Stage will be used to analyze character development,
internal conflicts, and narrative structure.
3. : The analysis will also consider the socio-political context of post-war South
Korea, particularly the lasting effects of the Korean War, political oppression, and authoritarian regimes on
both individual psychology and collective memory.
The study integrates these methods to generate a psychoanalytical interpretation of Han Kang’s novels,
considering how individual trauma interacts with societal trauma.
Han Kang's works have been examined through various critical lenses, including feminist, postmodern, and
existentialist approaches. However, there is a scarcity of research employing psychoanalytic criticism to
comprehend her exploration of trauma and identity.
Feminist Interpretations of Han Kang: Researchers such as Seo and Kim (2015) have scrutinized The
Vegetarian from a feminist perspective, examining how the main character's defiance of social
expectations can be viewed as a form of gender rebellion. These analyses, however, do not thoroughly
investigate the underlying psychoanalytic processes at work.
Postmodern and Existential Analyses: Other investigations, like those conducted by Lee (2017),
highlight the existential dilemma and postmodern narrative structure in Kang's novels. While these
studies often emphasize the absurdity and fragmentation in the character's experiences, they lack
emphasis on the unconscious forces driving their behaviours.
Trauma in Modern Korean Literature: Academics like Choi (2018) have investigated the broader
cultural and historical trauma in contemporary Korean literature, including an examination of the
impact of the Korean War and subsequent authoritarian governance. However, psychoanalysis is
seldom applied to explore how these traumas are internalized and manifested in the characters'
psychological conditions.
This study addresses a gap by utilizing psychoanalytic criticism to analyze Han Kang's novels, providing
insights into the unconscious mechanisms that shape her depiction of trauma and identity.
While Han Kang's novels have been studied in terms of feminist, postmodern, and existential frameworks,
there has been relatively limited application of psychoanalytical criticism to her works. The psychological
dimensions of her characters, especially in works like The Vegetarian and Human Acts, have not been
thoroughly examined in light of psychoanalytic theories. Additionally, the psychological effects of societal
trauma, especially in post-war and post-authoritarian South Korea, have not been explored extensively in this
context. This research seeks to fill that gap by focusing on the subconscious and psychological depth of Han
Kang’s characters through a psychoanalytic lens.
The main questions guiding the research would include:
How do the psychoanalytic theories of Freud and Lacan inform the interpretation of the characters in
Han Kang's novels?
In what ways do trauma, repression, and desire manifest in the characters of The Vegetarian and
Human Acts?
ISSN No. 2321-2705 | DOI: 10.51244/IJRSI | Volume XII Issue VIII August 2025
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How does Han Kang's portrayal of individual psychological struggles reflect broader societal trauma in
post-war and contemporary South Korea?
Can psychoanalytical criticism reveal deeper insights into the relationship between the body, identity,
and trauma in Han Kang's works?
The primary objectives of the research will be:
To analyze selected novels of Han Kang (The Vegetarian, Human Acts, etc.) through the lens of
psychoanalytical criticism.
To investigate the psychological states of characters and how they reflect their unconscious desires,
trauma, and repression.
To explore how these psychoanalytic elements intersect with historical and societal contexts in modern
South Korea, especially concerning political oppression and post-traumatic stress.
To examine how Han Kang uses psychoanalytical themes to critique societal norms and power
structures.
1. The Vegetarian:
In The Vegetarian, the protagonist Yeong-hye’s decision to abandon eating meat is symbolic of a deeper
psychological rejection of societal norms. From a psychoanalytic perspective, Yeong-hye’s vegetarianism can
be interpreted as a manifestation of repressed trauma. Her body, which she increasingly alienates from,
becomes a battleground for her unconscious mind. Using Freudian theory, we can view Yeong-hye'sbehaviour
as a form of repression—she distances herself from the trauma of her past, including an abusive childhood and
societal expectations placed on her as a woman.
Lacanian theory, particularly the concept of the Mirror Stage, can also be applied to understand Yeong-hye’s
identity crisis. She refuses to align with the image of the 'self' that society and family have constructed for her,
leading to her psychological disintegration. Her rejection of meat can be seen as an attempt to escape her body,
a reflection of her fractured self-image.
2. Human Acts:
Human Acts explores the aftermath of the 1980 Gwangju Uprising, focusing on the trauma and psychological
scars left on the individuals who survived the violence. Through the lens of psychoanalysis, we can examine
how the characters’ actions are driven by unconscious desires, particularly a desire for justice and recognition.
The repeated trauma experienced by the characters reflects how collective and personal memories can be
repressed, only to resurface in the form of dreams, nightmares, and symbolic actions.
Lacanian psychoanalysis provides a framework to understand how characters in Human Acts negotiate their
relationship with the "Other"—be it the state, their memories, or their fellow survivors. The trauma of the
Gwangju Uprising functions as a social and individual "wound" that refuses to heal, manifesting in both the
body and psyche.
3. :
Han Kang’s portrayal of psychological trauma cannot be fully understood without considering the historical
context of post-war South Korea. The nation’s collective trauma, stemming from the Korean War, political
repression, and authoritarian rule, is deeply embedded in the individual psyches of her characters.
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Psychoanalysis, particularly theories of collective trauma, helps explain how these historical events leave
lasting scars on personal and social identities.
The internalized effects of societal trauma—manifested in guilt, repression, and desire—are crucial to
understanding the behaviour of Han Kang’s characters. Her works suggest that the psychic wounds of history
are not only passed down through generations but are also intricately woven into the fabric of individual
identity formation.
This study demonstrates the value of psychoanalytical criticism in enriching the interpretation of Han Kang's
novels. By examining the psychological depths of characters in The Vegetarian and Human Acts, the paper
highlights how trauma, repression, and desire function both on an individual level and within the broader
socio-political context of South Korea. The research reveals that Han Kang’s novels are not just explorations
of personal identity but are also reflections of a nation’s collective psychological scars. By using
psychoanalysis as a tool, this study provides new insights into the complex ways in which the unconscious
mind interacts with historical and societal trauma.
1. Choi, J. (2018). Trauma and Memory in Contemporary Korean Literature. Seoul: Korean Literature
Press.
2. Fiaz, M. K., Nawaz, R., and S. Irfan. “Ghosts of Gwangju: Affective Resistance and Necropolitics in
Han Kang’s Human Acts.” Journal of Historical Studies, vol. 9, 2023, pp. 96–115.
3. Memory, Trauma, and Desire: The Depiction of the Unspoken Past in Han Kang’s
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https://doi.org/10.70670/sra.v3i1.447
4. Freud, Sigmund. The Interpretation of Dreams. Translated by James Strachey, Basic Books, 2010
5. Han, Kang. The Vegetarian. Translated by Deborah Smith, Hogarth, 2016.
6. Kim, H. (2015). The Vegetarian: Feminism, Society, and Rejection. Korean Feminist Studies Journal,
23(1), 34-56.
7. Kim, M. “Han Kang’s Human Acts: Literary Testimony to Historical Blanks Created by State
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8. Lacan, J. (2006). Écrits: A Selection. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.
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