Embon's Transformation

[lavkathleen]

Maybe more of an anti-hero. He always seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, but somehow manages to emerge more or less unscathed from all sorts of otherwise perilous situations. Even his arrest and interrogation seem like a hoax. Life is like this, though. In the end, I guess his experiences may have a dose of realism, after all.

What about the interrogation seemed like a hoax to you? I've never been in one but I thought it seemed a little real... just because it fits with how the Japanese were portrayed and with what I know about imperialists like them. They were aiming for Koreans who were suspected of rebelling against them. And if they think you're not from the upper class, the better. They will literally jail you for practicing your basic human right and that's what happened to Embon.

[lavkathleen]

I felt that his transformation was "about time." He needed to grow up, but in some ways he didn't. He ran from one responsibility to another, without accepting responsibility for all things. So, in some ways he stayed the spoiled brat and only did what he wanted to do.

What did you mean by "responsibility", though? Because if you mean his wife, mother, and father-in-law... then I'm glad he did. It wasn't just doing "what he wanted to do." It was seeing that those "responsibilities" were pointless and that there are better things to offer his life to. Like sacrificing his life for the freedom of his country. It was less of a "want" but more of a "need", not just for himself but for everybody else.

[lavkathleen]

I found Embon to be a fairly honest character. I think he definitely had some growing up to do, but I felt like it all happened rather quickly. One day, he is a "mama's boy" and the next, he's a political revolutionary. I think some of the aspects of the book seemed a little incredulous. One example of this is that Embon didn't end up going with Hain and the general because he was feeling ill and that trip, as we know, was very ill-fated. He also is released from prison right on the brink of his death. All this is to say that I felt like his character was written very conveniently.

I think it has a lot to do with how passive the author wrote the scenes... We weren't able to soak in those changes because of that and also because of how fast and constant they came. The story also had a smooth flow that it seemed too fairytale-like. But the part where he wasn't able to join Hain and the general made sense because he really was sick so it was bound to happen. And that part where he got released just in time. I agree that it seemed too ideal... but also it says a lot about his destiny. I think the author just has to write it better.

[Lucille27]

I think the change is mostly portrayed from his inner reflections. We see that he changes because the narrator explains his inside processes. However, maybe from the outside he did not change that much. He was thrilled and enthusiastic about the revolutionary ideas, yet he does not make a lot. He spends a lot of time with his friends, but he does not really risks his life. Same goes about him with the Japanese girl. He feels everything and that they should be together, yet he never searches for it. I think this is also a comment on how we think and reflect a lot, but few times these changes reflect on the external world.

[nangel04]

I think Embon’s transformation was fairly realistic. Perhaps it seems less real because of how swiftly the story moves, but it feels authentic enough. I would have liked the storyline to expand on his growth from brat to the serious and smart young man who received early acceptance into a top notch university. However, I believe his hesitation and then eventual acceptance of his role in the resistance feels authentic.

[Damian Keyes]

He's what people of today would call a well-rounded person. Embon is able to adapt to many environments while staying true to himself. I always love the transformation of a character in a book, because regression is something I might see in the middle of the book, but in the end, the character should have progressed and evolved. His transformation was realistic because he was positively influenced by his peers on a subject that he did not think much of. "Birds of a feather, flock together" is the phrase that showcased how his 3 friends transformed him from a rich kid with a servant to becoming more independent and thinking about social issues. His friends come from the same background as him but they knew that it was better to help their own people.

[Ahbed Nadir]

I feel his "growing up" while overdue came a bit too easily. Despite all the experiences he had had he came out more or less unscathed and as a result there wasn't much character development until all of a sudden he evolved into a man. That's just my point of view.

I guess almost dying from tuberculosis changes you. Which happened because he got imprisoned for being a Korean suspected to be rebelling against the Japanese. Aside from being close friends with activists and seeing and feeling their passion, he also wanted to do something about his life. He saw the flaw in being a privileged man and wanted to change it. He didn't see anything else that fit but joining the independence movement.

Yes, I suppose this point of view is correct. He had realized his privilege and sought to use it for something meaningful such as helping his people and joining the movement.

[Josephe-Anne]

Yes. I think Embon's transformation was realistic because different experiences can drastically change our mindset and behavior. Embon became passionate about the independence movement due to his friends. At university, they would often talk about how they could improve their country.

[Nferdi20]

For a child such as Embon who grew up in luxury and not knowing any other way of life, he made a gradual change and in the process began a better man. He began to see the unfairness of so many things that he once thought were normal. I applaud him for making the transition.

[kdstrack]

I see a similarity between the young Embon kicking an elderly person and the freedom fighter we see at the end of the story, now kicking against the Japanese. In the case of the freedom fighter, the reader understands the traumatic experiences that influenced the change (the bombing, his sickness, loss of close friends, etc.) What is hard to understand, or maybe what the author left out, is how Embon transformed from an unruly, self-centered child into the prodigy and dedicated university student. This is where the author expects readers to accept an unexplained transformation.

[prakritisingh]

The character of Embon represents different personalities. The first is when he was a child and was provided with all comforts of the world. He would be mean to other people and was lured by the cozy life he was living. Then he transformed into an intelligent and wise teenager who would take decisions with proper analysis of the situation. Then he became ill and soon returned to his cozy comfy life with all the facilities and no struggle. He became lazy again. Just when he realized the need to meet his friends again, he transformed again. This time the transformation was for good. He became more aware about the actual situation of the country and was determined to fight for his people. I really liked how the author used this character to display the transitions that occur in a person's life from childhood to youth and then to adulthood.

[Ahbed Nadir]

Embon's transformation was a bit too sudden for my liking. Just from a simple incident he all of a sudden decided to completely change his mindset and become more than he was. While it was very inspiring it did feel a bit unrealistic.

[Ahbed Nadir]

One could also argue that the death of Embon's friends played a large part in his sudden transformation. The guilt on his shoulders propelled him to begin to fight in earnest for his country as a sort of appeasement for their deaths or in an attempt to seek retribution. It was lovely to see him become the man he was meant to be after a life filled with mediocrity and underachievement.

[Ahbed Nadir]

I do. What I think is a bit underdeveloped are his motives. It is clear that the struggle must not have been easy when he was born into utmost luxury. But we never know, for example, how he passed from a brat that kicked elderly servants to a perfectly decent young man.

Embon was quite the spoilt brat to be honest. However I feel that he had never had any real consequences to his actions as his mother always sheltered him and so when he began to see the damages he was causing, it led to a sort of switch up in his psyche.

[Ahbed Nadir]

I think Embon's transformation was realistically portrayed. Given his upbringing and his single parentage, the lack of the influence of a strong male role model was evident. And I think the author was careful to demonstrate hints of imbalance in his character throughout his transformation. And though he jumped at the opportunity to do something he and others believed to be purposeful we see him lost and aimless soon after he had recovered from his illness. So given Embon's upbringing his transformation was indeed far from smooth and I think this was realistically portrayed by the author.

Mr. Koo's influence in his life is not something to be discounted as it led to him joining the freedom fighters. Embon's character development while not entirely natural is certainly believable. The death of his friends was another event that became a turning point in his life as he realized the grim reality his country was facing and became impassioned for his country.