Book Review - "Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982" by Cho Nam-Joo, the Feminist Story of a Common Woman

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The novel depicts Kim Jiyoung's everyday life, including brief family background, her birth, childhood, and adulthood. The book depicts not just the difficulties that the title character has faced since she was a child, but also the experiences of other women she knew. It depicts the women's experiences with prejudice and social judgment, as well as their reactions to it.

Introduction 

Book’s Name - Kim Jiyoung Born 1982

Author’s Name - Cho Nam-Joo

Genre- Feminist Fiction 

Language- English 

Synopsis (No Spoilers!)

The novel depicts Kim Jiyoung's everyday life, including brief family background, her birth, childhood, and adulthood. The book depicts not just the difficulties that the title character has faced since she was a child, but also the experiences of other women she knew.

About the Author

Cho Nam-Joo, 41, is a former television scriptwriter whose novel Kim Jiyoung, Born in 1982 became a hotly debated bestseller in South Korea when it was published in 2016, coinciding with the country’s #MeToo movement. Now published in English, Cho’s book uses the story of one woman to reveal gender inequality in all parts of South Korean society, from the privileging of male children to workplace discrimination and harassment.

About the Book 

This book depicts the very real reality that women face in their day-to-day lives from birth to adulthood. We follow Kim Jiyoung, who has grown up in a small town in Korea and has a lot of questions about life and why the women in her life have to live differently than the men. 

Cho Nam-Joo first tells us the story of Kim Jiyoung’s mother and the difficulties she faced during her education years and then later when she gave birth to two daughters. This depicts the generational trauma that women have to go through to satisfy society’s need for a boy. Women have to make a huge toll on their bodies to please everyone else in their lives.

“Abortion due to medical problems had been legal for ten years at that point, and checking the sex of the fetus and aborting females was a common practice as if “daughters” was a medical problem”

She first starts to notice this difference in her years of education. She noticed how boys were treated differently than the girls in the school. The dress code, the focus on studies, encouragement to play sports everything was different between the boys and girls. 

“One time, a female student who was held up at the school gate for wearing sneakers protested that it was unfair to allow T-shirts and sneakers to male students only. The student discipline teacher explained that it was because boys were more physically active.”

We often forget the daily struggles that women have to go through when we see them functioning ‘normally’ day after day. This book takes us inside the thoughts of a woman as she embarks on her journey. This makes us realize that every decision, every action is controlled by the patriarchal society we live in whether she likes it or not. Even the most ‘independent’ of women don't have free choice, if she wants to survive in this world made by men, for men.

“Jiyoung grew up being told to be cautious, to dress conservatively, to be ‘ladylike.” That it’s your job to avoid dangerous places, times of day, and people. It’s your fault for not noticing and not avoiding.”

“Ridiculous, isn't it? ‘Smart women are taxing,’ they say. And when she passes the law exam all on her own without any help from the college? They fly banners and toot horns! ‘Proud alumni!’”

This book talks about how instead of giving women any rights or opportunities, they have been put on a pedestal. They are treated as holy creatures and people worship them. But as women, it feels like we are being told to sit on that pedestal and just shut up. It feels as if the world is saying that our voices don't matter and we should just watch as all our life decisions are being made by someone else.

“You’re right. In a world where doctors can cure cancer and do heart transplants, there isn’t a single pill to treat menstrual cramps.” “ The world wants our uterus to be drug-free. Like sacred grounds in a virgin forest.”

“Girls don't need special treatment - they just want the same responsibilities and opportunities.”

This book then goes on to talk about the problems faced by Kim Jiyoung in her adulthood - marriage, children, jobs. Even after having a supportive family and husband, the societal structure and norms made her make choices that she wasn’t sure about. 

This book takes about workplace discrimination and how women struggle in surviving something so natural to men. This book makes us realize that the societal structure is made in a way that leads to the suffering of women and how the corporate world makes it impossible for a woman to succeed.

“I’ve noticed this about new employees over the years. The women take on all the cumbersome, minor tasks without being asked, while guys never do. Doesn't matter if they are new or the youngest - they never do anything they're not told to do. But why do women simply take things upon themselves?”

“Women don't stay because you make it impossible for us to stay.”

This book is a very important piece of feminist literature that shows how doing the most mundane tasks can be a difficulty for women. I would recommend everyone to read this book to get a closer look at these problems. You’ll at least have a greater appreciation for the women in your life, who have sacrificed so much for you. 

My rating for the book is 5 on 5 

Get your copy on - Amazon

Written By - Kritika Sharma