VIVACENDO

Many masks currently exist in Korea. 양반탈, 할미탈, 각시탈 are some examples of Korea’s masks. However, what I want to mention about is different masks; the social masks of humanity that can hide one’s personality and independent ideas, making them suitable for a specific society. People can be different every time you meet them when they have a different social mask on.

<How in heaven’s name>’s Korean title mentions about masks of humanity. The protagonist of this story, Shin Kil-man wears a huge heavy mask of a soldier and a POW for many countries. One who loves his country and family cannot run away to save himself from a dangerous demand. Shin was one of them too.

Shin was raised in a normal tenant farmer’s family. To drive poverty out of his family, he decided to participate in the WW2 as a Japanese soldier since he was promised to be made township clerk if he survived from the war. The Japanese were ruthless even to their soldiers. Living with one ration per day, it was a miracle that they could even stand. They fought their final stand, but were surrounded. Shin became a USSR POW, not that satisfactory but better treated than his last moments in the Japanese army. He also met a Korean interpreter and fellow friends, which gave him big hopes. One normal day, he got a proposition about becoming a soldier, with healthy rations and better treatment. He didn’t have any other choices available but it.

He got defeated by Germany, this time. Germany had only even harsher treatments waiting for him. Shin and his friends did their best to go back home, but they could only obey orders that were given to them, and they had to fight new battles all over again.

Finally, they became American POWs. They had enough of this repeating, dangerous life. They brainstormed more passionately than ever before, concluding with the idea of a last big bang; a blood testament. Unfortunately, the idea failed and they were treated dangerously. After those gloomy days, they were on a move to USSR again. They didn’t lose their hope, and believing the optimistic colonel, they foolishly trusted on a fake idea that they were heading home. There was a short break in their travel to USSR, and suddenly enormous amounts of gunshots were headed to all the POWs. And all was still, the book concludes.

Did you know that the ending is slightly different in the English and Korean version? In the Korean version, Shin’s narrating ends with the description of gunfire. However, there is one sentence that made me cry uncontrollably in the translated version. ‘And then all was still.’ This sentence just made me burst out crying. I can’t simply define the reason, but I think that sentence is the best one in whole story. The quote about surviving in a tiger’s cave came to me newly as well. It was just a widely-used quote in the past days; but I would keep on remembering those who died at war when I think of that quote. Also another thing about my emotions; the Koryeo people had a great impact. Seeing something that I learnt in history class in a novel, came to me newly. No author in the world can describe this story better than Cho Cheongnae.  

WW2, was absolutely horrific even just looking at the numbers of people dead. However, if you open your eyes and ears to those people’s stories, not their social masks of soldiers, war would be the last thing you would ever welcome. This story is especially not simply a historic novel for Koreans; this book gives the eyes that make us look back to when Korea was poor and powerless and makes people again thankful about our ancestor’s sacrifice for our country. Even if they didn’t cause direct critical changes, I believe that it helped Korea to develop. I strongly believe that this book should not only be read by Koreans; everyone should read it. After all, there might be a world war 3, with worldwide participation with a mask of a soldier. You never know.