Korean literature is continuously gaining international prominence all over the world. We can see significant number of publications being translated and nominated for literary awards overseas. Seven Years of Darkness is Jeong You Jeong’s second book to be published in Turkish, after The Good Son (2021). 

    Jeong’s books are rich in plot. She displays generous details in such a clever manner, like a challenging puzzle, completed piece by piece. The storylines are deepened through the backgrounds of the main characters. Readers find it hard to judge them: an alcoholic father who has lost his way; a mother who has grown up in difficulty but remains devoted to her dreams; another sociopathic father who tries to rule over everybody; another mother who had no choice other than to abandon her child and run away. 

    Besides being a popular thriller, Seven Years of Darkness also goes into many other issues: the abuse of women and children, alcoholism, school bullyism, social marginalization, and childhood trauma. These permeate the plot and allow the reader to explore various social aspects at the same time.

    The novel begins in the current day but through several narratorial insertions, and proceeds with time changes from seven years prior during the characters’ childhood and adolescent periods. Even though these shifts in time, place and narrative can be slightly confusing, the stories remain satisfying given the strength of the characters. Through all these background stories, we ponder the process of Hyonsu becoming a murderer more than the murderer himself. We can't be convinced or admit that Hyonsu is a crazy murderer because we have already been given the character’s backstory. Hyonsu loves and admires his son, and is not a character who can just kill anyone, much less a child.

    As the author herself has stated, “This novel is about that gray area, about a man who made a single mistake that ruined his life.” This allows us to understand why we feel such empathy towards Hyonsu. 

    Another character who challenges the reader is the father of the victim, Yongje. His backstory tells us that his pursuit of revenge stems not from his love for his daughter, but from his possessiveness. The reader is led to consider that the actual guilt of that dark night may lie with Yongje himself who oppresses his family with his obsessive, psychopathic behavior.

    Another important character in the novel is Ahn Sunghwan, a novelist who pursues the facts and searches for evidence. He finds people and records their testimonies, enabling the son Sowon to learn what happened that fateful night and so saving him from hating his father forever. With Ahn Sunghwan, Jeong shows us that the good co-exists with the bad: “It’s about the darkness within people, and the light made possible by sacrificing oneself for someone else.”

    Who is more guilty? Even though the murderer is given from the beginning, it is quite difficult to say in this novel. We can’t stop empathizing with Hyonsu, who has killed eleven-year-old Seryong, or trying to find excuses for what he has done. We grow more frustrated when reading about Yongje’s violence at home towards his daughter Seryong and his wife Hayong. Sometimes we also feel disturbed by Sowon’s mother Eunju’s behaviours, which make the situations worse. Even when we have finished the book, it is not easy to judge who is guiltier. The only thing we can be sure of is that as a consequence of what those adults have done, two children have suffered terribly: Seryong dies tragically, and Sowon spends his childhood in darkness. 

    The author has created a dark, disturbing story which finds light at the end, leaving readers with a poignancy that remains even after the novel comes to an end.

S. Goksel Turkozu

Translator

Professor, Department of Korean language and literature, Erciyes University