I was quite surprised that such a story had been written in that time period, until I read in one of the notes about the “individualism” concept promoted by public intellectuals in 1930s Korea and Japan. The romantic drama feels very modern, despite the fact that the somewhat detached way the story is told would not have worked if it were written today.
#Endless sky storyline serial#
The writing style, and the fact that the book is a collection of serial chapters with an abrupt ending, shows the age of the book. That same tone is used in chapters about other people: no matter how frustrated or passionate the other characters get, you experience it quite passively. The overall narrative tone is very subdued, befitting Ilma’s personality. All of the characters in Endless Blue Sky are very outspoken and do not always heed what is appropriate.
The role of the female characters (written by a man) is very interesting for a novel of the time. While Ilma’s approach to being pursued is to be very clear about who he wants to be with, the female characters, in turn, play with the men who love them. For many of the characters, a passionate pursuit of the one they love takes precedence over the desire for a traditional family life or a stable income. The romantic ventures demonstrate a broad view of family life. Yet all of these female characters somehow desire Ilma, who is not necessarily the biggest catch in a material sense. The female characters are mostly strong and independent women who often advise the men in their lives. His conclusion made me grin, “It is enough to contemplate and desire the perfect relationship, there is no need to analyse it.” Yet he contemplates what is right, while others rely mostly on their feelings. Assuming that the perfect marriage is only possible to a certain extent, it seems fair for him to follow where his (evolving) emotions take him when he meets (new) people. When it comes to his marriage, Ilma often thinks about the morals associated with it, and how your intentions and your actions can balance each other out. A rather mild example: “For a foreign woman there was something vaguely Asian about her calm demeanour.” Some of the comments made by the characters would lead to wry remarks from part of the audience today.
#Endless sky storyline full#
Endless Blue Sky is full of racial, cultural, and gender stereotyping. Many characters often compare the east to the west and Manchuria (“the continent”) to Europe.
Donyeong calls her experience of the European atmosphere of an international department store “the real smell of civilization”. For his definition of “modern man,” he looks more to the West (Europe) than to the East (Korea and Japan).
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