The Island of Sea Women

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She tested herself in many ways, as all women must,” Shaman Kim told us. “She assessed the waters to see how deep they were, so that haenyeo would be safe when they went to sea. She also searched ponds and lakes, looking for ways to improve the lives of those who worked the fields on land. One day, attracted to a mysterious mist on Muljang-ol Oreum, she discovered a lake in its crater. The water was deep blue, and she could not begin to guess its depths. Taking one big breath, she swam straight down. She has never returned.” My solace came from knowing I was not alone in my misery. So many men had been killed in Bukchon that it was now called the Village of Widows." The women are the providers for the family. Fathers, husbands, and sons support the women by taking care of the children and cooking meals. Imagine! The conversations of the women as they meet at the bulteok before going into the sea and after coming out of it are very interesting, with lots of complaining about their husbands, some of whom are considered lazy. A family is very happy to have sons, however, because only the sons can do ancestor worship. A very different way of life that seems to have developed around the seasons of the ocean. I couldn’t help but blush. My mother didn’t have a lover, but this was a much-beloved song and all the women liked it.

And I have no idea, when the ladies do meet again for the first time, why she tormented Young-sook with revealing the secrets about her mother and her sister in law. That did not represent to me, someone filled with guilt, as she later said she was. I was really confused by that and still am. Mi-ja finally gets up the courage to ask Young-sook’s mother if she could be taught how to dive and join the collective. The women feel sorry for her but she is still tainted as a Japanese collaborator, however they teach her the ways of the “Haenyeo” and she joins them.I live here, but I don’t know who you’re talking about.” Young-sook’s voice comes out even sharper and louder than Gu-sun’s, causing both Kang sisters to look her way. Are you all right? This reading group guide for The Island of Sea Women includes discussion questions and ideas for enhancing your book club. We hope that this guide will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.

Later the two young women go to summer jobs in China and Japan to bring in more money for the family. When they are 21 they go to the Soviet Union, Vladivostok, where they dive in the icy cold waters and live in boarding houses which are almost hovels.Mi-ja’s rubbings are critical to the novel. How do they illustrate the friendship between Mi-ja and Young-sook? How do they help Young-sook in her process of healing? I found this novel absolutely fascinating as I learned more about this women-focused society I had only heard about a few times prior. The communal spirit of this culture was so inspiring. But this story mirrors the depths of the sea as it alternates between present day (2008) and past (1938-1975), showing the evolution of relationships, suffering and cultural generation gaps that transition traditions into past tense. Please know this story is absolutely heartbreaking in its journe She recites the number, while Clara taps the buttons on the phone. Once she’s done, she unplugs the phone and extends it to Young-sook, who feels strangely paralyzed. On impulse—it has to be impulse, right?—the girl leans over and puts the phone to Young-sook’s ear. Her touch. . . Like lava. . . A small cross on a gold chain slips out from under the girl’s T-shirt and swings in front of Young-sook’s eyes. Now she notices that the mother, Janet, wears a cross too.

Talk about a fascinating premise, and from Lisa See, one of my favorite authors? The Island of Sea Women is captivating historical fiction at its masterful best. ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ But—” Do-saeng didn’t finish her thought. Instead, she smoothed strings of wet hair away from her daughter’s face. I glanced at Mi-ja, hoping she hadn’t been hurt by Yu-ri’s thoughtlessness, but her face was set in concentration as she tried to follow the Kang sisters’ instructions. In many ways, the novel is about blame, guilt, and forgiveness. In the first full chapter, Yu-ri has her encounter with the octopus. What effect does this incident have on various characters moving forward: Mother, Young-sook, Mi-ja, Do-seang, Gu-ja, Gu-sun, and Jun-bu? Young-sook is also involved in the tragic death of her mother. To what extent is she responsible for these sad events? Is her sense of guilt justified?The story begins with Young-sook as an old woman, gathering algae on the beach. What secrets or clues about the past and the present are revealed in the scenes that take place in 2008?Why do we only understand the beginning of the novel after we have finished it?