If I Had Your Face

Throughout the novel, the way that the characters understand each other often differs from the intention or perspective of another. Character’s perceptions and how they often are juxtaposed against reality is a theme within the narrative that allows readers to understand the complexities of Seoul’s society for the women living within it. The novel is told from four different points of view, allowing for each character to provide their own understanding of various situations to the reader; these perspectives are often contrary to the perspectives of another character or the intentions behind their actions.

Ara, with her complex relationship with her upbringing, does not enjoy visiting her parents at the estate she grew up in. When she decides to take Sujin and Miho home with her for the Lunar New Year, Miho falls in love with the beautiful estate, saying that “If I lived here, I would never leave” (157). Ara chooses to ignore Miho’s comment, but it shows the very different perspectives that the friends have about Ara’s home. To Ara, the estate represents the bitter memories she holds about the traumatic event that led to her inability to speak and the complicated feelings about her parents’ social position within the home. Miho, who does not know fully about Ara’s experience, perceives the home as beautiful and feels envious of Ara’s upbringing. Miho’s perspective represents one that was created at the surface level of understanding, simply aesthetic without considering the emotional aspects of Ara’s upbringing.

Kyuri’s relationship with perspective is one that she uses to her advantage. Kyuri allows for the men in her life, her clients, to create and facilitate their own perspective of her, one that often differs vastly from reality. For example, Kyuri continues to regularly meet with a client who had paid off her debts at her nightclub, allowing her to move into a more reputable room salon in Gangnam. Kyuri explains that “He thinks I am going to school to become a teacher. He is so proud of how he has changed my life, and often, his eyes water when he looks at me. He loves the story that he saved me” (91), illustrating the way in which the man’s understanding of reality does not match the truth of the situation. Kyuri’s use of perception is interesting because she uses it not only to her advantage, but as a form of kindness, a way to spare the feelings of others. She does this kind of perception manipulation again with Miho as she withholds the information that Hanbin is cheating on her. Kyuri, unlike other characters, uses perception as a means of power and control, using it to elevate herself socially.

Throughout the novel, Miho becomes slowly disillusioned with several perspectives she has created as she becomes exposed to the reality of the world around her. For instance, Miho, after her friend Ruby suddenly dies by suicide, comments that “I assumed she knew that, I assumed that she felt lucky compared with me, that that was why she kept me around as a friend. I should have told her more stories of my own sorrows” (75). Miho is faced with the severe differences between her assumptions, her perception of her and Ruby’s relationship, and the reality of how Ruby may have felt. Miho is haunted by this guilt throughout the novel, attempting to expel and acknowledge it through her art. Miho, as she learns of Hanbin’s infidelity, becomes more aware of the world around her, her perceptions of Kyuri, wealth, and the society shifting into something much more cynical.

While not given narrative space of her own within the novel, Sujin’s character arc follows her efforts to become a room salon girl like Kyuri. Ara summarizes the room salons, explaining Sujin’s interest in them, “From the outside, they are nearly invisible. Nondescript signs hang above darkened stairways, leading to underground worlds where men pay to act like bloated kings. Sujin wants to be a part of it all, for the money” (4). In order to become a room salon girl, Sujin undergoes several painful cosmetic surgeries to alter her appearance. Kyuri is hesitant to help her reach her goal despite seeming to be a very successful room salon girl herself. Kyuri tells the readers the truth of the room salons, saying:

What she doesn’t understand is that I am trying to save her. Once money exchanges hands and you step into our world, things turn bad really quickly […] One minute, you are accepting loans from madams and pimps […] and the next minute the debt has ballooned to a staggering, unpayable sum […] there is no escape (91).

In Sujin’s perspective, the room salons are the ideal job for beautiful women; they are paid to drink and look beautiful. Kyuri, having lived through the experience of being a room salon girl, shows the readers the reality of that profession and how it isn’t as amazing as it seems. Sujin’s perspective is directly juxtaposed and challenged by Kyuri’s perspective, complicating both their dynamic and their journeys.