A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea

Miyoko, Masaji’s mother, was her children’s primary caregiver, single-handedly raising Masaji and his three sisters while her husband, Do Sam-dal, was in prison. “[A] woman of strong character” (6), she was known for her kindness and resilience, being one of Masaji’s main role models. Encouraged to be independent and “capable,” Miyoko had technical qualifications and nursing experience, and though not wealthy, her family’s socioeconomic condition provided her and her children with a comfortable life in the Japanese countryside. Miyoko’s choice to marry Do Sam-dal, a Korean man, shattered traditional expectations in her family and community. Their interracial marriage exposed them to harsh judgment, being labeled as "Beauty and the Beast" (6), and the prejudice her husband faced profoundly influenced Masaji, leading him to internalize negative views about his Korean heritage.

A defining characteristic of Miyoko’s life was the domestic abuse she endured after her husband was released from prison. Though “she never seemed to resist him” (10), Miyoko was fiercely protective of her children and employed various strategies to shield them from the abuse. Whether sequestering them in a room or physically shielding them from blows, her actions demonstrate fierce maternal love. As an embodiment of anti-Korean sentiment in Japan, Miyoko represented the prejudice Do Sam-dal faced in society, and in turn “bore the brunt of all his anger toward the world” (15). A turning point arrives when her husband leaves her “like a broken doll, her blouse soaked in blood” (11) in a life-threatening incident, sparking a desperate escape attempt. She promises to reunite with her children and flees, attempting to forge a new life and urging Masaji to be strong in her absence. However, members from a Korean advocacy group forcibly bring her back home, leaving her “dazed” and “speechless” (16). With societal and external forces closing in, Miyoko is ultimately forced to comply with her husband’s plans to repatriate to North Korea. Despite the fear, she clings to hope by keeping her Japanese passport, a symbol of her yearning for freedom.

Miyoko’s arrival in North Korea thrusts her into a life of alienation and “a constant state of fear” (29). The state’s control forced her to shed her identity, suppressing her Japanese language and name, treating her like “a third-class citizen” (31), the state barred her from employment due to her lack of Korean language skills, effectively rendering her an outcast and limiting her chances to provide for her family. Miyoko’s relationship with her husband takes an unexpected turn, as his remorse and the shared struggles of navigating a foreign and hostile land forge a new bond between them. Their dynamic transcends the initial fear and violence, transforming into one of mutual support.

The unforgiving circumstances in North Korea exacerbate Miyoko’s emotional and physical decline. Starvation ravages the country, forcing her to forage for food. This relentless struggle is mirrored in her deteriorating physical state, as she becomes "more frightened by the day" (48) and appears "frail and weary" (49). The constant fear and oppressive environment erode her once resilient spirit. Reduced to a shadow of her former self, Miyoko frequently succumbs to despair, evidenced by period during which she “sobbed for hours at a time” (49). The news of her mother’s passing only compound on her existing despair, pushing her further into grief, her suffering apparent in the “deep wrinkles [...] of pain” (59) that formed on her face.

Miyoko’s sudden death, which follows the birth of her first grandchild, Masaji’s son, compels him to reflect on her life and the hardships she endured in North Korea. Her dying wish to have her ashes returned to Japan underscores her profound longing for a return to her homeland, the life she once knew, and everything she was forced to abandon. This final yearning encapsulates the depth of her suffering and the irreplaceable piece of her identity that was stolen by the circumstances that brought her to North Korea, in a tragic culmination of her longing for the homeland she left behind and the life she could never reclaim.