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Dong-ho’s Mother
The older brother is the eldest child of Dong-ho’s father and Dong-ho’s mother; he is a few years older than the middle brother, and 11 years older than Dong-ho. The older brother is very intelligent and cheerful, and though he moves to Seoul for work, he continues to visit Dong-ho’s mother regularly into her old age. The older brother was very attached to Dong-ho in his infancy, and he resents the middle brother for not doing more to protect Dong-ho that day at the Provincial Office.
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The Older Brother Character Timeline in Human Acts
The timeline below shows where the character The Older Brother appears in Human Acts. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1: The Boy, 1980
...convinced that his friend Jeong-dae is at the hospital, not here. Dong-ho’s mother and brothers—the oldest brother at school in Seoul, the middle brother trying to pass his exams—are terrified that Dong-ho...
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Chapter 6: The Boy’s Mother, 2010
While Dong-ho’s middle brother remains enraged, his older brother is friendly and bubbly, visiting Dong-ho’s mother every so often to bring her food and...
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During one visit, the older brother accused the middle brother of failing to save Dong-ho’s life. In response, the middle brother...
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Epilogue: The Writer, 2013
...writer simply leaves a note for her brother and heads to the graveyard. She remembers the older brother writing to her about burying Dong-ho’s body. The older brother had polished the skull before...
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