The Girl with Seven Names: Chapter 5 Summary & Analysis

When Hyeonseo is seven years old, she sees a man hanging by his neck under a bridge. His face is covered by a sack, and his hands are tied behind his back. There are several hangings over the next few days, and Mother even knows one of the women. The woman is suspected of seducing a state official to steal money, and she is immediately sentenced to death at her trial, which is little more than an official accusation. The woman is tied to a pole in the middle of town, and after the soldiers push her from the platform, she twitches and shakes before falling limp. Mother is pregnant with Min-ho and greatly upset by the hangings. She hates living in Anju and is relieved when Father is relocated to Hamhung. 

After leaving Anju, Hyeonseo’s family first stops in Hyesan before moving to Hamhung. Mother wants Min-ho to be born in Hyesan, so his birth certificate will be registered in the same city as the rest of the family. Father’s family asks to meet Min-ho before they move to Hamhung, and when they do, they treat the young boy with obvious respect. It seems as if they like Min-ho better than Hyeonseo, and she assumes it is because he is a boy. Mother, however, knows Father’s family will always treat her children with less respect than they would if she hadn’t already had a child when they married.