Painter Of The Night: Jung In-Hun, a new version of “Bel-Ami”?

This is where you can read the manhwa. https://www.lezhin.com/en/comic/painter But be aware that this manhwa is a mature Yaoi, which means, it is about homosexuality with explicit scenes.

As you already know my style, you can imagine that in the title of this essay, there is a reference to a novel. This work “Bel-Ami” was written by Guy de Maupassant, a French writer from the end of the 19th Century. The latter is very famous for his short stories which I love so much. I have to admit that he is my favorite French writer because of his style: short, simple but full of irony and metaphors.

“Bel-Ami” is the nickname given to the protagonist Georges Duroy because he is handsome. “Bel-Ami/Beautiful Friend” (French translation) is admired by many women from the bourgeoisie. The story is about the social rise of Georges Duroy. His parents are just peasants, but the man is able to become famous and rich at the end. Georges Duroy is portrayed as an ambitious and unscrupulous seductive man who reaches the top of the Parisian social society thanks to his mistresses and the collusion between finance, the press and politics. Actually, he embodies the very type of anti-hero. Striking is the higher he climbs, the more ruthless and immoral he becomes. So his social rise corresponds to his increasing loss of conscience and morality. [He was never a good person from the start, but he got worse].

Now, the reader can detect why I would connect this man to Jung In-Hun. First, you can sense that their personality is similar: ambitious, greedy, selfish, opportunist, ruthless but hiding their true personality behind smiles and good manners, even if Georges Duroy has to learn the etiquette through his mistresses because of his origins. As you can imagine, Guy de Maupassant was portraying an immoral and corrupted society and he had a very bad opinion of women and bourgeoisie as such. The period and the location might differ from Painter Of The Night, yet the negative image of the high society remains the same.

However, there is a huge difference between Georges Duroy and Jung In-Hun. While the former is a commoner, the other is a low noble. Yet, their situation in the beginning is quite similar, they have no wealth and no connection in order to become powerful and rich. The other parallel is that both can enter the social circles from the high society through a friend. In Bel-Ami, it’s his friend Monsieur Forrestier who gives him a job as a journalist. From that moment, the former soldier is able to meet people and women so that he can advance in his career. In other words, we could say that he prostitutes himself in order to climb up the social ladder. On the other hand, I have to point out that he enjoys having many conquests. So sex is his way to feel superior and to achieve his goal. The end of the novel announces the peak of his career: he has just married a naive but rich daughter Suzanne Walter, whose mother was his former mistress and sponsor, when his eyes meet one of his former conquests, Madame de Marelle, insinuating that in his second marriage, he will still have mistresses.

But let’s go back to the comparison between Jung In-Hun and Georges Duroy. So far, we discovered the similarities between their personality and their social situation at the beginning of the story: poor and without connection. Another parallel between Jung In-Hun and Georges Duroy is the introduction through a friend to a new world. Baek Na-Kyum is the one who causes the meeting between the teacher and Yoon Seungho.

But now, you are wondering why I connect Jung In-Hun to Georges Duroy, when the latter is the main lead and the teacher just a second character and when we know that the low noble is never seen having sex or having mistresses. Their situation , their personality and the description of an immoral and decadent society might be similar, yet the methods of Jung In-Hun and Georges Duroy differ.

First, Jung In-Hun has to pass the civil exam and he needed the support of a sponsor in order to have access to a good library which was necessary in order to get more knowledge. Georges Duroy was just hired through his friend. But in reality their methods only diverge on the surface. Both use people as pawns and once the latter have served their purpose, the anti-hero and the antagonist have no problem to abandon them.

However, there is a more specific reason why I link those terrible characters. Sex plays a role Jung In-Hun’s life too, although it is not very visible because he has a condemning attitude towards homosexuality and sex as such. I am quite sure that he acts as if sex was something vulgar and dirty too. Nonetheless, his attitude towards homosexuality changes the moment he realizes that he has become himself a victim of manipulation. While he thought that he had been able to deceive Yoon Seungho, it was the opposite. The powerful noble needed him in order to force the painter to work for him. When the learned sir tried to fight against the protagonist during the hunt, he was immediately defeated.

Not only he had to kneel down in front of the seme but he had to hear that his dream of social rise could not succeed so easily like he had imagined. Therefore on his way to the mansion, he unleashes his anger and frustration against Baek Na-Kyum as he is much weaker socially, physically and mentally hence the poor man is grabbed violently by the wrist and even pushed against the wall. The artist is surprised by this sudden brutal behavior, nevertheless he doesn’t complain. What caught my attention in this scene is the alternation of his attitude towards the commoner. First, he is aggressive, then when Jung In-Hun asks the artist to search for a weakness, he has already distanced himself from the low-born.

He thought that with just an order, he could have the painter worked for him as a spy. But since Baek Na-Kyum is so innocent and humble, he wonders how he, as a low-born, could get info so easily. And this questioning infuriates the teacher so much that he yells at him and grabs him brutally again. Yet, when he witnessed Baek Na-Kyum’s shocked face, he gets aware that he needs to treat the artist better if he wants to convince the painter to act as a spy. That’s why Byeonduck zoomed on the low noble’s mouth.

It was as if he was clenching his jaw, grinding his teeth, as if he had to do something that he really dislikes. Now pay attention to the gestures he makes:

He becomes very close to the uke, touches his shoulder with his head and hands, then he kisses his hands. He is definitely seducing the innocent man. One might object that this is just an act but fact is that he is using his body in an alluring way in order to convince the painter. It is like a job he has to do. He knows that Baek Na-Kyum will never ask him for a sexual favor because he has indoctrinated him that he views homosexuality as filthy and disgusting. Sure, one might argue that he has only taken over the part of the pimp. However, what the uke didn’t realize is that he has the upper hand in their relationship. If he had been a corrupted person, he could have proposed a deal: “Sleep with me and you’ll get your info”. Imagine the irony of the situation: Jung In-Hun is here asking the painter to do anything, including sleep with the lord, in exchange for weaknesses, whereas at the same time, the learned sir is forced to become touchy and to caress the painter’s hands with his lips. We have to wonder who is here the whore. The low noble knows that he is safe with the artist and the latter will never come up with the idea to exploit this situation.

Nonetheless, the elements of prostitution are right here. He is willing to use sex in order to achieve his goal and he is willing to use his body to seduce the naive man. And if we compare his behavior towards Baek Na-Kyum in the past, we will observe that the low noble always kept his distance from him. It was especially visible in the chapter 7 at the teacher’s arrival. While the artist was almost jumping on him, the learned sir could only take a step backwards while making a disgusted face. The only time, he touched the man, it was to prevent him from painting so that he would leave the mansion. Nonetheless, he was barely touching the uke’s chin (chapter 10). But it was not obvious and he thought that this was a small token, nothing in comparison to what he would get from Yoon Seungho’s support. However after the chapter 24, the low noble’s attitude changes drastically. Jung In-Hun keeps touching him illustrating that sex and homosexuality that he abhors so much are now part of Jung In-Hun’s world. (chapter 29) (chapter 38). Imagine that he is even willing to visit the uke’s chamber in order to squeeze information out from the painter. So for me, this sudden appearance at the painter’s chamber symbolizes his willingness to visit a man’s chamber for his own selfish interests.

Not only he opens the door but also he stays with the painter in the chamber behind closed doors. You can now guess the meaning behind this action. He no longer fears the gossip as long as he can get what he wants. He seems desperate. Visiting the low-born’s chamber and remaining for quite some time behind closed doors can generate rumors. To me, it becomes more and more obvious that the “social rise” of Jung In-Hun will be related to sodomy and not to skills. I have always wished that the best punishment for the learned sir is to become the image he detested in the first place. And this negative future seems to be foreshadowed with the lord’s words at the end of the chapter 44:

First, the protagonist associates the teacher with lip service. We know what he means behind his words. The low noble is just talking but he thinks the opposite. However, the metaphor “lip service” could be perceived differently if the beholder takes it literally. He will kiss men with his lips and he might have to kiss the old bearded men’s asses for real. So my theory is that just like Georges Duroy, he will prostitute himself. The two differences are the following: the men will be his tools for his career and secondly, I don’t think that the readers will be able to witness his social rise like with Georges Duroy. He is doomed to failure in my opinion. I have the impression that Jung In-Hun’s career will mirror the painter’s career but in the negative way. While Baek Na-Kyum will be supported by Yoon Seungho because of his love for him and will be able to climb the social ladders despite the scandal, Jung In-Hun will sink lower and lower through sodomy. Since he claimed that Baek Na-Kyum was born to be a prostitute, the teacher’s fate could be that he ends up as a real prostitute in a brothel because he failed with his schemes. That’s why I conclude that Jung In-Hun won’t definitely be Georges Duroy due to his failure.

Then I would like to analyze more closely the character Jung In-Hun in the chapters 29, 30 and 35 concerning his role as pimp and prostitute. Striking is that after escaping from the mansion, the commoner asks the low noble to run away with him because their lives are in danger. After this statement, Jung In-Hun replies with a rhetorical question:

And the readers are well aware that this is Jung In-Hun’s MO, feigning ignorance. With this rhetorical question, he forces the painter to lie since the learned sir brainwashed the artist that the former hates sodomy and he wants to keep his distance from people committing such a sin. Furthermore, the low-born had been reminded in the chapter 10 that he could never criticize the lord for a “crime/wrongdoing” like Baek Na-Kyum did back then. The learned sir had said harsh words against him underlining that due to his social status he had no right to condemn Yoon Seungho. Since he can not accuse the master of rape, the uke is cornered. He will never be seen as a victim by Jung In-Hun. Furthermore, the former wishes to maintain his relationship with the low noble. “Thanks to” Yoon Seungho, he had been able to renew his relationship with him and he could stay close to him.

As you can detect, the pimp will do anything for his own interests. He needs the painter to share the bed with the powerful noble as he knows that the bedchamber is the place where confidences and secrets are revealed. So the chapter 29 insinuates that Jung In-Hun has already assumed the role of the pimp but it becomes clearer in the next chapter. At the same time, he was acting like a prostitute because for the return, he had to touch the low-born and even hug him (see the pictures above). After their return, the teacher protects the artist by claiming that Baek Na-Kyum would only listen to his words.

He is definitely ambiguous with his statement. He can not reveal that he knows about the rape since he would unveil his true personality. He is manipulative and deceitful. That’s why he can only mention the paintings. With the last words, the fake man is implying that if Yoon Seungho wants to obtain the artist’s favors, the master needs to pay attention to Jung In-Hun because he is the only person he listens to. Right in front of the seme, Jung In-Hun is claiming the low-born as his slave, his belonging. But this doesn’t end here. We are actually witnessing how the teacher is selling off the uke what the latter fails to realize. However, Seungho understood the meaning here hence he is worried later that this could happen at some point. The irony is that Jung In-Hun is too arrogant and stupid to realize the dangerousness of his situation. He could get killed by acting like a pimp. And the paradox is that due to Baek Na-Kyum’s intervention, Jung In-Hun couldn’t pull through the deal as the painter expressed that from now on, he would do anything for the lord. In front of the teacher, the commoner is declaring that Yoon Seungho has become his master and the gesture with the hands symbolizes the allegiance. He is joining his hands to Yoon Seungho. In other words, what Jung In-Hun wanted to do in the chapter 30 is to use Baek Na-Kyum as his whore in exchange for favors but he failed because of the painter’s spontaneity and innocence. The low-born didn’t fall into the teacher’s scheme.

But the double role as prostitute and whore doesn’t just end here because the low noble needs to discover a weakness and for that he has to rely on the artist. He can’t give up. That’s the reason why we have another encounter between Jung In-Hun and the painter in the courtyard. Baek Na-Kyum meets the teacher who explains the reason why he never visited the painter during his sickness.

Just like I mentioned it above, we see how Jung In-Hun is getting more and more touchy with the painter. He has no other mean, he needs to seduce the low-born and a stroke or two are nothing compared to what he could get. However, like I pointed out earlier, I detect all these actions as the ones of a “whore”.

He caresses the hair just like Yoon Seungho and we have to remember that the latter has been observing this scene from his window. No wonder if the protagonist gets jealous and desperate, he has been taking care of Baek Na-Kyum so well, was willing to give up his own bed and his reputation but he never succeeded. And here, he has to see how another man is “seducing” the object of his affection with cheap little tricks. Besides, he even lets his hand there for a while provoking the painter’s blushing.

For the sake of his career and his own interests, he is willing to “dirty” his hand. The teacher is well aware of the impact of his gesture but he needs his support. Besides, this doesn’t cost him anything. Just a nice gesture and he believes that Baek Na-Kyum will do as he says. We have to imagine that the teacher is acting like that in order to take over the painter. But by doing so, he doesn’t treat the artist as his belonging and his slave, that’s the reason why he doesn’t point out the absence of the white headband. As a conclusion, we see the low noble selling himself. In exchange for a service, he needs to be a little touchy and tender. The learned sir didn’t forget that the commoner had pledged allegiance to his “sponsor” but he expects that “out of love for him”, the commoner will obey to his order.

But here we have another comical situation because the painter, full of innocence, reveals that the new master paid expensive medicine for him. And notice the gesture. The hand on the head is immediately removed…. How can the teacher compete against expensive medicine? His little trick can’t work but he doesn’t let the painter see his shock. Then he tries diminishing the lord’s action by declaring that he wasn’t seriously ill. These words do affect the painter. Here, he is able to sense that the low noble doesn’t value him very much. The candid man has to remind the learned sir that his condition was pretty serious. He is already hurt. And just before leaving, this is what Jung In-Hun says:

He tries to act like a pimp again hence this is the only price he has to pay. This time, he is caressing the cheek with his full hand… Observe the progression. From the head, the teacher went closer to the lips. He is truly increasing his seductive gestures. Imagine that all this time, Yoon Seungho had to witness their interactions. No wonder, when he declares that he would have killed the painter if he had left the domain with the low noble. For him, it was as if they were having sex in front of him.

Finally, this explains why in the chapter 38, the low noble caresses the cheek as he has to compete with the lord who spent the night with the uke. He needs the favor from Baek Na-Kyum notwithstanding, he reminds the painter to wear his white head-band. By doing so, he is trying to claim the uke as his servant. Now, you understand why he didn’t make a remark about the absence of the white cloth in the chapter 35. Here, he wasn’t sure if the painter had won the lord’s favor despite the declared allegiance. Furthermore, the pressure on Jung In-Hun is now increasing. Maybe he already knows that he won’t succeed like he stated it so proudly in front of the other commoners and Baek Na-Kyum hence he needs to discover Seungho’s weakness right before his departure. Striking is that this final attempt to assert the painter as his belonging fails. He tried to act like a pimp with Baek Na-Kyum but it never worked.

As a conclusion, Jung In-hun might be a low noble but he is acting like a pimp and prostitute. He, who claims to be clean and honorable is far from it. I suspect that Jung In-Hun is doomed to fail because he has no idea what awaits him at the capital. He is far too arrogant and stupid to realize that there are dangerous men there. I have honestly to admit that I thought that Jung In-Hun would use Yoon’s brother and father for his own interests…. but now, I have the feeling that the opposite could happen. The father and the younger son might use the teacher as their prostitute, just like they used their eldest son in the past. Let’s not forget that Yoon Seungho’s relatives are manipulative, selfish, ambitious and ruthless. Yoon Seung-Won might be innocent but I doubt that this is the case for the father. Sure, there is nothing certain about their relationships. Who will exploit whom? It could go both ways. However, I believe that Jung In-Hun will have to sell himself at some point. It already started with these little gestures which he justified that this was nothing compared to glory and a great career. And the most surprising observation is that it was Baek Na-Kyum’s innocence that saved him from the manipulations of his “admired sir” (see chapter 24, 30, 35).

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