Table of Contents Painter Of The Night (version from September 8th 2024) – Essay 471 / Video „Edge of Darkness“ Analyses 367, 293, 450, 417 and 400 updated

July 4, 2020September 8, 2024 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 3 Comments

Like announced, I am locking the essays little by little. So if you desire to keep reading them, you’ll need to follow me on Instagram/reddit/tumblr/Twitter and contact me (bebebisous33@yahoo.com) or subscribe here.

Announcement: From essay 458 on, I am changing the password. For my subscribers, please contact me.

The following analyses were all written between April 2020 and September 2024. Now, you can see if you have read everything about Painter Of The Night. Pay attention that some essays are updated because of details I missed the first time and because we get new info in the new season. All these new discoveries always lead to new theories. But after composing so many essays, I have to admit that if they don’t contain huge misinterpretations (like it was the case with Kim), I can no longer review/update all of them, especially since I am still writing new essays with each new released chapter.

The first meeting between Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum: the prelude of their special relationship https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/04/14/the-painter-of-the-night-from-byeonduck-the-first-meeting-between-between-seungho-and-baek-na-kyum-the-prelude-of-a-special-relation/
Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum, a comparison (second version) 24.12.20 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/05/31/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seungho-and-baek-na-kyum-a-comparison/
Yoon Seungho: a tragic figure or a hell-raiser? (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/04/18/yoon-seungho-a-hell-raiser/
Min: the introduction of a new villain? (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/05/05/painter-of-the-night-min-the-introduction-of-a-new-villain/
An analysis about Baek Na-Kyum’s paintings 🎨 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/05/07/painter-of-the-night-an-analysis-about-baek-na-kyums-paintings/
The chamber where everything changed https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/04/24/painter-of-the-night-the-chamber-where-everything-changed/
Jung In-Hun: a snake, a peacock 🦚 or a chameleon? (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/05/30/painter-of-the-night-jung-in-hun-a-snake-or-a-peacock/
Jihwa, chronicle of the foretold death of a childhood friend? (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/05/29/jihwa-death-foretold/
The pavilion, a place full of symbolism (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/02/painter-of-the-night-the-pavilion-a-place-full-of-symbolisms/
Responsibility, an analysis of the chapters 39 and 40 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/03/responsibility-an-analysis-of-the-chapters-39-and-40/
Yoon Seungho’s father: first impressions https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/04/yoon-seunghos-father-first-impressions/
Yoon Seungho’s gaze: the mirror of his soul (part 1) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/05/seunghos-gaze-the-mirror-of-his-soul/
Baek Na-Kyum’s dreams and their interpretation (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/06/baek-na-kyums-dreams-and-their-interpretation/
The role played by the hand (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/07/painter-of-the-night-the-role-played-by-the-hand/
Hypotheses for the second season https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/08/painter-of-the-night-hypotheses-for-the-second-season/
Yoon Seungho, Baek Na-Kyum and Nameless as animals – second version (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/09/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seungho-and-baek-na-kyum-as-animals/
Jung In-Hun’s secrets (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/10/painter-of-the-night-jung-in-huns-secrets/
Seungho’s kisses 💋 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/11/painter-of-the-night-seunghos-kisses/
“Room with a view” in Joseon (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/12/painter-of-the-night-room-with-a-view-in-joseon-part-1/
“Room with a view” in Joseon (part 2) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/13/painter-of-the-night-room-with-a-view-in-joseon-part-2/
Seungho’s weaknesses https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/14/painter-of-the-night-seunghos-weaknesses/
The mirror 🪞 and its functions (fourth version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/15/painter-of-the-night-the-mirror-and-its-functions/
The helping hand 🤝 (second version) 24. 04.2021 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/16/painter-of-the-night-the-helping-hand/
Traces of “Dangerous Liaisons” and “Justine: The Misfortunes of Virtue” in the manhwa https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/17/painter-of-the-night-traces-of-dangerous-liaisons-and-justine-the-misfortunes-of-virtue-in-the-manhwa/
“Persuasion” and “Pride and Prejudice” in the manhwa (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/18/painter-of-the-night-persuasion-and-pride-and-prejudice-in-the-manhwa/
“Master and Man” (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/19/painter-of-the-night-master-and-man/
The window 🪟, the door 🚪, the air and their signification (third version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/20/painter-of-the-night-the-window-the-door-the-air-and-their-signification/
Who is this Baek Na-Kyum? – part 1 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/21/painter-of-the-night-who-is-this-baek-na-kyum/
“Spring Awakening” part 1 (second version) (only accessible with password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/22/painter-of-the-night-spring-awakening-part-1/
Sex or love? ❤️ (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/23/painter-of-the-night-sex-or-love/ Sex or love? ❤️ Version with only 10 pictures https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/02/painter-of-the-night-sex-or-love-2/
“Spring Awakening” part 2 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/25/painter-of-the-night-spring-awakening-part-2/
Yoon Seungho: a psychopath? (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/26/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seungho-a-psychopath/
“Spring Awakening” part 3 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/27/painter-of-the-night-spring-awakening-part-3/
The difficult life of painters (comparison with A Painter behind the curtain) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/28/painter-of-the-night-a-painter-behind-the-curtain-the-difficult-life-of-painters/
Reputation and responsibility (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/29/painter-of-the-night-reputation-and-responsibility/
An accomplice, a pawn or an innocent?https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/06/30/painter-of-the-night-an-accomplice-a-pawn-or-an-innocent/
Yoon Seungho’s gaze: the mirror of his soul (part 2) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/01/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-gaze-the-mirror-of-his-soul-part-2/
The role played by the gaze https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/02/painter-of-the-night-the-role-played-by-the-gaze/
Baek Na-Kyum: a crybaby? (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/03/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyum-a-crybaby/
Yoon Seungho’s fears https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/04/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-fears/
Illusion and reality (another manhwa is included: Legs that won’t walk from Black apricot) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/05/painter-of-the-night-legs-that-wont-walk-illusion-and-reality/
The significance of the headband (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/06/painter-of-the-night-the-importance-of-the-headband/
The bed and its different meanings (second version:25.03.2021 ) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/07/painter-of-the-night-the-bed-and-its-meanings/
Jung In-Hun, a new version of “Bel-Ami”? https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/08/painter-of-the-night-jung-in-hun-a-new-version-of-bel-ami/
Yoon Seungho’s pangs of conscience https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/09/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-pangs-of-conscience/
The significance of clothes (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/10/painter-of-the-night-the-significance-of-clothes-part-1/
The significance of clothes (part 2) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/11/painter-of-the-night-the-significance-of-clothes-part-2/
Min: a snake, a wolf🐺, a magpie or a crow? https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/12/painter-of-the-night-min-a-snake-a-wolf-a-magpie-or-a-crow/
Seungho’s mouth 🫦 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/13/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-mouth/
The significance of clothes (part 3) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/14/painter-of-the-night-the-significance-of-clothes-part-3/
The Manual how to read and analyze the second season of Painter Of The Night https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/15/painter-of-the-night-the-manual-how-to-read-and-analyze-the-second-season-of-painter-of-the-night/
Breakups, chagrin and alcohol 🍾 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/16/painter-of-the-night-breakups-chagrin-and-alcohol/
Short analysis of the new trailer (second season) – second version (18.07.2020) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/17/painter-of-the-night-short-analysis-of-the-new-trailer-season-2/
The significance of clothes (part 4) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/18/painter-of-the-night-the-significance-of-clothes-part-4/
A new version of Fall of man https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/19/painter-of-the-night-a-new-adaptation-of-fall-of-man/
Baek Na Kyum’s lies (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/20/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-lies/
Jung In-Hun’s problems and worries https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/21/painter-of-the-night-jung-in-huns-problems-and-worries/
Yoon Seungho’s scar https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/22/painter-of-the-night-seunghos-scar/
Traces of Candide in the manhwa https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/23/painter-of-the-night-traces-of-candide-in-the-manhwa/
The animal representing Yoon Seung-Won (This was the last one before the second season started) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/24/painter-of-the-night-the-animal-representing-yoon-seung-won/
Baek Na-Kyum: a fiancée, a wife, a favored servant or a prostitute? – part 1 (second version) (only accessible with password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/25/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyum-a-fiancee-a-wife-a-favored-servant-or-a-prostitute-part-1/
Baek Na-Kyum: a fiancée, a wife, a favored servant or a prostitute? – part 2 (third version) (only accessible with password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/26/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyum-a-fiancee-a-wife-a-favored-servant-or-a-prostitute-part-2/
An easy conquest (only accessible with password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/27/painter-of-the-night-an-easy-conquest/
Rumors and the Yoons https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/27/painter-of-the-night-rumors-and-the-yoons/
Dreams https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/31/painter-of-the-night-dreams/
Baek Na-Kyum’s future (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/01/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-future-part-1/
Baek Na-Kyum’s future (part 2) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/02/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-future-part-2/
Baek Na-Kyum’s future (part 3) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/03/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-future-part-3/
Drawings and emotions (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/04/painter-of-the-night-drawings-and-emotions/
Drawings and emotions (part 2) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/05/painter-of-the-night-drawings-and-emotions-part-2/
Drawings and emotions (part 3) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/06/painter-of-the-night-drawings-and-emotions-part-3/
Needs and desires https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/08/painter-of-the-night-needs-and-desires/
“Why?” (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/09/painter-of-the-night-why-part-1/
“Why?” (part 2) (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/13/painter-of-the-night-why-part-2/
Dignity (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/17/painter-of-the-night-dignity/
Yoon Seungho’s long fight and struggle (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/19/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-long-fight-and-struggle-part-1/
Yoon Seungho’s long fight and struggle (part 2) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/21/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-long-fight-and-struggle-part-2/
Baek Na-Kyum’s confessions (part 1) (third version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/22/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-confessions-part-1/
Baek Na-Kyum’s confessions (part 2) (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/23/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-confessions-part-2/
Baek Na-Kyum’s confessions (part 3) (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/24/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-confessions-part-3/
Yoon Seungho’s traumatic past (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/25/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-traumatic-past/
🤓 Jung In-Hun’s poem, an analysis https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/28/painter-of-the-night-jung-in-huns-poem-an-analysis/
Realization (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/29/painter-of-the-night-realization-part-1/
Realization (part 2) – updated version https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/08/30/painter-of-the-night-realization-part-2/
Baek Na-Kyum’s confessions (part 4) (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/03/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-confessions-part-4/
Baek Na-Kyum’s confessions (part 5) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/04/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-confessions-part-5/
Hearsay (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/05/painter-of-the-night-hearsay-part-1/
Hearsay (part 2) – second version https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/06/painter-of-the-night-hearsay-part-2/
Punishment or not? – Wishful thinking (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/07/painter-of-the-night-punishment-or-not/
Jihwa’s torment (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/09/painter-of-the-night-jihwas-torments/
Baek Na-Kyum’s confessions (part 6) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/11/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-confessions-part-6/
🖤 Black Heart (part 1) 🖤 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/12/painter-of-the-night-black-heart-part-1/
🖤 Black Heart (part 2) 🖤 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/13/painter-of-the-night-black-heart-part-2/
Love and War (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/14/painter-of-the-night-love-and-war/
Portraits (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/15/painter-of-the-night-portraits/
Imagination and speculations (no analysis, just predictions for fun) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/16/painter-of-the-night-imagination-and-speculations/
The mirror of truth? https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/18/painter-of-the-night-the-mirror-of-truth/
The heart and the mind (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/19/painter-of-the-night-the-heart-and-the-mind/
The spirit 👻 and the shadow 👤 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/21/painter-of-the-night-the-spirit-and-the-shadow/
Spirituality and sensuality https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/22/painter-of-the-night-spirituality-and-sensuality/
Prejudices, secrets and images: Deok-Jae (fourth version) – was liked by the author herself, for me a proof that my theory is correct https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/24/painter-of-the-night-prejudices-secrets-and-images-deok-jae/
Prince Charming https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/25/painter-of-the-night-prince-charming/
White ⚪️ versus Black ⚫️ (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/27/painter-of-the-night-white-versus-black/
Paintings (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/09/28/painter-of-the-night-paintings/
The discovery of spiritual love, a theory https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/02/painter-of-the-night-the-discovery-of-spiritual-love-a-theory/
Conscious versus unconscious (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/03/painter-of-the-night-conscious-versus-unconscious-part-1/
Baek Na-Kyum’s mouth https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/04/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-mouth/
Conscious versus unconscious (part 2) (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/06/painter-of-the-night-conscious-versus-unconscious-part-2/
Yoon Seungho’s hands 👐 and feet in the first chapter https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/07/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-hands-and-feet-in-the-first-chapter/
Beauty and the Beast in the manhwas (with Serene Bird) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/09/painter-of-the-night-serene-bird-traces-of-beauty-and-the-beast-in-the-manhwas/
The sun 🌞, the Earth 🌎 and the moon 🌜 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/10/painter-of-the-night-the-sun-the-earth-and-the-moon/
Love triangles https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/11/painter-of-the-night-love-triangles/
Yoon Seungho’s secrets (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/13/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-secrets/
Injuries https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/14/painter-of-the-night-injuries/
Doomed Love? https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/15/painter-of-the-night-doomed-love/
Light, hope and desires (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/17/painter-of-the-night-light-hope-and-desires-written-by-user4792569-and-bebebisous33/
Light, hope and desires (part 2) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/18/painter-of-the-night-light-hope-and-desires-part-2-written-by-user4792569-and-bebebisous33/
Dream and reality (third version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/19/painter-of-the-night-dream-and-reality/
Lee Jihwa: Another puzzle?🧩🧩 (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/22/painter-of-the-night-lee-jihwa-another-puzzle/
Father Yoon (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/24/painter-of-the-night-father-yoon/
Corruption versus purification https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/25/painter-of-the-night-corruption-versus-purification/
Animals and predictions https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/26/painter-of-the-night-animals-and-predictions/
Jihwa’s confession – part 1 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/28/painter-of-the-night-jihwas-confession/
Jihwa’s confession – part 2 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/30/painter-of-the-night-jihwas-confession-part-2/
Yoon Seungho’s love confession: the hands (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/10/31/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-love-confession-the-hands/
Yoon Seungho’s love confession: dream and reality https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/01/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-love-confession-dream-and-reality/
The Best man (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/02/painter-of-the-night-the-best-man/
Yoon Seungho’s confession: Wreck. https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/06/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-love-confession-wreck/
Past, present, future – part 1 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/08/painter-of-the-night-past-present-and-future-part-1/
Past, present, future – part 2 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/09/painter-of-the-night-past-present-and-future-part-2/
Past, present, future – part 3 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/10/painter-of-the-night-past-present-and-future-part-3/
Starry Night versus Cloudy Night https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/painter-of-the-night-starry-night-versus-cloudy-night/
Fire and water – part 1 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/15/painter-of-the-night-fire-and-water-part-1/
Fire and water – part 2 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/16/painter-of-the-night-fire-and-water-part-2/
“It cannot be” https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/20/painter-of-the-night-it-cannot-be/
Past, present and future – part 4 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/20/painter-of-the-night-past-present-and-future-part-4/
Fate or liberty? 🗽 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/21/painter-of-the-night-fate-or-liberty/
“BADUM, BADUM and its implications” https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/22/painter-of-the-night-badumbadum-and-its-implications/
Past, present and future – part 5 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/23/painter-of-the-night-past-present-and-future-part-5/
The painter’s gaze https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/24/painter-of-the-night-the-painters-gaze/
“It all started with… ” https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/26/painter-of-the-night-it-all-started-with/
“Crime and Punishment” – part 1 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/28/painter-of-the-night-crime-and-punishment-part-1/
“Crime and Punishment”- part 2 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/11/29/painter-of-the-night-crime-and-punishment-part-2/
“Crime and Punishment” – part 3 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/02/painter-of-the-night-crime-and-punishment-part-3/
Fire and darkness: Yoon Seungho (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/06/painter-of-the-night-fire-and-darkness-part-1/
Fire and darkness: Baek Na-Kyum (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/08/painter-of-the-night-fire-and-darkness-part-2/
Fire and darkness: valet Kim – part 1 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/11/painter-of-the-night-fire-and-darkness-valet-kim-part-1/
Fire and darkness : valet Kim – part 2 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/13/painter-of-the-night-fire-and-darkness-valet-kim-part-2/
The night of revelations – part 1 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/19/painter-of-the-night-the-night-of-revelations-part-1/
Yoon Seungho’s obsession and its origins (second version) (Dine with a Vampire is mentioned and analyzed here) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/20/painter-of-the-night-dine-with-a-vampire-yoon-seunghos-obsession-and-its-origins/
The night of revelations – part 2 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/21/painter-of-the-night-the-night-of-revelations-part-2/
Brothers https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/22/painter-of-the-night-brothers/
The night of revelations – part 3 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/23/painter-of-the-night-the-night-of-revelations-part-3/
The phoenix, the crane and the butterfly (Another manhwa: Serene Bird) (third version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/29/painter-of-the-night-the-phoenix-the-crane-and-the-butterfly-serene-bird/
Valet Kim: a dog 🐶, a matchmaker or a father? (third version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/30/painter-of-the-night-valet-kim-a-dog-a-matchmaker-or-a-father/
Landscapes and its signification https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/12/31/painter-of-the-night-landscapes-and-its-signification/
What if…. https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/01/painter-of-the-night-what-if/
Silence 🤐 (fourth version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/02/painter-of-the-night-silence/
Loyalty https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/03/painter-of-the-night-loyalty/
Family (Third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/04/painter-of-the-night-family/
Yoon Seungho’s hanboks https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/06/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-hanboks/
Justice (third version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/07/painter-of-the-night-justice/
“HAA…” Flashbacks https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/09/painter-of-the-night-haa-flashbacks/
The power of … (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/10/painter-of-the-night-the-power-of/
The Joker – part 1 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/12/painter-of-the-night-the-joker-part-1/
The Joker – part 2 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/15/painter-of-the-night-the-joker-part-2/
The Joker – part 3 (second version): The manhwa The Beast Must Die is included as a comparison https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/16/painter-of-the-night-the-beast-must-die-the-joker-part-3/
Pandora’s box – part 1 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/19/painter-of-the-night-pandoras-box/
Painting and desires – part 1 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/20/painter-of-the-night-painting-and-desires-part-1/
Pandora’s box -part 2 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/22/painter-of-the-night-pandoras-box-part-2/
Absence https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/24/painter-of-the-night-absence/
Painting and desires – part 2 (fourth version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/25/painter-of-the-night-painting-and-desires-part-2/
The Joker’s plan https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/26/painter-of-the-night-the-jokers-plan/
Painting and desires – part 3 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/29/painter-of-the-night-painting-and-desires-part-3/
Heroes 🦸‍♂️ – part 1 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/01/30/painter-of-the-night-heroes/
Reflections https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/01/painter-of-the-night-reflections/
The fate of shadows and the phoenix https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/02/painter-of-the-night-the-fate-of-shadows-and-the-phoenix/
The slaps ✋🥊 in the kaleidoscope (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/06/painter-of-the-night-the-slaps-in-the-kaleidoscope/
Kim’s power – part 1 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/07/painter-of-the-night-kims-power-part-1/
The life of women 👯‍♀️ in Joseon (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/10/painter-of-the-night-the-life-of-women-in-joseon/
Kim’s power – part 2 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/12/painter-of-the-night-kims-power-part-2/
Heroes 🦸‍♂️ – part 2 (second version) (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/14/painter-of-the-night-heroes-part-2/
Yoon Seungho’s love confession: I adore you (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/15/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-love-confession-i-adore-you/
A man consumed by lust https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/16/painter-of-the-night-a-man-consumed-by-lust/
Love and respect https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/20/painter-of-the-night-respect-and-love-part-1/
Desires and communication 📲 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/21/painter-of-the-night-desires-and-communication/
Baek Na-Kyum’s past https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/22/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-past/
Stockholm Syndrome (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/23/painter-of-the-night-stockholm-syndrome/
“How strange…”🤔🧐 (second version) (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/25/painter-of-the-night-how-strange/
Jealousy and trust (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/26/painter-of-the-night-jealousy-and-trust-part-1/
Decisions https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/27/painter-of-the-night-decisions/
Setting the trap https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/02/28/painter-of-the-night-setting-the-trap/
Love and trust https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/01/painter-of-the-night-love-and-trust/
A thousand thoughts swept through my mind till sunrise https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/04/painter-of-the-night-a-thousand-thoughts-swept-through-my-mind-till-sunrise/
Farewell https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/05/painter-of-the-night-farewell/
Pranks https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/06/painter-of-the-night-pranks/
Sex and sensuality (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/07/painter-of-the-night-sex-and-sensuality/
The Light 💡 in the Heart ❤ (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/09/painter-of-the-night-the-light-in-the-heart/
Love💘, embrace and caress 👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/11/painter-of-the-night-love-embrace-and-caress/
Five candles 🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️ https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/12/painter-of-the-night-five-candles/
The purge (theory) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/13/painter-of-the-night-the-purge-theory/
Peace and Love ☮️ (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/14/painter-of-the-night-peace-and-love/
The bride 👰 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/15/painter-of-the-night-the-bride/
Baek Na-Kyum’s orgasms (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/17/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-orgasms/
Investigation 🔍🧐 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/18/painter-of-the-night-investigation/
Yoon Seungho’s treasure 👅 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/20/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-treasure/
Lord Na-Kyum and Seungho-Ya https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/20/painter-of-the-night-lord-na-kyum-and-seungho-ah/
Yoon Seungho’s erections (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/21/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-erections/
Butterflies 🦋 🦋 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/22/painter-of-the-night-butterflies/
The Rebirth of the Phoenix https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/23/painter-of-the-night-the-rebirth-of-the-phoenix/
Adoration (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/26/painter-of-the-night-adoration/
Words https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/27/painter-of-the-night-words/
Liberation https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/28/painter-of-the-night-liberation/
The baby Yoon Seungho 👶 https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/29/painter-of-the-night-the-baby-yoon-seungho/
Cowardice versus courage: innate or learnable? https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2021/03/30/painter-of-the-night-cowardice-versus-courage-innate-or-learnable/
The topknot incident (fifth version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/01/painter-of-the-night-the-topknot-incident/
Yoon Seungho’s suffering path (fourth version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/02/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-suffering-path/
Animals of misfortune https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/03/painter-of-the-night-animals-of-misfortune/
Refraction 🌈 https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/04/painter-of-the-night-refraction/
A Fool 🤡 in love😍❤️‍🔥 (third version) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/05/painter-of-the-night-a-fool-in-love/
A perfect crime?😱 https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/07/painter-of-the-night-a-perfect-crime-%f0%9f%98%b1/
The night is long https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/08/painter-of-the-night-the-night-is-long/
Nightmares and their message🖼️🖼️ (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/09/painter-of-the-night-nightmares-and-their-message/
Truth and memories 🧠 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/11/painter-of-the-night-truth-and-memories/
Interpretation of a nightmare (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/12/painter-of-the-night-interpretation-of-a-nightmare/
Sins 🛐 (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/13/painter-of-the-night-sins/
Secrecy and perpetrator (third version) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/14/painter-of-the-night-secrecy-and-perpetrator/
Changes https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/16/painter-of-the-night-changes/
The Ghost and the embrace 💞 https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/17/painter-of-the-night-the-ghost-and-the-embrace/
The shadow and the light (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/18/painter-of-the-night-the-shadow-and-the-light/
Strolls and guidance (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/19/painter-of-the-night-strolls-and-guidance/
Inspirations (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/21/painter-of-the-night-inspirations/
The heart versus the mind: The manhwa Unintentional Love Story is included https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/23/painter-of-the-night-the-heart-versus-the-mind/
Home 🏰 (second version) The manhwa Dr Frost is mentioned https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/25/painter-of-the-night-home/
Hiatus (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/26/painter-of-the-night-hiatus/
Karma 💩🕉 (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/04/29/painter-of-the-night-karma/
The birth of the zombie (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/05/02/painter-of-the-night-the-birth-of-the-zombie/
Lord Song (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/05/05/painter-of-the-night-lord-song/
Love and Sex 👨‍❤️‍👨 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/05/10/painter-of-the-night-love-and-sex/
The kisaeng and the scholar 🎓👨‍🎓 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/05/13/painter-of-the-night-the-kisaeng-and-the-scholar/
Beautiful catastrophe (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/05/22/painter-of-the-night-beautiful-catastrophe/
The gifts 🎁 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/05/26/painter-of-the-night-the-gifts/
Who is this Baek Na-Kyum? – second part (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/05/29/painter-of-the-night-who-is-this-baek-na-kyum-part-2/
Perception (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/06/01/painter-of-the-night-perception/
Season 3: the breaking of the shackles (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/06/05/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-season-3-the-breaking-of-the-shackles/
Chaos (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/06/20/painter-of-the-night-chaos/
The scholars’ fight (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/06/26/painter-of-the-night-the-scholars-fight/
Happiness https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/06/29/painter-of-the-night-happiness/
Tears and characters 😥- part 1 https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/03/painter-of-the-night-tears-and-characters-part-1/ (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/03/painter-of-the-night-tears-and-characters-part-1-version-with-only-10-pictures/
Tears and characters 😥- part 2 (second version) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/04/painter-of-the-night-tears-and-characters-part-2/ (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/05/painter-of-the-night-tears-and-characters-part-2-version-with-10-different-pictures/
Tears and predictions😉 https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/05/painter-of-the-night-tears-and-predictions-%f0%9f%98%89/
Sex and passion 😍 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/08/painter-of-the-night-sex-and-passion/
The Wedding nights (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/11/painter-of-the-night-the-wedding-nights/
Kisses and reactions (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/12/painter-of-the-night-kisses-and-reactions/
“Huis clos” – part 1 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/14/painter-of-the-night-huis-clos/
“Huis clos” – part 2 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/17/painter-of-the-night-huis-clos-part-2/
Jihwa the criminal (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/19/painter-of-the-night-jihwa-the-criminal/
Treacherous colors 🟪 🟫 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/27/painter-of-the-night-treacherous-colors/
Soul on the skin (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/07/30/painter-of-the-night-soul-on-the-skin/
Power and salvation (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/04/painter-of-the-night-power-and-salvation/
Twitter and Yoon Seung-Won https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/08/painter-of-the-night-twitter-and-yoon-seung-won/
Sweet painful lessons (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/15/painter-of-the-night-sweet-painful-lessons/
Black Heart🖤 and Green Heart 💚 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/17/painter-of-the-night-black-heart-and-green-heart/
Silly or pitiful regrets? https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/19/painter-of-the-night-silly-or-pitiful-regrets/
Chapter 77 between fiction and reality (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/20/painter-of-the-night-chapter-77-between-fiction-and-reality/
Proposals (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/22/painter-of-the-night-proposals/
The witch and the lustful spell (part 1) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/23/painter-of-the-night-the-pawns-revenge-the-witch-and-the-lustful-spell-part-1/
The end of the vicious circle (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/25/painter-of-the-night-the-end-of-the-vicious-circle/
Guilt and sin (fourth version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/27/painter-of-the-night-guilt-and-sin/
Time ⏳ and crime (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/28/painter-of-the-night-time-and-crime/
The moon🌙 in the darkness (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/08/29/painter-of-the-night-the-moon-in-the-darkness/
Between confessions and silence (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/02/painter-of-the-night-between-confessions-and-silence/
We (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/04/painter-of-the-night-we/
Fake? (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/05/painter-of-the-night-fake/
The lady and the servant (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/07/painter-of-the-night-the-lady-and-the-servant/
The fooled or fooling puppet master(s)? (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/09/painter-of-the-night-the-fooled-or-fooling-puppet-masters/
Power struggle and favors (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/11/painter-of-the-night-power-struggle-and-favors/
The sun is down 🌇 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/12/painter-of-the-night-the-sun-is-down/
Between expectation and knowledge (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/14/painter-of-the-night-between-expectation-and-knowledge/
The sacred place(s)? (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/16/painter-of-the-night-the-sacred-places/
Yoon Seungho turns over a new leaf https://bebebisous33.tumblr.com/post/662584572815540224/painter-of-the-night-ysh-turns-over-a-new-leaf
Young master and Kyumah (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/18/painter-of-the-night-young-master-and-kyumah/
Shame and Love (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/19/painter-of-the-night-shame-and-love/
Young Master and the doors (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/21/painter-of-the-night-young-master-and-the-doors/
The mystery behind the closed door (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/23/painter-of-the-night-the-mystery-of-the-closed-door/
The bride’s abduction (theory) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/25/painter-of-the-night-the-brides-abduction-theory/
Yoon Seungho’s castration (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/28/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-castration/
White knights, victims and martyrs (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/09/30/painter-of-the-night-white-knights-victims-and-martyrs/
“F***ed-up!!” (third version) (Only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/02/painter-of-the-night-fed-up/
Hate crime 🤬🩸 (third version) (Only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/03/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-hate-crime/
Haunted (Second version) (Only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/04/painter-of-the-night-haunted/
Kyumah’s Third eye (Only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/07/painter-of-the-night-kyumahs-third-eye/
Revenge (second version) (Only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/09/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-revenge/
“It hurts… 😭” (Only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/11/painter-of-the-night-it-hurts-%f0%9f%98%ad/
The dragon and the shaman 👹 (fourth version) (Only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/13/painter-of-the-night-the-dragon-and-the-shaman/
Sex and drugs 💉 💊 https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/15/painter-of-the-night-sex-and-drugs/
Yoon Seungho’s smile (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/17/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-smile/
“Who is dead?” (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/19/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-who-is-dead/
Wishes (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/23/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-wishes/
Neglected Thefts (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/24/painter-of-the-night-neglected-thefts/
Harmony among the chaos (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/27/painter-of-the-night-harmony-among-the-chaos/
The scarf, a small but significant detail😉 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/10/29/painter-of-the-night-the-scarf-a-small-but-significant-detail-%f0%9f%98%89/
Jihwa’s Third eye (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/03/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-jihwas-third-eye/
The peasant and the animals (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/06/painter-of-the-night-the-peasant-and-the-animals/
Stuck! (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/10/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-stuck/
The Power and Pleasure of Possessions (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/11/painter-of-the-night-the-power-and-pleasure-of-possessions/
From a proxy war to a proxy fight (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/13/painter-of-the-night-from-a-proxy-war-to-a-proxy-fight/
A stranger in the study! 👣👣 (Second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/15/painter-of-the-night-a-stranger-in-the-study/
The shadows of the ancestors (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/18/painter-of-the-night-the-shadows-of-the-ancestors/
Men in black 🐱‍👤 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/20/painter-of-the-night-men-in-black/
The puzzle and the missing pieces (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/21/painter-of-the-night-the-puzzle-and-the-missing-pieces/
Prayers (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/23/painter-of-the-night-prayers/
Bloody Marriage (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/11/27/painter-of-the-night-bloody-marriage/
The blessed twist of fate (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/01/painter-of-the-night-the-blessed-twist-of-fate/
Oracles of the calligrapher 😉 – part 1 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/02/painter-of-the-night-oracles-of-the-calligrapher-%f0%9f%98%89/
Oracles of the calligrapher 😉 – part 2 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/04/painter-of-the-night-oracles-of-the-calligrapher-%f0%9f%98%89-part-2/
Sexual education 📚 🏳️‍🌈 and love 🌹(second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/05/painter-of-the-night-sexual-education-and-love/
The devil is in the details 😲 – part 1 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/07/painter-of-the-night-the-devil-is-in-the-details-😲-part-1/
The devil is in the details 😲 – part 2 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/09/painter-of-the-night-the-devil-is-in-the-details-%f0%9f%98%b2-part-2/
Shocking discoveries ‼‼ (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/11/painter-of-the-night-shocking-discoveries/
Royal touch and the hand of benediction ( only accessible with a password) (https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/15/painter-of-the-night-royal-touch-and-the-hand-of-benediction/
Proposals and marriage vows (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/16/painter-of-the-night-proposals-and-marriage-vows/
The bed is moving (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/18/painter-of-the-night-the-bed-is-moving/
I can’t take anymore (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/19/painter-of-the-night-i-cant-take-anymore/
The painter’s smile 😊(only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/22/painter-of-the-night-the-painters-smile-%f0%9f%98%8a/
No more s… 🤫 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/24/painter-of-the-night-no-more-s-%f0%9f%a4%ab/
Love songs💖💞 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/25/painter-of-the-night-love-songs%f0%9f%92%96%f0%9f%92%9e/
First season revisited 🤓😲 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/26/painter-of-the-night-first-season-revisited-🤓😲/
“Pervert or Perverts?”🤔 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/28/painter-of-the-night-pervert-or-perverts%f0%9f%a4%94/
“Crazy lunatic!!” 😤 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/12/30/painter-of-the-night-crazy-lunatic-%f0%9f%98%a4/
“Busted!!“🫥🪤 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/01/painter-of-the-night-busted/
Nostalgic and terrific spots -part 1 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/03/painter-of-the-night-nostalgic-and-terrific-spots-part-1/
Nostalgic and terrific spots -part 2 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/05/painter-of-the-night-nostalgic-and-terrific-spots-part-2/
The perfect servant (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/06/painter-of-the-night-the-perfect-servant/
Amusing Tattling or idle tale-telling? (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/07/painter-of-the-night-amusing-tattling-or-idle-tale-telling/
Truth and lies (soon: only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/13/painter-of-the-night-truth-and-lies/
The scholar‘s shadow (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/15/painter-of-the-night-the-scholars-shadow/
I’m sorry (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/19/painter-of-the-night-im-sorry/
In desperate need of fun and pleasure (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/20/painter-of-the-night-in-desperate-need-of-fun-and-pleasure/
Love and hatred in the winter forest ☃️🌳 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/22/painter-of-the-night-dr-frost-love-and-hatred-in-the-winter-forest/
Cluedo in the kisaeng house (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/24/painter-of-the-night-cluedo-in-the-kisaeng-house/
Every nobleman’s dream 🤩 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/27/painter-of-the-night-every-noblemans-dream/
I am in love with you (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/01/29/painter-of-the-night-i-am-in-love-with-you/
The mystery behind the corpse (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/01/painter-of-the-night-the-mystery-behind-the-corpse/
Baek Na-Kyum’s childhood 🖌️ (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/03/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-childhood%f0%9f%96%8c/
Me and Seungho-Ya 🌒⭐(only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/05/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-me-and-seungho-ya-%f0%9f%8c%92%e2%ad%90/
“Because it hurts” 💔💘 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/09/painter-of-the-night-because-it-hurts%f0%9f%92%94%f0%9f%92%98/
The intriguing maids (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/10/painter-of-the-night-the-intriguing-maids/
🖤Black Heart’s moles🐀(second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/12/painter-of-the-night-%f0%9f%96%a4-black-hearts-moles-%f0%9f%90%80/
Between rejection and choice – predictions (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/16/painter-of-the-night-between-rejection-and-choice-predictions/
Yoon Seungho’s power (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/18/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seunghos-power/
The long awaited karma 😈 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/20/painter-of-the-night-the-long-awaited-karma-%f0%9f%98%88/
That day ❄️❄️ (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/23/painter-of-the-night-that-day-%e2%9d%84%e2%9d%84/
The hands on the cheeks 🖐🏻 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/24/painter-of-the-night-the-hands-on-the-cheek/
Who is wearing the pants?👖 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/27/painter-of-the-night-who-is-wearing-the-trousers-%f0%9f%91%96/
“Na-Kyum, Na-Kyum!!“😰 or “Na-Kyum, Na-Kyum!!” 😤(only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/02/28/painter-of-the-night-na-kyum-na-kyum%f0%9f%98%b0-or-na-kyum-na-kyum-%f0%9f%98%a4/
From dream 🎇 to nightmare (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/02/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-from-dream-%f0%9f%8e%87-to-nightmare/
The mystery of the gibang ghost 👻 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/05/painter-of-the-night-the-mystery-of-the-gibang-ghost-%f0%9f%91%bb/
A man of exceptional greed 🤑 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/09/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-a-man-of-exceptional-greed-%f0%9f%a4%91/
Lee Jihwa’s special relationship with Yoon Seungho 🛏 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/11/painter-of-the-night-lee-jihwas-special-relationship-with-yoon-seungho-%f0%9f%9b%8f/
The true face of faith ⛪⛩️ (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/12/painter-of-the-night-the-true-face-of-faith/
Questions 🤔 and possible answers (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/16/painter-of-the-night-questions-🤔and-possible-answers/
Naïve (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/20/painter-of-the-night-naive/
Sound 🎵 and silence – part 1 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/23/painter-of-the-night-sound-%f0%9f%8e%b5-and-silence-part-1/
Sound 🎵 and silence: Memories (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/26/painter-of-the-night-sound-%f0%9f%8e%b5-and-silence-memories/
Silent light 🕯️ and noisy darkness (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/29/painter-of-the-night-silent-light-%f0%9f%95%af-and-noisy-darkness/
A guided tour of Yoon Seungho’s domain 🏡 (second version) (only accessible with a password) Use the second password https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/03/31/painter-of-the-night-a-guided-tour-of-yoon-seunghos-domain%f0%9f%8f%a1/
“No….It can’t be true”😭😱 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/02/painter-of-the-night-no-it-cant-be-true%f0%9f%98%ad%f0%9f%98%b1/
The liars🤥, the fools 🤡 and the heroes (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/03/painter-of-the-night-the-liars-%f0%9f%a4%a5-the-fools-%f0%9f%a4%a1-and-the-heroes/
The hidden shaman (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/07/painter-of-the-night-the-hidden-shaman/
Heena’s curtains? (Second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/08/painter-of-the-night-heenas-curtains/
Painter Of The Night, The 🔞 Muppet Show? 🎎 (Second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/09/painter-of-the-night-the-%f0%9f%94%9e-muppet-show/
The feast in Yoon Seungho’s honor 🎭 (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/11/painter-of-the-night-the-feast-in-yoon-seunghos-honor-%f0%9f%8e%ad/
A change of heart❣️ (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/14/painter-of-the-night-a-change-of-heart-%e2%9d%a3/
“He’s 🤬 going to kill them all…“(second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/15/painter-of-the-night-hes-going-to-kill-them-all/
A change of heart or the whims of these nobles (soon: only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/16/painter-of-the-night-a-change-of-heart-or-the-whims-of-these-nobles/
The bloodthirsty Captain Hook 🐊 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/18/painter-of-the-night-the-bloodthirsty-captain-hook-🐊/
Chicken 🐔 and dog 🐕 (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/20/painter-of-the-night-chicken%f0%9f%90%94-and-dogs-%f0%9f%90%95/
“To be or not to be” (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/25/painter-of-the-night-to-be-or-not-to-be/
The terrible fate of slaves (with Bongchon Bride) (soon: only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/04/28/painter-of-the-night-bongchon-bride-the-terrible-fate-of-slaves/
“Black eye 👁️‍🗨️” (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/07/painter-of-the-night-black-eye-%f0%9f%91%81/
The lotus 🌸 and the snake🐍 (with Steel Under Silk) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/11/steel-under-silk-painter-of-the-night-the-lotus-%f0%9f%8c%b8-and-the-snake%f0%9f%90%8d/
The troublesome target 🎯 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/13/painter-of-the-night-the-troublesome-target-%f0%9f%8e%af/
“I didn’t know that you could run so quickly.” 😧 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/14/painter-of-the-night-i-didnt-know-that-you-could-run-so-quickly-%f0%9f%98%a7/
Hide in Plain Sight (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/17/painter-of-the-night-hide-in-plain-sight/
Sleeping with the enemy (fourth version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/19/painter-of-the-night-sleeping-with-the-enemy/
Dogs🐕 don‘t wear pants 👖(only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/22/painter-of-the-night-dogs-dont-wear-pants/
Sympathy for the devil 😈 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/25/painter-of-the-night-sympathy-for-the-devil-%f0%9f%98%88/
💋 Stolen kisses 💋 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/05/28/painter-of-the-night-%f0%9f%92%8b-stolen-kisses-%f0%9f%92%8b/
Manual 📖 how to avoid flashbacks (third version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/01/painter-of-the-night-manual-%f0%9f%93%96-how-to-avoid-flashbacks/
Fortune-telling 🔮 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/05/painter-of-the-night-fortune-telling-%f0%9f%94%ae/
The mysterious doctor 👨🏼‍⚕️ 💉(second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/06/painter-of-the-night-the-mysterious-doctor-👨⚕%EF%B8%8F💉/
The face of “Lord Song” 🤴 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/07/painter-of-the-night-the-face-of-lord-song-%f0%9f%a4%b4/
Spirits and the lustful shaman 🎑 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/11/painter-of-the-night-spirits-and-the-lustful-shaman-%f0%9f%8e%91/
Bittersweet memories 📸 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/14/painter-of-the-night-bittersweet-memories-%f0%9f%93%b8/
No matter what 🎲 Baek Na-Kyum must vanish (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/17/painter-of-the-night-no-matter-what-🎲-baek-na-kyum-must-vanish/
The Dark Knight 🦇 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/22/painter-of-the-night-the-dark-knight-%f0%9f%a6%87/
Seungho-Ya 👶 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/23/painter-of-the-night-seungho-ya-%f0%9f%91%b6/
Intimate philosophical Secrets 🔐 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/26/painter-of-the-night-intimate-philosophical-secrets-%F0%9F%94%92/
Baek Na-Kyum’s origins (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/06/30/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-origins/
Whatever took you so long…? 📅⏳ (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/07/03/painter-of-the-night-whatever-took-you-so-long/
Innocent or not guilty? ⚖️ (with Payback) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/07/06/painter-of-the-night-payback-innocent-or-not-guilty-%e2%9a%96/
Dark circles 🔘 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/07/13/painter-of-the-night-dark-circles-🔘/
Powerful fellatios 🍆 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/07/14/painter-of-the-night-powerful-fellatios-%f0%9f%8d%86/
The muse Baek Na-Kyum 💌 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/07/17/painter-of-the-night-the-muse-baek-na-kyum-💌/
PLOP 💣 and SLURP 🤤(only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/07/21/painter-of-the-night-plop-💣-and-slurp-🤤/
Clouded judgement 🌒 🌬 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/07/29/painter-of-the-night-clouded-judgement-🌒-🌬/
🏮📯 Scandal(s) in Jemulpo 📯🏮 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/02/painter-of-the-night-🏮📯-scandals-in-jemulpo-📯-🏮/
The loyal deserter 🙇 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/08/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-the-loyal-deserter-🙇♂%EF%B8%8F/
The lovely slacker 👓 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/13/painter-of-the-night-the-lovely-slacker-%f0%9f%91%93/
Arrogant, filthy and lying nobles🏯 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/20/painter-of-the-night-arrogant-filthy-and-lying-nobles-%f0%9f%8f%af/
The scholars’ shoes👞 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/25/painter-of-the-night-the-scholars-shoes-%f0%9f%91%9e/
Mumyeong’s past㊙️㊙️, a theory (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/26/painter-of-the-night-mumyeongs-past-㊙㊙-a-theory/
The beauty in the summer🌞 clouds ☁️ ☁️ (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/27/painter-of-the-night-the-beauty-in-the-summer-%f0%9f%8c%9eclouds-%e2%98%81%e2%98%81/
🎆 Grandiose celebrations 😈😭 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/28/painter-of-the-night-%f0%9f%8e%86grandiose-celebrations-%f0%9f%98%88%f0%9f%98%ad/
Coming-Of-Age 👘🎩 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/08/31/painter-of-the-night-coming-of-age-%f0%9f%91%98%f0%9f%8e%a9/
Hunted or wanted? 🏹🩸 (second version) (soon only accessible with a password)
Goddess’ will👩‍⚖️⚖️ ❤️ (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/09/10/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-goddess-will-%f0%9f%91%a9%e2%9a%96%ef%b8%8f-%e2%9a%96%ef%b8%8f-%e2%9d%a4%ef%b8%8f/
Chapter 69 ☯️ ♋ revisited (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/09/16/painter-of-the-night-chapter-69-%e2%98%af%ef%b8%8f%e2%99%8b-revisited/
My boy 👳‍♀️(only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/09/18/painter-of-the-night-my-boy-👳♀%EF%B8%8F/
The vanishing of Baek Na-Kyum’s white headband🤕 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/09/23/painter-of-the-night-the-vanishing-of-baek-na-kyums-white-headband-%f0%9f%a4%95/
Suicide ⚰️🪦 (only accessible with a password). https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/09/25/painter-of-the-night-suicide-⚰%EF%B8%8F🪦/
Romantic scenes: The muse’s kisses 😍😘👄 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/01/painter-of-the-night-romantic-scenes-the-muses-kisses-%f0%9f%98%8d%f0%9f%98%98%f0%9f%91%84/
Perfect lovemaking💞👨‍❤️‍👨 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/06/painter-of-the-night-perfect-lovemaking-%f0%9f%92%9e%f0%9f%91%a8%e2%9d%a4%ef%b8%8f%f0%9f%91%a8/
“I should have left you to die back then” 🩸⚱️ (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/08/painter-of-the-night-i-should-have-left-you-to-die-back-then-%f0%9f%a9%b8%e2%9a%b1%ef%b8%8f/
The secret behind the library 📚📚 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/13/painter-of-the-night-the-secret-behind-the-library-%f0%9f%93%9a%f0%9f%93%9a/
Nightmare Inn 🏨🍚🍜 (second version) (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/14/painter-of-the-night-nightmare-inn-%f0%9f%8f%a8%f0%9f%8d%9a%f0%9f%8d%9c/
The Rise of the Dragon 🐲 (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/20/painter-of-the-night-the-rise-of-the-dragon-%f0%9f%90%b2/
Happy laughter 😄 and fearful agony 😦(soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/23/painter-of-the-night-happy-laugher-%f0%9f%98%84-and-fearful-agony-%f0%9f%98%a7/
Painful departures 👋🩸⚰ (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/27/painter-of-the-night-painful-departures-%f0%9f%91%8b%f0%9f%a9%b8%e2%9a%b0%ef%b8%8f/
The secret behind curry🍛 , apple 🍏 and butter 🧈(second version) (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/10/30/painter-of-the-night-the-secret-behind-curry%f0%9f%8d%9b-apple-%f0%9f%8d%8fand-butter-%f0%9f%a7%88/
The puzzle with the paper 📜 📨 (second version) (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/11/02/painter-of-the-night-the-puzzle-with-the-paper-📜-📨/
The liars🤥 in front of the mirror of truth: Lee Jihwa and Yoon Chang-Hyeon 👺 (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/11/03/painter-of-the-night-the-liars-%f0%9f%a4%a5-in-front-of-the-mirror-of-truth-%f0%9f%91%ba-lee-jihwa-and-yoon-chang-hyeon/
Heena’s secrets 🔐 (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/11/08/painter-of-the-night-heenas-secrets-%f0%9f%94%90/
Baek Na-Kyum’s foot 👣👣(soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/11/13/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-foot-%f0%9f%91%a3%f0%9f%91%a3/
The riddle ❓❔ with the bed cover🛏 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/11/19/painter-of-the-night-the-riddle-%e2%9d%93%e2%9d%94-with-the-bed-cover-%f0%9f%9b%8f%ef%b8%8f/
A Question Of Perspective: The loss of the topknot (combined with A Sip Of Poison) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/11/24/painter-of-the-night-a-sip-of-poison-a-question-of-perspective-the-loss-of-the-topknot-%f0%9f%92%87%f0%9f%8f%bb%e2%99%82%ef%b8%8f/
The ruined paintings 🖼 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/11/30/painter-of-the-night-the-ruined-paintings-%f0%9f%96%bc%ef%b8%8f/
Truthful flowers 🌸🌺🌹🥀 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/12/09/painter-of-the-night-truthful-flowers-🌸🌺🌹🥀/
The hidden painter of the night 🎨 🖌🖼 (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/12/23/painter-of-the-night-the-hidden-painter-of-the-night-%f0%9f%8e%a8%f0%9f%96%8c%ef%b8%8f-%f0%9f%96%bc%ef%b8%8f/
Yoon Seungho and his puzzled physician 🩺 (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2022/12/29/painter-of-the-night-yoon-seungho-and-his-puzzled-physician-🩺/
The riddle of the enigmatic covers🔍🕵️‍♂️ (second version) (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/01/04/painter-of-the-night-the-riddle-of-the-enigmatic-covers%f0%9f%94%8d%f0%9f%95%b5%ef%b8%8f%e2%99%82%ef%b8%8f/
Video: Summary of a love story 💖😍🌹 https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/01/08/painter-of-the-night-summary-of-a-love-story-%f0%9f%92%96%f0%9f%98%8d%f0%9f%8c%b9/
Juicy Deeds 🤝 and Dry Words 🗯 (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/01/18/painter-of-the-night-juicy-deeds%f0%9f%a4%9d-and-dry-words-%f0%9f%97%af/
Promise me 👄 you’ll never forget me because … 🥺 (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/02/02/painter-of-the-night-promise-me-%f0%9f%91%84-youll-never-forget-me-because-%f0%9f%a5%ba/
The shadowy plot(s) 👀 from the past 🙊 (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/02/04/painter-of-the-night-the-shadowy-plots-%f0%9f%91%80-from-the-past-%f0%9f%99%8a/
The shadow👤 behind the shrine ⛩️ (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/02/09/painter-of-the-night-the-shadow-%f0%9f%91%a4-behind-the-shrine-%e2%9b%a9%ef%b8%8f/
📣Breaking News! 📣 The painter vanished again!😨 (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/02/17/painter-of-the-night-%f0%9f%93%a3breaking-news-%f0%9f%93%a3the-painter-vanished-again-%f0%9f%98%a8/
Right here beside you 👬(only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/02/19/painter-of-the-night-right-here-beside-you-%f0%9f%91%ac/
Baek Na-Kyum’s-? 👀🧐 (second version) (only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/03/01/painter-of-the-night-baek-na-kyums-👀🧐/
“Bad decisions!!❌⭕ (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/03/05/painter-of-the-night-doctor-frost-bad-decisions-%e2%9d%8c%e2%ad%95/
“Thank god 🙏 he didn’t see nor hear a thing about that awful matter.” (soon only accessible with a password) https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2023/03/09/painter-of-the-night-thank-god-%f0%9f%99%8f-he-didnt-see-nor-hear-a-thing-about-that-awful-matter/
“Uncatchable👻 ghosts👻👻 in town! 🌆 ” (soon only accessible with a password)
The enigmatic and dark face 👹 behind the purple hanbok 🟣 (soon only accessible with a password)
The dark ⬛ shed ⛺ and its symbolism ☯ (soon only accessible with a password)
A book📖 , a kiss 💋 , a confession (soon only accessible with a password)
Scary, treacherous body language 👄 👀 🤝 (only accessible with a password)
🎉The spectacular return of 👓 Jung In-Hun 🎉 (only accessible with a password) – reminder: new password
Sleeping Beauty and the dwarfs 🧝‍♂️ (only accessible with a password
Clueless ❓Jung In-Hun 👨‍🎓 (only accessible with a password)
The reality of nightmare (podcast/video)
Terrific power of love 🤍💖💢 (locked)
Lord Shin’s killer 👿🔪 🩸💀
The true Face of Family 👨‍👨‍👦‍👦👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 (locked soon)
The Heavenly Hearth ☄️🌈 (locked)
The mystery behind Baek Na-Kyum’s inspiration (locked)
Edge of Darknesss 🎗️( here is the link to the video)
Bloody🩸 Tide is turning🌊 (locked)
Dropped amusement😞
🟦⬛Back to square one? 🟥⬜
Lazy Hand ✌ Of Justice? ⚔

Painter Of The Night: Yoon Seungho’s fears (improved version)

July 4, 2020July 23, 2020 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 3 Comments

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.

Right from the start, the main lead is introduced as a strong, confident and powerful person when he is cleaning his sword.

In this scene, the lord oozes charisma and doesn’t reveal any weakness. Even his position reinforces this impression, since he is sitting on a pedestal, higher than the servant and far away from him. Besides, the way the domestic is bowing illustrates the high respect the lord requests from him: strict obedience and deference. The master is quite frightening, especially when you hear him announcing that blood might be spilled, while he wipes his weapon. The beholder senses the dangerousity and the lack of mercy exuding from the noble. Yet as time passes on, we discover that this is just a facade and in different situations, the readers can detect his insecurities and fears.

One of his biggest fears is naturally the discovery of his family’s secret related to his past as a victim and scapegoat. He doesn’t want anyone to know what happened to him in the past because he doesn’t want to be reminded how powerless and weak he was back then. During his brother’s visit, Yoon Seungho was reminded of his trauma, when the latter was asked by Seung-Won to show concern for his father’s health and even pay him a visit. First, his fist is clenched indicating that there is resent, frustration and even hatred. However, his hand and wrist are shaking revealing a certain fear. Seungho doesn’t want anyone to witness his vulnerability and weakness. Notice in the last drawing that the leg is hiding the main lead’s hand and wrist from Seung-Won’s view. So his words contrast so much to his actual disposition. He is not calm at all, nonetheless he is willing to let the painter to see his shaking fist. Here he is definitely acting in front of his brother. The image of the shaking fist actually represents Baek Na-Kyum’s perspective. The beholder is discovering through the uke’s eyes that Yoon Seungho is not superhuman like in the beginning. Yet, the brother never got to see this sensitive side.

And this explains why our main character was so attracted to the artist very quickly. He, the master of deception and acting, meets someone who embodies honesty and naturality. He was defenseless in front of this kind of behavior because this implies spontaneity and unceremoniousness. Seungho was always caught off-guard, he could never really predict the painter’s actions. Sure, one time he anticipated that the painter would try to escape hence he took the poem, nevertheless he never imagined that Baek Na-Kyum would even try to take it back. His “talented hand” became his weapon.

That’s why his cool and fearless attitude started to crumble down the moment he met Baek Na-Kyum because the painter’s attitude provoked so many emotions. Due to his lies, daring comments and actions, the lord was never able to remain passive and indifferent or even to act properly. The usual distance between him and the servants in the first scene disappears right after due to Baek Na-Kyum. The latter was touched the moment they first met. Like I mentioned it in another analysis, their first encounter marks a change in the lord’s life. He is actually inviting the low-born to enter his personal space. From that moment, Yoon Seungho kept touching him. Either he wiped the tears on the artist’s face (chapter 1) or he caressed the hand with his cheek (chapter 2) or pushed the low-born

or slapped him(chapter 11). Baek Na-Kyum intruded his personal space physically or emotionally . I also believe that the hypnotic gaze helped the commoner to come closer to the lord, just like it served to unleash the commoner’s unconscious.

All this outlines that Yoon Seungho made sure that no one would ever enter his personal space before and Baek Na-Kyum represents the exception. This explicates why Jihwa was doomed to fail as he acted like his childhood friend. All of them were fake, creating a certain illusion which none of the participants recognized as unreal. Jihwa knew the painful past, however he never thought that Yoon Seungho’s deception would hide his biggest wish: to feel loved and accepted. Though the main character is well aware of the nobles’ “disguise”, he never saw the true feelings of Jihwa for him, even if his love for Yoon Seungho is rather shallow and selfish. Jihwa was not willing to admit their sexual relationship so openly.

One might wonder how this is possible to stipulate that no one has ever entered his personal space, when he had so often sex and with so many different sex partners. They had to come closer to him physically. However, if you look at the paintings, you’ll sense the distance between the main lead and his sex partners.

First, there is always a gap between Jihwa and the noble’s head. They are never shown kissing. In the second picture, although the bodies between the seme and the uke seems to be physically closer due to the penetration, the presence of the other uke creates a barrier. The protagonist is almost kissing the second uke, while he is penetrating the other. Both sex partners are not able to taste the lips and the phallus at the same time. As you can note, there was no real intimacy in these sex sessions. His body and his phallus were his armor and weapon. Like I had written before, we should see these sex sessions as a fight and war among nobles. The bed was the podium where a fight was simulated. This explains why Jihwa and Min decided to have the painter killed. As a conclusion, the lord created a fake image of himself as a powerful and self-assured noble with a strong stamina which no one ever questioned. All this underlines how big his fear is to reveal his vulnerability and sensitivity. His strong stamina was the result of drinking a lot of replenishing medicine (aphrodisiacs), no one has been really suspecting that he was no homosexual right from the start, even the readers were fooled by Byeonduck. The lord is a master of deception hence he could only fall for someone who symbolizes the opposite: naturalness and unrestraint. You all know the saying: opposite attracts.

Since the lord falls for the painter’s honesty and naturality, it becomes clear why he is so desperate to get the pure love from the low-born. He used all the means at his disposal in order to feel loved: the special treatmentand favoritism, then his sexual charisma ,

his strength ,

his power through threads and finally his sexual experiences. None of this worked. Only by giving up his position as a noble and lord, he is able to be accepted by the painter. With the fellatio, Yoon Seungho is willing to appear weaker in front of the low-born. This position reflects his change of mind. He had already noticed that Baek Na-Kyum was moved, when the latter saw him at his lowest point. This explicates why the lord has no problem to reveal his vulnerability in front of the uke, when Seung-Won appears. Later the protagonist even requests to the commoner to share his bed with him. By hugging him so closely he showed his true personality.

He was the one who relied on the painter and not the other way around. Moreover, the power has been shifted: Baek Na-Kyum is the one in command as he has the cover and not the lord. The commoner has turned into the master, while the noble is the servant. Moreover when he “begged” the low-born to stay with him, the latter was sitting, whereas the former was standing. Each time, Byeonduck made sure to have the spectator recognized the switch of position. The lord knew that he would get nightmares during that night. There is no disguise and deception from his part. He is literally naked in front of the artist. He had dawned to him that naturalness and sensitivity could be the only tool… That’s the reason why Seungho chose to reveal his weaknesses. However, we shouldn’t forget that Seungho is not manipulating here the low-born, his deep feelings were the cause for all of this. The kiss at the end of the sex marathon marked another pivotal moment in the noble’s life. His love was so strong that he was willing to lower himself to hydrate the exhausted painter.

But there is one problem if the low-born becomes his sex partner and the noble reveals his vulnerability. It could expose the noble’s weakness to others and turn him into a target. That’s why in the chapter 30, he wants to know what really happened after the low-born escaped. How could Baek Na-Kyum be willing to return to the mansion with Jung In-Hun, when he knew about the bad temper of Yoon Seungho? What made him return, when it was clear that he had definitely run away? Pay attention to the seme’s questioning. Here, he wants to know if the low-born came back because of the low noble’s request, if he has been asked to sleep with the powerful lord in order to get some info. That’s why he keeps questioning the teacher’s words.

Then he adds this comment after hearing that the teacher only mentioned the erotic paintings.

The protagonist is reminding the artist of the still valid thread. Jung In-Hun could lose his life, just like the low-born if he doesn’t comply to his wishes. Yet, this exchange reveals an important element. The angry noble doesn’t want to sleep with the commoner because the latter has been asked. In other words, he is not looking for someone selling his body, a prostitute. Sure, in this scene he still uses his prideful attitude linked to his social status to get his wish fulfilled, nonetheless it truly illustrates the noble’s longing for a genuine relationship and the fear that the nature of their relationship might become corrupted.

He has already anticipated this request from Jung In-Hun

This fear becomes more palpable in the next chapter 31. He ensures that this was the truth without the interference of the teacher. He might still act here as a powerful noble, however he is already emotionally weakened. He can no longer hide his emotions for the uke, however Jung In-Hun is too arrogant and too stupid himself to realize Yoon Seungho’s deep love for the low-born. How could such a powerful person fall for a commoner? This defies any common sense for this order society. His worry that Baek Na-Kyum might become a prostitute is deeply graved hence the noble is not sleeping with the uke after renouncing his position as master in their relationship. The main lead just pleasures the painter and waits for his change of mind and heart. This constant fear resurfaces in the chapter 41. The sudden request accompanied with tears and a certain resignation leads the noble to think that Jung In-Hun has now asked him to have sex with him. Like I mentioned it before, Baek Na-Kyum had internalized the teacher’s words and come to believe that he was indeed a prostitute. All his actions contrast to the spontaneity and the naturalness Baek Na-Kyum exuded before. He was no longer fighting and his gestures were stripped of warmth and genuine sensuality. Yoon Seungho saw the behavior of a prostitute in front of him, resigned to his fate… selling his body which is not what the noble is looking for. At the end, he was convinced that despite the tears, Baek Na-Kyum was doing it on his own accord because the commoner has never been able to lie and hide any ulterior motives. There is a reason why Yoon Seungho fears so much this idea that the painter might sell his body and it is related to his own father. The latter sold his own son in order to save his own skin and as such treated his son as a prostitute, while he was himself the pimp. Now, you understand why he wasn’t willing to sleep with the artist.

As a conclusion, the biggest fear of the powerful master are that Baek Na-Kyum only sleeps with him out of obligation, like a prostitute, which is connected to his own trauma. Then he dreads that people might come to know his past and vulnerability. The majestic lord’s walls around him were destroyed by the painter through his honesty and naturality contrasting to the seme’s way of life where there are only deception and artificiality. On the other hand, this also reveals the biggest wish of our main character: he wants to be loved genuinely by Baek Na-Kyum and he knows that nothing in the world except tenderness and care can buy the painter’s affection. Neither power nor money could impress the painter. In order to get his heart, Yoon Seungho needs to unveil more himself, to be totally naked in front of the uke. He is intelligent and educated which the painter never got to see. He only saw his obsession for sex and erotic paintings so far. However, Byeonduck has already insinuated that his education will play a bigger role later because of this picture.

For the first time, Baek Na-Kyum visits the lord’s chamber where there is no sex session. For the first time, he sees the lord writing. So far, he was either smoking or having sex or hunting. Yet, this aspect doesn’t catch the painter’s attention because he has to control his erection and secondly he has been requested to paint an erotic picture. So sex is not totally absent in the room.

Little by little, the noble is introducing him to literature and education. Here, he doesn’t include the artist in his letter or poem, but in the chapter 40, he is willing to read for him. And let’s not forget that the returned poem in the chapter 7 could be a different poem but Baek Na-Kyum failed to notice it. Hence just like Baek Na-Kyum, the readers will discover a new side of our protagonist in the future, like f. ex. his refined sense of poetry which was just implied in the chapter 4.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoy reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My twitter account: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading.

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Baek Na-Kyum, a crybaby? (second version)

July 3, 2020June 21, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Painter Of The Night: The role played by the gaze

July 2, 2020July 2, 2020 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 1 Comment

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.

Now, you might be wondering if this analysis isn’t a repetition of my other analyses because I have already pointed out the importance of the gaze in this manhwa. Yet, I should have actually analyzed these two chapters much earlier because here the significance of the gaze is literally revealed and the reader is able to understand the role played by the eyes. Now, you are questioning which chapters I am referring to.

Before revealing it, I would like to reexplain the function of the gaze based on the theory from Jean Paul Sartres, a famous French philosopher and writer from the 20th Century because it is indispensable in order to understand the analysis. This repetition is necessary since people might have already forgotten it or didn’t read the analysis where I explicated it.

In Sartres’ theater play “No Exit” (“Huis Clos” in French), the three protagonists Joseph Garcin, Inez Serrano, and Estelle Rigault, are dead and their damned souls are brought to the same room in Hell where there is no mirror. As they are locked inside by a mysterious valet, they are confronted with their own reflection through the gaze from the others. Here, in this deformed reflection, the three sinners are unable to accept what they see that’s why at some point Garcin concludes that “”hell is other people” (“l’enfer c’est les autres”) because the judgement perceived through the gaze of people makes it unbearable for the “sinners”. They avoid the gaze because they can’t face their own wrongdoings and flaws. In other words, the gaze serves as a mirror, however there is a lot of subjectivity in it and doesn’t truly reflect the reality. Now, you understand why Yoon Seungho felt so excited and attracted by his own gaze in the first painting as he saw himself in a different reflection. There was no negative judgement and it oozed attraction and beauty. He no longer saw himself as a “sinner” in the painting, however this is how he felt before when people looked at him. Therefore he didn’t enjoy company very much, only went out for sex parties as it was necessary to maintain his reputation as a hell-raiser.

And now, we come to the chapters where the gaze becomes essential and marks a turning point in Yoon Seungho’s life. From my perspective, the sex session in the chapters 14 and 15 reflects the decision of the powerful noble to seduce the painter. The painting becomes as such more or less obsolete, it gives him just an excuse to get close to the low-born. This explains why Yoon Seungho starts with Baek Na-Kyum’s masturbation in the chapter 16 representing the first real success in his seduction.

Now let’s take a closer look to the sex session between Jihwa and his childhood friend. Striking is that Jihwa refuses to kiss the seme because he is upset. Earlier, he was reminded that he only visited his childhood friend because of sex which is not correct. Jihwa loves him hence he was willing to have sex with him. Though the red-haired noble had been humiliated and his feelings somehow denied, Jihwa couldn’t help himself to give in and came as asked that night. However, this time it is different because for the first time, Jihwa is looking at Seungho’s gaze. He wants to know about his friend’s emotions. So his eyes are not close unlike in the drawing above.

However, if you look carefully, you’ll note an important detail. Jihwa places his hand in front of his mouth meaning that he is not dropping his mask. Furthermore, from Seungho’s place, it makes it much harder to notice Jihwa’s gaze. Simply put, Seungho can not see Jihwa’s gaze very well, whereas it is the opposite for the sex partner. Here, we can detect why Jihwa failed to seduce Seungho in the end. He never showed his true feelings in front of him, either he closed his eyes or faked his facial expression or put his hand in front of his face. Yoon Seungho could never see the positive reflection in his childhood friend’s eyes. This is what Jihwa witnesses, an amused lord.

He is not bothered that Jihwa refused to kiss him, he decided to concentrate his lips on something else. He is teasing his sex partner, well aware of the affect of his kisses on Jihwa. Yet he doesn’t pay attention to Jihwa’s blushing as he keeps teasing him.

And note that all this time, the red-haired man has his hand up as if he was afraid of revealing his feelings. I do think that Jihwa feared that his affection for Seungho could be exploited by the latter and considered it as a weakness, especially if the childhood friend had no feelings for him. What he failed to realize is that his friend was longing for love all along. So his mask was the reason why the protagonist could never see the love Jihwa had for him. However, their little interlude is interrupted by the painter’s arrival which dampens Jihwa’s mood, unlike the seme. While he is fingering Jihwa’s butt, the former is looking over his shoulder in the painter’s direction.

Striking is that the red-haired noble notices it quite right away

but because of the strong fingering, he is no longer able to focus on the seme’s gaze. As you can witness, the red-haired noble has a different attitude compared to before. He is paying attention to the protagonist’s facial expression and his gaze because he has been warned by his “friend”. This reinforces my impression that before the appearance of Baek Na-Kyum, Jihwa must have always closed his eyes. Because the anal massage was stronger, Jihwa was not able to understand the true meaning behind this action. He must have felt that he had been mistaken and Seungho was not concentrated on the painter’s presence any longer. However, I see it differently. The protagonist reacted like that in order to provoke an reaction on the painter’s face.

As always, the chronology of the pictures is important. Notice that right after this drawing, Byeonduck added the following picture.

He is turning his head and eyes in the direction of the painter as if he was telling him: “Imagine, I would treat you like that, if your places were exchanged”. At the same time, he is definitely curious to witness the uke’s facial expression.

And this is what Seungho views: Baek Na-Kyum is like hypnotized, he is not moving his brush and his gaze is directed at the seme’s eyes. Notice here again that this is the perspective from the main lead, it was as if the beholder had become one with the protagonist. We can conclude that they are looking at each other trying to perceive the soul behind the eyes but simultaneously their own reflection. How does the other judge me? Am I also a sinner?

All this time, Jihwa was too excited to notice the subtle exchange of gazes, hence after the first ejaculation, he is asked to do a fellatio. During this occasion, Jihwa can look again at Seungho’s gaze and what he observes annoys him the most. He sees that Seungho is starring (again) at the painter which means that the noble is neglecting his sex partner. Each time, the powerful lord wants to examine the painter’s reaction and look at his gaze, as if he was drawn to the uke’s eyes. We could even say that both gazes seem to have a hypnotic effect, they help them to unveil their deeply repressed unconscious. Besides their hypnotic gaze serves as a mirror, they see each other as attractive and alluring. There is no contempt and disdain, they perceive themselves as normal and natural, unaware of the effect caused by the gaze. This could be judged as an contradiction to Sartres’ theory, sometimes the gaze from the other can liberate oneself.

What Jihwa detects triggers an old memory then we get a flashback from the sex partner who got dragged to the courtyard by the powerful seme as he kept starring at the painter.

Now, you recognize that Seungho’s stare gives the impression to the beholder that he is under hypnosis hence he can’t stop himself looking at the painter. I believe that the trance is triggered by the eyes. The gaze reveals the reflection of themselves and the alluring gaze from the other helping them to unleash their sexual repressed desires. That’s why Jihwa thinks that he needs to do something unusual in order to break their locked gaze.

In his arrogance, the red-haired man thinks that he has achieved it

because of the seme’s strong thrusting but he is totally wrong because right from the start, the sex session was actually destined to the painter. The protagonist wanted to provoke a sexual reaction in Baek Na-Kyum unconsciously therefore the lord’s gaze is returning immediately to the artist’s direction. Jihwa doesn’t get aware that he is truly a toy and a tool.

His concentration on the painter remains so high.

For the first time, Baek Na-Kyum is not left unaffected.

He is sweating, blushing but simultaneously he is not avoiding the master’s stare. He keeps looking at him. I think that the strong stimuli with the masturbation, anal massage and the thrusting have been triggered by the uke’s passiveness. My explanation is the following. Due to the coercive persuasion, Yoon Seungho needed to give a stronger excitement in order to arouse some sexual desires in the low-born as the painter’s unconscious had been deeply repressed which he truly achieves in the end.

While the chapter 14 was focused on the Seungho’s gaze and his perception, we get the sex session from the painter’s view in the chapter 15. Here, we witness the inner struggle the painter has because he needs to hide his sexual arousal. What caught my attention in this chapter is not just the painter’s inner thoughts but also the position of the characters.

Let’s start with the position of the characters. We saw in the chapter 14, how the rejected sex partner saw the exchange of gazes while they were about to have sex. Now, compare it with the image from the chapter 15. By contrasting both images, the beholder detect the difference in the distance. It was as if Seungho had got closer to Baek Na-Kyum. However, we have to imagine that this is just an impression due to the perspective. Nonetheless it reflects their increasing closeness. Little by little, the noble is definitely getting closer with his seduction but just virtually. We have to remember that each sexual gesture is addressed to the young painter. The climax of their developing intimacy represents the following picture.

And this is the reason why during the chapter 15, Seungho’s body comes closer to the painter, although it is not for real. The cause for this change is the effect of the trance, the hypnotic gaze is much stronger than the last time. They have not been interrupted and unlike in the past, Seungho has also changed his attitude towards the painter too. He had already marked him as his future prey in the chapter 12, when he scratched him on the nape of the neck.

That’s the reason why the commoner remembers this gesture in the chapter 15 but for the uke, this scratching had a different signification: it was a thread, a blackmail. People would leave a hickey in order to mark their “possession” but this action underlines Yoon Seungho’s rough side. Besides, he is not close enough to leave a hickey yet.

Now, let’s go back to the position of the characters. If we compare the drawing in purple to the second one, not only the distance between the painter and the noble has been reduced but also the color is different. The purple on the left represents the artist’s mind, his unconscious has resurfaced but the low-born is fighting against his repressed sexual desires. The darker the color, the stronger the desires. That’s why the commoner is talking to himself with closed eyes. If his eyes are closed, his soul and unconscious can not be unveiled. This underlines the importance of the eyes one more time. The eye serves as a boundary between the unconscious and the conscious.

Then if we study the chronology of the drawings in the chapter 15, the readers catch the signification of the closed eyes on the painter’s side. First, we hear his inner thoughts because he has problem to paint that’s why he keeps looking down and avoids the seme’s gaze.

He is sexually aroused so that he can’t focus on the painting. Yet, he is forced to look up as he has to paint something. On the other hand, his facial expression reveals his inner struggle and his arousal.

This doesn’t escape the sharp eyes of our protagonist hence there is this light in his eyes reflecting interest and excitement.

In that moment, the hypnotic gaze starts again which explains why the painter can’t move for a while and keeps staring at the lord.

Then the uke tries to break the locked gaze and looks down again. So his only mean to fight this hypnotic gaze is to avoid to look up and keep talking to himself. But this is not enough because Jihwa is moaning the lord’s name. Therefore he closes his eyes, yet the attraction to succumb to his repressed sexual desires has increased one more time. His mind has already started fantasying which requires an immense strength of will, to resist, particularly when the uke has the impression that Seungho is having sex right in front of his face.

The sexual arousal is visible and the painter is trying to convince himself that the seme is not interested in him, yet his intuition is telling him the opposite. As you can discern, the readers get a glimpse of the artist’s inner thoughts, while they view the lack of effectiveness in his methods to resist his repressed sexual desires. At the same time, I have the feeling that the picture above could represent the perspective of the master which would contradict the words Baek Na-Kyum is saying to himself.

Then the temptation reaches its peak, when the painter is even imagining that Seungho has come so close to him and this time he is alone, reflecting that he is about to succumb to the desire. The hypnotic gaze did work in reality and Baek Na-KYum’s unconscious has almost been unleashed. Since nothing is working (looking down, then closing the eyes and talking to himself in order to persuade himself that all this is a delusion), he starts thinking of his teacher Jung In-Hun.

This image represents the memory of Jung In-Hun’s arrival. What caught my attention here is that the spectator doesn’t see the teacher’s eyes. It was as if they were closed. Sure, one might think that it is just due to the smile. However, this image gives an opportunity to outline different aspects:

– Jung In-Hun is avoiding Baek Na-Kyum’s gaze because he doesn’t want to show his soul… Remember that the eyes are the mirror of the soul.

– The disappearance of the eyes could mirror the true value of the painter in the teacher’s opinion. Since the eyes are closed, there is no reflection which means that there is no person in front of him. It was as if the low noble was denying the artist’s existence.

– Finally this contradicts the reality. The teacher’s smile was fake and what the artist thinks as a reality is actually the real delusion. This was Jung In-Hun’s true face. He looked down on the painter. Imagine the irony of the situation. He is truly fighting his natural sexual desires with a delusion, whereas his unconscious has already understood the signals sent by the seme. The latter is truly interested and attracted by the low-born.

– The absence of the gaze marks the end of the hypnotic effect. The coercive persuasion has been done so well that Baek NA-Kyum is totally immersed in this image and his own delusional world. Furthermore, this explicates why the low-born couldn’t remember the teacher’s gaze in the chapter 2. The low noble had never looked him in the eye because he would have revealed his true thoughts, his soul. Besides, the artist would have recognized the disdain for him and his social status. That’s why the voice and words played a huge role in the commoner’s brainwashing.

All his thoughts are evolving around Jung In-Hun that’s the reason why he doesn’t detect the approach of the noble. He

Now, the protagonist stands right in front of him. He is no longer virtually close but for real. Consequently, he touches the artist’s head. He is now directly seducing him. He believes that all the foreplay with Jihwa has been effective. This is the reason why the noble invites him directly to the sex session.

He had monitored all the reactions on the uke’s face, even noticed his erection hence he thought, he had won. That’s why Byeonduck gives us an illustration of the actual situation:

Jihwa is now alone. The closeness between Seungho and Na-Kyum has become a reality.

Now, Jihwa has been abandoned as he has served his purpose. Now, Seungho is physically close to the commoner and even touching him. Unlike in the former illustrations, this is real and not just an illusion or a wet dream.

The problem with this seduction through the actions and the hypnotic gaze is Seungho’s mindset. He actually made two mistakes: He never paid attention to Jihwa and never thought that the noble would strongly oppose to this offer. Secondly, Seungho has just been looking for sex, whereas his unconscious was telling him something else. The gaze in the painter revealed that it wasn’t just sex, there was a deep attraction and an acceptance of his homosexuality. Baek Na-Kyum would have never accepted the offer as he is someone looking for deep feelings. Deep down, Seungho was fascinated by the warmth and the affection oozing from the low-born’s stare. His attraction is natural and not influenced by his social status or his wealth which can not be said for his aristocratic friends.

From my point of view, he is not aware of his own feelings, just like he doesn’t realize that the uke couldn’t paint because he was fighting his repressed sexual desires. But Seungho doesn’t give up, he just waits for the end of the sex session and remains by the uke’s side with the excuse that he needs to be present until the painting is finished. However, if you monitor his words and actions, you can clearly perceive the main lead’s true intentions: he attempts to seduce him again but this time, with a small step as he could discern the resistance in the artist.

As a conclusion, we could discern the real role of the gaze in these two chapters, one was focused on the seme’s perspective and gaze, whereas the other was concentrating on Baek Na-Kyum’s inner struggles due to the hypnotic gaze and the sex session. Besides, the reader could observe the change of Jihwa’s behavior as he is no longer closing his eyes and pays attention his childhood friend’s mind and gaze. Finally, the signification of the closed eyes linked to the teacher was unveiled here. And this explicates why Seungho had to use the mirror and his own gaze in the sex marathon so that he would free the painter’s unconscious and body which revealed how deeply the commoner had been manipulated by the low noble. Let’s not forget that after that day, Baek Na-Kyum was no longer able to control his body. His blushing, his heart bumping and his erection were more visible and palpable for the uke. The latter could only admit his own sexual orientation and his attraction for the master.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, then retweet it or push the button like. Thanks for reading.

Painter Of The Night: Yoon Seungho’s gaze: the mirror of his soul (part 2)

July 1, 2020July 2, 2020 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 3 Comments

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.

In the first part, I explained the importance of Seungho’s gaze. Through his gaze, we could perceive his inner thoughts and emotions. However, what caught my attention is that the first part contained mostly scenes where Seungho is either furious or jealous. This time, I wanted to focus on scenes where either other emotions are visible and palpable for the readers or Byeonduck used certain effects so that the beholder even becomes one with the main lead Yoon Seungho.

I chose this drawing from the chapter 22. Here, we can see a genuinely happy protagonist.

He is not just smiling, his gaze exudes a certain gentleness and care. Furthermore, his words reinforce this impression as he is giving an advice. He had just kept the young artist from falling. For the first time, the reader can witness a change in the lord’s behavior. If we compare it to the smile from the first chapter, we observe a difference as he is no longer acting like an obsessed or crazy fan full of excitement because he is able to meet his idol. In the chapter 22, the seme is oozing sincerity, warmth and more importantly calmness. That’s why he has been patient with the low-born. All this has been triggered by the night spent with Baek Na-Kyum. All this outlines the importance of their “wedding night” and that he has experienced something new. He felt loved although it was just an illusion and deep down, Seungho was hoping that this wasn’t a dream. Baek Na-Kyum’s words during that night expressed what the seme felt too.

For both of them, it was as if a dream had come true: they are finally loved and accepted as they are. It is no surprise that Seungho said nothing during that night as he is not someone who expresses himself so openly about his feelings. The change of attitude was already announced by this gesture as he personally took care of the uke. This revealed that the protagonist had been keeping an eye on the low-born which we didn’t see. Striking is that after helping him and showing him such a nice and gentle smile, the painter thanks him and the reader is unable to see Yoon Seungho’s face.

Now, it is left to the reader’s imagination what kind of reaction the lord has on his face, when he hears the grateful words coming from the uke. I doubt that the genuine smile and the warm gaze vanished, he must have kept oozing happiness which must have caught the teacher’s attention. Pay attention that the low noble is turning his head to the side’s and his eyes are looking behind, in the artist’s direction. However, I am quite sure that by doing so, he must have seen the smiling face of his sponsor. This explains why Jung In-Hun had such a gloomy face after this incident. Not only Yoon Seungho had personally prevented the painter from falling but the former had even talked to him in a gentle tone, while the noble had ignored his guest for the hunt all this time. He must have felt totally humiliated as he is a noble, whereas Baek Na-Kyum is a low-born. As you can see, the gaze the powerful noble had gives a lot away about his inner feelings: it announces his transformation which was triggered by this memorable night. That’s why the lord wants the painter to remember their night together.

Then I chose the scene in the chapter 28, where Baek Na-Kyum is coerced to give the angry seme a blow-job.

Notice that this drawing is made as if there is an invisible spectator, as if there was a camera filming the scene and the beholder is a peeping Tom. However, this suddenly changes because now, the perspective is different. We see the blow-job from the master’s perspective. There is no invisible narrator or spectator.

Byeonduck uses a certain technique to let the readers enter the master’s eyes. We are now seeing from the lord’s view, until the perspective abruptly changes one more time.

Now, the “camera” zooms on the lord’s face so that we are seeing the affect the view had on Yoon Seungho. Through this alternation of perspectives, the readers are able to perceive what Seungho is actually feeling. Moreover, this outlines the affect Baek Na-Kyum has on the lord.

Now, you can observe that the zoom is now focusing on Baek Na-Kyum’s head and the lord’s hand. We are here again witnessing it from the master’s perspective. The beholder has entered deep in the lord’s mind and it was as if he would caress himself the painter’s hair. We are ones with the protagonist, we see and stroke the uke too.

However, Seungho can’t help himself looking at the uke’s face and what catches him by surprise is the painter’s gaze. In this gaze, he can view himself but also perceive the painter’s unconscious. Notice that the uke is not looking angry or scared or upset like at the beginning of the scene, so Yoon Seungho feels that Baek Na-Kyum is no longer rejecting him, he shows no disgust as well. The master witnesses with his own eyes that Baek Na-Kyum has been affected by the blow job as well. Our seme is deeply affected by the gaze given by the uke hence he is cumming right after. This explains why the lord told him after that they would use the mirror so that the painter would see his own facial expressions. He should stop pushing him away as his gaze revealed a different reaction. As you can see, the painter’s gaze was also the mirror of the low-born’s soul. Both unveil attraction, desire and love. No wonder why the lord showed his own gaze in the mirror, when they were having that sex marathon.

He wanted the uke to notice his soul too so that the painter would perceive the lord’s true longing and personality.

And he was not wrong with this move because this triggered the painter’s memory. He remembered the gaze he saw in his wet dream, where his unconscious expressed his desire to have sex with the master.

The lord’s gaze had an hypnotic effect, he definitely freed him from the brainwashing he suffered from Jung In-Hun which he hasn’t realized yet. On the other hand, the gaze given by the blow-job reinforced the impression that Baek Na-Kyum was not really rejecting him despite his claims and gestures. The gaze betrayed him, revealed his true desires.

The next scene where the lord’s gaze marked another turning point in the love story is the next blow-job. In the chapter 36, when Baek Na-Kyum enters his chamber, we see an exhausted noble.

He had almost given up on the painter before until he saw his blushing which gave him some small hope hence he had ordered him to paint in his chamber that night. Striking is the contrast of the emotions between the two main characters. Whereas the lord looks emotionless and indifferent due to his exhaustion, the painter is feeling excited. His heart is bumping loudly and he has an erection which underlines the affect the noble’s presence has. Here, the master is definitely not seducing him with his gaze or body, he is immobile and indifferent. However, the moment Yoon Seungho notices the uke’s erection, the nature of his gaze switches:

It was as if a fire had been ignited, life came back. There is a light reflecting in his eyes which wasn’t there before. The dormant volcano is now erupting again, however this is not like the explosive Mount Vesuvius’ eruption that destroyed the town Pompei, rather like an effusive eruption of the Mount de la Fournaise (On the Island La Réunion) which is less dangerous as lava steadily flows out of a volcano onto the ground. That’s why he doesn’t force himself like at the pavilion but prefers pleasuring the painter. He is controlling his emotions that way he can nurture his relationship with the low-born. As you know, lava is a good fertilizer hence Seungho ensures that Baek Na-Kyum is slowly accepting him as his partner.

As you can recognize, the author Byeonduck paid a lot of the attention to the chronology of her drawings and each picture has a purpose. The focus on Seungho’s gaze is no coincidence because they reveal each time something important, or the switch of perspective is to let the reader perceive what the characters are thinking , observing or even feeling. We had another example of this in the chapter 39. Here, the tailor’s hand on Baek Na-Kyum’s body represents the perspective of the noble and through the switch of perspective, the reader is able to enter the noble’s mind and read his thoughts: he is jealous and dislikes what he is seeing. This explicates why the sensitive readers have come to love the seme because we were seeing the events from his perspective and feel his own emotions and turmoil.

So now, if you read the story again, pay attention to the perspective and the chronology of the pictures. That way, you’ll notice how detail-oriented the author of this manhwa was. Through her pictures, you could feel the emotions of the characters.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for a topic, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, then retweet it or push the button like. So far, this blog has been quite successful because since I opened my Twitter account, I had more than 17.500 views for June and Byeonduck has been liking many analyses without sending these to her sometimes. Thanks for reading.

Painter Of The Night: An accomplice, a pawn or an innocent?

June 30, 2020December 22, 2020 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 2 Comments

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 can guess, this analysis will focus on Yoon Seung-Won, the protagonist’s younger brother. We don’t know much about him as he only appears in two chapters (37 and 44) hence it is quite difficult to discern this character. Since Yoon Seungho’s father is responsible for our seme’s tragic and painful past, we have to question the role played by the brother. Does he know that his father used Yoon Seungho as a scapegoat in order to escape the purge? Does he know what the father really wants? Or is he using his father’s name for his own interest? That’s why I will try to define his personality and judge his actions. Is he an accomplice of the father or is he just used by the latter? He could also be innocent.

Just like Jung In-Hun, Seung-Won’s existence is introduced indirectly with a letter.

In the chapter 36, the valet Kim has been entrusted a letter written by father Yoon, but the younger master requested a quick reply. We shouldn’t forget that the introduction of the poem in the chapter 4 served to reveal the duplicity of the teacher as we had two different opinions about the value of the poem. Here, the purpose is different as we have no idea about the content. However, this little scene illustrates the relationship between Yoon Seungho and his younger brother. First, it is clear that the latter has always attempted to get close to Yoon Seungho through letters, as the assistant Kim mentions “this one”. This means that the brother must have sent other messages before, which is confirmed later in chapter 37. However, in this scene, the butler says that this letter comes from father Yoon indicating that Seung-Won used his father’s name. Furthermore, this time there is a huge difference, because the domestic Kim has been requested to deliver the letter personally and to ask for an answer. This gesture outlines that Seung-Won knows the importance of the loyal valet Kim in Seungho’s life. He hopes that through the valet’s words and influence, his request can be fulfilled.

Then the reader senses a certain urgency behind Seung-Won’s action. It was, as though the noble was desperate to get something from his notorious brother. Besides, the beholder can also feel that the brother is trying to ignore Seungho’s past, to do, as if nothing bad had happened before, because the letter as such symbolizes a request and not an apology or a heartfelt message. We can conclude that the brother shows a lack of sensitivity and a certain egoism in his attitude. He is definitely selfish, because he has been “pestering” Yoon Seungho without showing empathy to his past. There are no comforting words coming from the valet’s mouth. One might argue that the brother has no idea about the father’s betrayal. However, we can refute this objection with the following point: the incident with the top-knot and the abandonment from the father. Since it has become a famous topic as rumor, it is impossible that Seung-Won has been left in the dark. He knows that his father rejected Seungho and no longer considered him as his son. Furthermore, the fact that he and his father had to leave the family mansion, the younger master could only realize the father’s gesture: he was a coward running away from his responsibility. Who would leave the main mansion behind because of the eldest son? Actually, the most natural thing would have been the other way: the father should have sent the son away due to his sodomy, yet it was the eldest master with his family who moved to the countryside. In other words, Seung-Won is well aware of the meaning of his father’s actions, even if he doesn’t know the whole truth. Therefore Seung-Won can’t be described as innocent because he never sided with his brother but remained by his father’s side.

After receiving the message from Kim, Seungho burns the letter without even opening it. Notice that he didn’t even destroy it in his room by attempting to maintain a certain dignity and respectability. No, he burnt it in the open, right in front of the servants, among the leaves. This attitude sends many signals. First, it is demonstrating that he has an idea about the content of the letter. The “request” didn’t go unnoticed, Seungho could discern the younger brother’s selfishness. Then it displays that the noble feels no emotional attachment to his “family member”. His gesture outlines too that he has no ties with Seung-Won. For him, they don’t exist or strictly speaking, they don’t belong to the same family. I would go far as to say that he considers his brother and father as garbage. That’s why he lets the message burn among the fallen leaves. As you can see, in just two pictures, I was able to describe the dynamic between Seungho and his brother and even display a little Seung-Won’s personality.

Since Seungho ignored his brother like in the past and Seung-Won was quite desperate to get an answer, his unannounced visit is no surprise. In fact, this reinforces the impression that Seung-Won is quite under pressure himself and needs his brother’s help no matter what, which signifies that Seungho has the upper hand. Observe that it is already late, but the younger master doesn’t care at all, reinforcing the bad impression we had before: quite rude and self-centered.

The visit means that Seung-Won needed to call his elder brother personally in order to pressure the latter so that the powerful noble would rekindle his relationship with him and the father. What caught my attention is that Seung-Won only paid his brother a visit the moment he had no other option left. It looks like he never visited him before, he thought that letters would be enough to amend their broken relationship. This indicates that Seung-Won has no idea about the real impact on the father’s abandonment in Seungho’s past. He is clueless when it comes to his brother’s suffering. Maybe he thinks that since Seungho has been left at the main mansion, his elder brother has been enjoying a comfortable position so he has been compensated for the humiliation suffered and the abandonment. He may consider it as a compensation for Seungho’s pain. This would explain why he doesn’t feel the need to comfort his brother. But this is just a speculation from my part.

However, this raises the question: does the younger brother really know what happened back then? He knows that Seungho became the scapegoat and was sacrificed in order to save the family as it is revealed during their conversation. Here, Seungho was reminding his brother that his father was the one who condemned him for sodomy, hence he was left behind. If you pay attention the brother’s reaction, you’ll notice his embarrassment and awkwardness. The man is sweating because he doesn’t want to be reminded of the past.

Moreover, he is avoiding his brother’s sharp gaze displaying his guilty conscience. That’s why I come to the conclusion that the brother knew about the intention behind his father’s action and didn’t stop him. From my perspective, the father must have explained his son what he was about to do. He would create a scandal with the eldest son and cut his topknot because of his supposed “homosexuality” in order to divert the king’s attention and save their family. But my belief is that Seungho had to suffer more than the humiliation and rejection. He was raped which the brother doesn’t know. In reality, the father sold his eldest son in order to save his own skin and explained his cowardice to Seung-Won as a normal sacrifice. I have the impression that Seung-Won has been left in the dark in certain aspects which is somehow confirmed in the last episode. Here, Seung-Won has no idea what the elder brother sent to his father. He was happy, when he received a letter handed over by Kim

This smile brings to light naivety and innocence. He has no idea about the content of the paper which is in reality the ruined painting of Seungho having a threesome. More striking is that the father never let the younger brother see the content of the paper. However, he blames the brother, when the father doesn’t leave his room in order to bid farewell.

Seungho is the cause for the father’s neglect which shows that he is really clueless why the brother would resent so much the father. The younger son acts as if Seungho is to blame for the father’s fury. There is definitely a lack of sensitivity and a certain naivety exuding from the younger master. But he is not so innocent either compared to Baek Na-Kyum. He is a liar , because the illness is just an excuse. He is quite daring to ask his brother to pay a visit to their father. He knows the true signification of this request, which is the reason why Seungho laughs it off and refuses. The brother is willing to act as a messenger for the father, since in reality, Seungho’s support would help him as well. He expects from the powerful noble so much and has never done anything for him in return.

This selfishness and rudeness is visible when he tried to enter Seungho’s bedchamber. He used his position as lord to mistreat Kim by threatening him and accusing him to lie, to ignore his words,

only Baek Na-Kyum’s voice was able to stop him which caught him by surprise.

That’s why at the end, I judge Seung-Won as an accomplice and pawn at the same time. He is no innocent in Seungho’s suffering, as he never expressed any comforting words during their meeting, he only wants the past to be swayed under the carpet and ensures that his father can be able to return to the main domain. He was an accomplice in the father’s request, because he knew that he would get some benefit himself. However, he is also a pawn as he has no real idea how far his father is willing to use him for his own interest. The father didn’t tell everything to Seung-Won. All the actions Seung-Won did (the letters, the visit) manifest a certain simplicity. He can’t really deceive people, especially his brother with his lies. His smile at the end of the chapter 36 reveals a naivety and innocence therefore I judge Seung-Won as someone who can be easily manipulated, especially by double-faced ones like Jung In-Hun. Their ways will cross and I can imagine that he will become the teacher’s next target and victim. The young man is not intelligent and cunning enough to perceive people’s lies and manipulation, maybe due to his selfishness. He feels entitled due to his social status and can use his position to get what he wants.

Feel free to comment. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. If you have any suggestion for new topics, feel free to ask. Thanks.

Painter Of The Night: Reputation and responsibility (second version)

June 29, 2020April 18, 2021 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 7 Comments

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. If you want to read more essays, here is the link to the table of contents: https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/04/table-of-contents-painter-of-the-night/

Only after the second season, I have finally understood the true role played by rumors which are strongly intertwined with reputation. The latter is what others think or believe about people. As you can detect, notoriety is linked to appearances and image. Striking is that I had already sensed that reputation and responsibility were stark connected to each other in season 1, hence I had written this essay. Yet, I had misinterpreted certain aspects which I am correcting now.

As I had demonstrated before, the chapters 39 and 40 were focused on responsibility. Yoon Seungho was determined to become Baek Na-Kyum’s guardian, which he announced in three different occasions:

He scolded his maids for not treating Baek Na-Kyum properly, although the latter had slept in the master’s bedroom and the servants knew that.
The lord sent the low-born to his own tailor so that he could get expensive winter clothes
When he questioned the scholar’s intentions, he wanted to outline that contrary to Jung In-Hun, he would become responsible for the painter. Unconsciously, he put a red dot on the painter’s forehead, a sign for a bride. Yet his true goal was to push the painter to ponder about his actual situation. He should realize that he did expect something from his learned sir. Since he had helped him to find a sponsor, the painter hoped, the scholar would become reliable for him, as he was just a low-born.

As you can see, the noble acted like a responsible man before announcing it to Baek Na-Kyum. In the kitchen, the negative comments from the maids made the master realize that the artist’s status was affected due to his connection with Yoon Seungho. He was the target of bad remarks, because the young artist was wearing the lord’s own shirt. For the first time, the aristocrat was confronted with the negative consequences of reputation and image. The main lead might be fine with his bad notoriety, but it is different for Baek Na-Kyum, as the latter is just a commoner. Yoon Seungho witnessed how the low-born claimed to be an artist, but he was not perceived as such. By giving him new clothes, the main lead wanted to demonstrate that the artist was not a servant, he had a special status. However, this incident was relevant for another reason. Due to the master’s reprimand, the gossips about Yoon Seungho’s household disappeared, hence Jihwa’s servant couldn’t get new information about his childhood friend. (chapter 41). Consequently, the author showed us in chapter 38 and 39 the origins of rumors and their function in the story.

Striking is that although the lord wanted to become responsible, he didn’t accompany the low-born right away, but sent him to the tailor with his own valet, before appearing himself. What caught my attention is that right from the start, the tailor doubted Kim’s words.

The tailor was very suspicious and kept asking questions to Kim. On the other hand, we have to wonder why Yoon Seungho didn’t follow the commoners right away. In my opinion, he changed his mind due to the tailor. First, the lord must have realized afterwards that the shop owner would doubt the valet’s words, as he had witnessed how his own maids would look down on the artist. Therefore, he must have anticipated that the tailor would have a similar reaction: he would suspect the veracity of the order. And he was right about this assumption, like the following tailor’s comment exposes it: Hence Yoon Seungho decided to join them. Moreover, the main lead is a very possessive and jealous man. While getting dressed, he must have recognized that the tailor would get close to his lover by measuring him too. Note that it was the first question the lord asked, when he penetrated the room. This definitely exposed that the noble was thinking a lot about this task. Moreover, his gaze was instantly directed at the tailor and his hand. This displays that the main lead had already envisioned the measuring and disliked the idea that someone else would see his partner so closely. Striking is that his late arrival truly outlined the artist’s importance in Yoon Seungho’s life, which couldn’t escape the tailor’s notice. Imagine, the lord was ensuring himself that everything was done properly. To sum up, the master had two reasons to join the butler and the artist. He desired to make sure that Baek Na-Kyum was treated properly, at the same time he needed to keep other men away. He had to protect the painter’s reputation: he was no servant, but an artist and his companion! Through his words said in front of the tailor, he deliberately unveiled the nature of their relationship. He knew that the tailor would catch this insinuation. In my eyes, it was not just an unconscious expression of love (the lord was not aware of his affection), but also a conscious choice. As a lord, he desired to defend Baek Na-Kyum’s position as a painter and as his lover. That’s why Yoon Seungho became responsible.

What caught my attention is that the shop owner uses the expression “I’ve never heard of…”, it insinuates that he also talks a lot with other merchants and customers. Besides, the gossiping attitude of the tailor is also confirmed in the chapter 41:

Notice that when Min described the tailor as loose-lipped, he was criticizing the main lead and reminding him to pay more attention to his image and appearances. However, Yoon Seungho remained indifferent, as he has never paid attention to rumors, because he is well aware that they never reflect truth. For he never cared about gossips, he had no problem to have a foreplay at the tailor’s shop. All these gestures and information led me to the following conclusion. The chapter 39 and 40 announced a turning point in Yoon Seungho’s life. By becoming responsible for the painter, he would create new rumors. Remember how he had been portrayed so far: (chapter 1)

(chapter 10) (chapter 13) (chapter 18)

(chapter 22) (chapter 33)

What do these gossips have in common? They all portray the wealthy main lead as a bad man. He is a man with no integrity and honor. Besides, he has a bad personality as well. And this observation made me realize the true function of these rumors in the story. The lord’s negative reputation through grapevines is created for only one purpose. It is to isolate him from everyone. He has such a bad notoriety not only among nobles, but also among commoners. That’s why Baek Na-Kyum didn’t want to be connected to him in the first episode and lied to Yoon Seungho. This also explicates why Heena noona rejects him. Therefore we have to question ourselves about the origins about these rumors. Who started them? As you can imagine, I believe that there are two people responsible for these grapevines, for gossips circulate among the local aristocracy and others among the commoners, yet their nature diverges.

As you can anticipate, in my opinion, Min is the one spreading these rumors among the nobles. First, in chapter 36 Black Heart is using rumors to manipulate his pawn: Besides, the childhood friend is often mentioning rumors as well, and since Jihwa is Black Heart’s pupil, this could be judged as another proof for my interpretation. Under this new perspective, this explicates why Jihwa, who is close to The Joker, could mention this gossip to Yoon Seungho in chapter 18: Moreover, I believe, Black Heart told this to the second lead as well. He desired to portray the main character in a negative light so that the red-haired aristocrat would turn his attention to him. Let’s not forget that in chapter 18, the childhood friend claimed that he had been using Yoon Seungho, indicating that besides their sexual relationship, Jihwa managed to make some deal. And now, you understand why The Joker is using gossips against the main lead, which became obvious in chapter 33. He imagined that he could isolate Yoon Seungho and make him feel miserable. This is no coincidence, when the main character heard this grapevine, , he replied this: He desired his childhood friend to tell the others that he didn’t fear this type of gossips. We have to envision that these words must have reached the Joker’s ears. That’s why in chapter 33, he retaliated by using the painter as an excuse. Note that the nobles mentioned Baek Na-Kyum as gossip and while leaving they kept talking about another rumor: So when Min decided to meet the main lead in the woods, he envisioned that the protagonist would get upset because of the gossips concerning the incident at the tailor shop. Maybe if he confronted him directly, he would get another reaction: fear and pain. I would like to remind my readers that in my eyes, Min is suffering from an Antisocial Personality Disorder, this explicates his passion for manipulations, fear and misery. He tried to instill fear in the noble (“look, now you are even associated to a low-born!”) but he didn’t succeed. That’s why The Joker decided to have the painter killed right after. If the latter were to die, then Yoon Seungho would truly become lonely, especially after discovering that his childhood friend was the culprit. Let’s not forget that Min was present, when Jihwa showed a certain empathy for his lost friend despite their quarrel. The Joker recognized that their friendship was not ruined for good. And note that in chapter 76, he is using the same method again. He witnessed how Yoon Seungho showed leniency towards Jihwa despite his wrongdoings, as the lord didn’t punish him. Min is manipulating the second lead, making him believe that he has to listen to him, as the protagonist could target him. The Joker is using the second lead’s existential fear to separate both friends. Despite all his schemes, Min was not able to attach the red-haired aristocrat to himself. Furthermore, he even has to discover how Jihwa had sex with a low-born like Nameless and he would even listen to his words. No wonder why Min got infuriated in the end. Despite all his schemes, he was not able to control Jihwa and Yoon Seungho. Both escaped his manipulations. And now the readers should question themselves Black Heart’s true goal in all this. Why is he so determined to hurt the protagonist and to make him feel miserable? If he was able to hurt and control Yoon Seungho, he would become the ultimate puppet master. However, that’s what The Joker thinks. Remember what I wrote about Black Heart’s real weakness. The latter fears social norms and as such rumors. Strictly speaking, he pays attention to appearances despite his nihilistic tendencies. That’s why he smiles and laughs a lot. However, he has always envied Yoon Seungho for that reason. The latter has always remained impassible to social norms and rumors. He showed real courage and strength, because he never complied through peer group pressure. And the worst is that even Jihwa was willing to be associated to such a man, although the latter has a terrible reputation. I would even say that the bond between the two characters hasn’t been destroyed yet after all, although both figures kept hurting each other. Even after the abduction, the main lead didn’t retaliate against his friend. That’s why Min has to make Jihwa and Yoon Seungho miserable. He envies the protagonist, because he was capable to have such a friend. They have seen the worst from each other, yet they were able to remain friend, even Jihwa wanted to become Yoon Seungho’s lover. Moreover, now he is not hiding his relationship with Baek Na-Kyum. As you can imagine, the episode 76 made me realize Min’s defeat. The latter couldn’t stop Yoon Seungho from revealing his special relationship to the painter in front of commoners. He treated his lover like his wife and the town folks could witness it. Therefore this is no coincidence that episode 76 is connecting responsibility to rumors. The water and the music box are the evidences that Yoon Seungho is a responsible man. They reveal his integrity which stands in opposition to reputation. Integrity describes how you act, it is a characteristic of you regardless of who is watching. Finally, Yoon Seungho’s true personality is revealed to the world in chapter 76. He shows moral righteousness, courage, gentleness and responsibility. He allows a commoner to hug him, is willing to lower himself and listen to the low-born’s request: he needs his help. And during the second season Min’s only success was in chapter 54. Here, he could only wound the main lead, because the painter feared social norms as well. But now, it is no longer working on Baek Na-Kyum either. I believe, the trigger for this huge war is Baek Na-Kyum. I am still convinced that Black Heart is obsessed with the artist, because he wished that the artist would look at him the same way. Imagine this: The low-born showed pure desires, and neither the main lead’s terrible reputation nor his wrongdoings could disgust the artist so that the latter would leave Yoon Seungho’s side. As a psychopath/sociopath, Min can only resent the main lead.
As for the rumors among the commoner, Kim was responsible. He allowed the staff to talk badly about their master. In chapter 32, he never intervened in order to defend his master’s honor. Moreover, he influenced them with his words. After calling Baek Na-Kyum a no-good painter (chapter 11), the maid associated Baek Na-Kyum to a charlatan (chapter 17). Besides, I would like to outline that through his words, Kim encouraged the staff to show a disrespect towards the low-born. That’s why they started eating his food. Since, the valet never reprimanded them for their misconduct, it truly shows that Kim had no interest to protect his master’s interests and rights. He is the one who described Yoon Seungho as violent and with mood swings, because he used the incident with Jihwa’s topknot. He had a reason for spreading these rumors. Exactly like Min, he desired to isolate Yoon Seungho so that the latter would always rely on him. He would show care and concern in front of his master, as he knew his true personality: he was gentle and considerate. And now, it is time to focus once again on chapter 40. Note that when the protagonists left the tailor shop, the butler didn’t follow them: Why? It’s because he needed to speak with the tailor alone. He asked him to never reveal the foreplay to others. That’s why Kim never witnessed this scene: There is no ambiguity that the butler must have claimed that he was doing it in order to protect his master’s reputation. Imagine, he had a sexual relationship with a commoner… what a scandal, especially in that historical period. However, his true intention was different. If the town folks were to discover that their lord would make no distinction between nobles and commoners, and he wouldn’t look down on the low-born, the commoners would judge their lord in a better light. They would realize that he showed tolerance, open-mindedness, honesty but more importantly reliability. I see another evidence that Kim employed gossips to reveal the visit to the tailor to Jung In-Hun. This is the reason why the scholar speaks of flourishing. Let’s not forget that he was the only one who knew about the order of winter clothes. And here, they had just been ordered. From my point of view, Kim hoped to create a quarrel between the learned sir and the painter. Another evidence for this evidence is perceptible in chapter 50: The valet’s words clearly imply that the conversation had become the topic of gossips. That’s why in chapter 45, Byeonduck introduced Kim in front of commoners spreading gossips. This is no coincidence. And this led me to realize two important elements. Right from the start, the author wanted to indicate the valet’s true personality. Kim was not only responsible for the rumors concerning his master, but also for the ambiguous status for Baek Na-Kyum. Furthermore, the butler thought, his trick had been successful, yet during his walk through the town, he discovered a new gossip. The town folks had already perceived a change of their lord’s behavior and connected it to a love affair. And this showed that the lord’s image was not that bad in reality. They still hoped that their lord would calm down and settle. They were even willing to accept Jihwa as the lord’s mistress. This truly revealed that they didn’t truly reject his homosexuality, rather his debauchery. In chapter 45, Kim discovered that Deok-Jae had ruined his plan. Kim was determined to ensure that Yoon Seungho would keep a bad reputation. The moment he was seen as a responsible man, he would no longer be isolated and rely on him. Moreover, the moment he was judged as responsible and he wouldn’t reject commoners, it becomes possible that the commoners complain to him and ask for his help. However, slowly Kim lost his pawns among the staff, so that he has no one to spread rumors. The maid questioned his authority and even defended her lord in chapter 67. She didn’t question Yoon Seungho’s reasoning, it was his right. This means that now he is considered as the real master of the mansion. Kim still used the male servants for his scheme in chapter 69, but in my opinion, he even lost their support, because nothing bad happened after their love session. And note that the domestic’s words are referring to rumor: The butler was no longer able to manipulate through rumors, hence he ends up alone in the backyard. Imagine, Kim can’t even use the loose-lipped tailor for his schemes, as the shop owner resents the butler for turning him into a liar and fool. That’s why we see him whispering to a client, when the lord is standing in front of his shop. Now, the tailor can talk to his heart content. Neither Kim nor Kim can ask him to remain quiet. And note that in chapter 76 Yoon Seungho is walking alone with his lover, hence when he helped his panicked lover, the commoners could witness how kind, selfless and generous Yoon Seungho was. Exactly like in chapter 40, he came later so that his behavior would outline the artist’s importance in the noble’s life. First, he sat on the ground to comfort his partner. Then after bringing to the planks of woods, Yoon Seungho took care of Baek Na-Kyum’s headgears. He made sure that his wife was properly covered and he would get water. Finally, he was even willing to buy an expensive music box, although Baek Na-Kyum never said anything. He acted as a responsible man which many people, commoners and nobles, could witness.

But what does it mean? The rebirth of the phoenix has been noticed by the town folks. But more importantly, they witness how the artist had a panic attack and how he screamed for Yoon Seungho’s help. The shop owners will certainly gossip about this incident and remember the painter’s disappearance which cause a huge ruckus in town. The commoners complained about the behavior of the lord’s servants. Back then, the rumors were that a servant had run away, however the tailor revealed that the lord’s lover was the painter. Hence I am expecting that the town folks will realize that Yoon Seungho’s lover was abducted. And since Jihwa had confessed in public the night before the artist’s disappearance, the commoners will realize what the ex-lover did, when he got rejected. And maybe that’s the reason why Min is able to bind Jihwa to him. If his crime was revealed to the commoners, the latter could definitely complain. And this story clearly reveals that reputation is nothing… what really matters is integrity. However, Jihwa needs to learn this lesson, but only through pain he will recognize this. That’s why he is still not listening to his conscience. This explicates why Black Heart reveals his true personality in chapter 76. He is selfish, stupid, but more importantly irresponsible, for he lets Jihwa become responsible for his own misdeeds.

And now, you understand why I can’t review my bad perception about Kim and Min. Both are cowards who hide behind rumors in order to manipulate people. At the same time, this method helps them to wash off their hands from their own misdeeds. In their mind, they can never be held responsible. The others are to blame, as they repeated their words or decided to listen to their words. However, they are forgetting that words are as such actions. They can’t escape their responsibility for their crimes: blackmail, perjury, murder, complicity of abduction. That’s why chapter 76 is so beautiful in the end, as it shows that despite the use of rumors, neither Kim nor Min were able to change the lord’s true personality, they just delayed the truth. He would do anything for his bride: spend a huge amount of money for something that even the king had not seen. The lord’s statement in chapter 40 became true. He took his responsibility as a man and transformed Baek Na-Kyum into his bride. And now…. new rumors will surface, and definitely reach Heena noona’s ears. How will she react? I don’t want to answer to that question, however you are more than welcome to give your opinion to this question.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My instagram-tumblr-twitter account is: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading and for the support, particularly, I would like to thank all the new followers and people recommending my blog.

Painter Of The Night/ A Painter Behind The Curtain: The difficult life of painters

June 28, 2020June 15, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 2 Comments

This is where you can read the manhwas. https://www.lezhin.com/en/comic/painter https://www.tappytoon.com/comics/painter-behind-curtainm. But be aware that these manhwas are mature Yaoi, which means, it is about homosexuality with explicit scenes, although there is a softer version for “A Painter Behind The Curtain”. Here is the link, if you are interested in more analyses about this manhwa and others https://bebebisous33analyses.com/2021/06/06/table-of-contents-of-analyzed-mentioned-manhwas/

If you have already read the analysis about “Traces of “Dangerous liaisons” and “Justine: The Misfortunes of Virtue”, you know why I am now using the other manhwa “A Painter Behind The Curtain” created by Munamu. Both works have a lot in common, not only the historical setting but also the story as such. Both stories have a painter as a protagonist and the latter share a similar fate: a lot of suffering.

Since many are not familiar about A Painter behind the Curtain, I’ll just give a short summary. The story has 70 chapters but only 26 have been released in English. The main character is Ian Sconel, a talented painter who was sold as a child by his father to the Bardis, as soon as Mr. Bardi recognized his talents.

Since The Bardis have a long tradition of painters in their family, the father wanted to use the young boy’s talents in order to maintain the family’s reputation and their high lifestyle as renowned painters for the aristocracy. Mr. Bardi let his buyers think that his second son Jeremy was the genius one, whereas Ian Scornel was the one who created all the masterpieces. That’s why the author chose the title “behind the curtain”, as he painted the whole time hidden from the eyes of the others. The title is also referring to the meeting of Ian Sconel and the other protagonist, Mr. Raymond.

Ian was hiding behind the curtain when Mr. Raymond saw him for the first time

If we compare the two artists, we will notice that despite the different location (Italy-Joseon) both come from the bottom of the society. That’s the reason why the two men are illiterate.

chapter 10: Here, Mr. Raymond is offering an employment contract to Ian but the latter can neither sign nor read it. (chapter 40)

Moreover the two felt the need to paint all the time as children.

chapter 1

Although they were both passionate about painting, Baek Na-Kyum’s drawings were limited to one subject: erotic pictures of sodomy. The difference is quite easy to understand: Baek Na-Kyum was raised at a gisaeng house, where sex was a common thing. Besides, this also outlines that the korean boy knew right from the start about his sexual orientation. For Ian, we discover that Mr. Bardi is sexually abusing him. So his homosexuality wasn’t determined right from the start. Little by little, Ian falls in love with Mr. Raymond because the latter treats him so well. But since servants confessing their love to Mr. Raymond are immediately fired, Ian has to hide his feelings for him. Baek Na-Kyum has also to hide his feelings in front of the lord, or better said, he has to fight against his repressed sexual desires (chapter 6), as he has been manipulated by the teacher Jung In-Hun that homosexuality is something filthy and immoral. (chapter 34)

The other common denominator is that the two men became victims of rape, (chapter 26) even if Ian was sexually abused quite often as he spent many years at the Bardis before getting “rescued” by Mr. Raymond.

Notice that during the rape, Ian has to listen to Mr. Bardi’s words that the latter is his benefactor, since he gives him the opportunity to paint and he has a roof over his head. All this leaves deep scars in the painter’s mind which explains why later he refuses to paint any longer.

The blond haired man vows not to paint any longer as he saw it as the cause for his misery and suffering, while Baek Na-Kyum was coerced by Jung In-Hun to abandon paintings due to the sodomy. The two painters have at some point kept their distance from their passion.

But let’s go back to Ian’s paintings. Ian is forced to paint what Bardi wants so he is limited in his creativity. Whereas Yoon Seungho also restraints the low-born in his creativity, since he has to paint sex scenes, Ian has to create religious paintings or scenes with nobles.

Both sponsors use their position to impose their will. The painters have no right to refuse and to choose their subjects based on their inclination or inspiration. This outlines their precarious situation as they are dependent on the sponsor. Yoon Seungho’s attitude does resemble Mr. Bardi’s behavior, yet there is another huge contrast too. Ian is kept captive in his room, can only get food if the picture is finished. That’s why he is often hungry and very skinny.

On the other hand, Yoon Seungho shows a certain favoritism because he placed Baek Na-Kyum right next to his bedroom and the former is even willing to eat his lunch with him. (chapter 11) Despite the difference, they both have to please their sponsor with their work. If there is disobedience, then there is also punishment:

Mr. Bardi slapping Ian after the latter left his room in order to retrieve food as he was starving.

(chapter 13) The low-born was about to get the straw mat beating, until the lord changed his mind. However, just like Ian, the young man had been slapped and even pushed by his “sponsor” before. Ian’s suffering lasts much longer because he arrived at the house as a child and he was already a young man, when he was able to leave this hell created by Bardi.

All these aspects are here dramatized, however this was the reality for painters in the past. Even Vincent Van Gogh couldn’t live properly as he had no real sponsor outside his family. Many painters had to adapt themselves to the taste of their “clients” in order to earn money that’s why many artists chose to paint following the trend and the rules. In other words, the painters’ creativity and curiosity for experiment were bounded, just like in the two fictions.

Baek Na-Kyum became a successful painter because he published many erotic books which the nobility was fond of.

Sure, he had to publish them under a pseudonym, nevertheless his books were quite famous as he was able to survive as a drunk without painting any longer. So even if the topic was taboo, aristocrats were quite interested in such drawings. In order to get attention from the nobility, Ian is also reminded by Henry, a noble, that he should paint based on the trend but this time, Ian refuses. Unlike Bardi and Yoon Seungho, Mr. Raymond gave him the freedom to paint based on his inclination.

The other disparity is that Yoon Seungho wanted to keep the paintings to himself, he never wanted to let people see Baek Na-Kyum’s talents or to earn money with it. It was as if he was determined to own the painter so that he could keep him hidden from people’s attention, as if he wanted to put him behind the curtain. And notice that the noble is not interested in encouraging the artist to develop his talents. (chapter 41) He was jealous and annoyed, when he saw the picture of Jung In-Hun’s inauguration so that he failed to see the talent and dedication in this different type of drawing. So there is a certain selfishness in the seme here but I am expecting that this will change. He could have noticed that the low-born’s talent is not just defined by sex and sodomy but his insecurities made him blind in that moment. Yet, this painting has been given to the loyal valet Kim so that it can get destroyed. But I feel that Kim might give it to his master or keep it. I have the feeling that this painting will play a bigger role in Baek Na-Kyum’s career later.

Now, people who haven’t read “A painter behind the curtain” might think that Yoon Seungho is the Joseon version of Bardi, however they are wrong. Actually, he is a mixture of Bardi (due to his selfish and violent side) and Mr. Raymond. If you look at the image where Mr. Raymond is looking at the painting, you’ll notice his fascination and admiration for the work created by Ian.

The so-called merchant is definitely moved by the creation and the gaze is again revealing the affects caused by the painting. He keeps starring at it, there is a certain calmness and relaxation oozing from his eyes. Just like Yoon Seungho, the bourgeois falls in love with Ian’s pictures. And little by little, he falls in love with the artist himself. As you can see, the paintings serve as a bridge between the two men, Yoon Seungho wants to find the man with the talented hands and at some point Mr. Raymond will realize Mr. Bardi’s fraud and the origin of the paintings: Ian.

However, Mr. Raymond’s kindness and gentleness is not selfless in reality. He needs the artist’s talents in order to get closer to the nobility and as such to power. Art and paintings are linked to power because rulers and even the Church used art in order to legitimate their authority.

Here, this is the famous portray of Louis XIV made by Hyacinthe Rigaud. Through this painting, the French King wanted to demonstrate his power. He is an absolute Monarch. He possesses all the powers: the executive (symbolized by the sword), legislative (scepter) and judicial branches (the hand of justice on the stool). But he doesn’t need the regalia on himself in order to prove his position as absolute ruler.

At the same time, only painters working for the Church or the King had a rather comfortable life. Yet they had to paint what they were told to. Just like Yoon Seungho, the bourgeois is motivated by revenge but uses art as his tool and not sex. Mr. Raymond has a different approach therefore he needs Ian’s talent and help.

Mr. Raymond is not powerful like the lord from Joseon, since the merchant only belongs to the third state, the commoners. He wants to obtain power as he suffered injustice in his childhood.

His father was executed due to a scheme perpetrated by count Rothsildt. So far, he has internalized that only in a powerful position he can get revenge and protect himself and his family from any injustice. Since he is just a bourgeois, he is despised by the aristocrats, at the same time they seek his company as many nobles are facing financial issues which is historically correct. Just before the French Revolution, many bourgeois were even richer than nobles, especially many low nobles were impoverished… which reminds us of Jung In-Hun at the same time. So his role as a sponsor for a talented painter represents his way to get access to power. Like I have mentioned above, for kings talented painters are a tool for the securing their own power.

Since Mr. Raymond has to rely on Ian’s talent, he can’t behave like Yoon Seungho. He needs to win the painter’s trust hence he teaches him reading and writing. Striking is that Ian is compared to a cat,

whereas Baek Na-Kyum’s behavior reminded me more of a lamb. That’s why their position contrasts so much. Ian has the upper hand right from the start with Mr. Raymond and in Painter Of The Night, it is the opposite. Seungho can use his position as lord to force the man to paint, yet as time passes on, the situation reverses. At the end of the first season, Baek Na-Kyum has the upper hand in their relationship. Seungho wants to have the artist’s consent, when it comes to sex. He no longer uses his position as lord. (chapter 41)

This explains why Ian is given so much freedom by the bourgeois. As time passes on, Ian’s PTSD disappears and the artist can develop his own interest and change his techniques. Thanks to Mr. Raymond’s support, he can choose the topic of his paintings and the methods which announces a huge change and innovation in the art. Ian shows an interest for commoners or for landscapes.

The way he paints as well, reminds me a lot of the Impressionism, an art current characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage of time), ordinary subject matter, inclusion of movement as a crucial element of human perception and experience, and unusual visual angles.

Impressionism originates with a group of artists living around Paris whose independent exhibitions created a wave of scandal and attention at the end of the 19th Century. Famous painters from the impressionism are f. ex. Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Sisley, Morisot. But Van Gogh and Cézanne were highly influenced by this art movement until they developed their own style. These painters decided not to follow the rules by the Art Academy which explains why many painters from that current struggled a lot. Only Renoir and Monet could become rich and successful before their death. And now, if you look at Ian’s paintings, you observe that Ian has the same thinking and approach as he paints on his impressions. Now, I am adding a picture where the beholder can view the paintings that the nobility liked.

In the background, you can see the classic paintings he created, when he was exploited by Bardi.

The beholder observes the huge contrast as Ian no longer paints religious scenes or mythology, his focus is more or less on daily situations: they have less pathos and ooze more humbleness. But thanks to Raymond, Ian Sconel is able to catch the attention of a famous court painter. However, we shouldn’t forget that this young man wouldn’t have been able to develop his skills any further if Raymond had not entirely supported him.

That’s why the attitude of a sponsor is really important, he can brake or improve the artist’s talents.

Now, if we return our attention to Painter Of The Night, the reader notices that Yoon Seungho was only focused on getting new paintings for his own pleasure. The interest of the low-born never mattered. However, I sense that the lord might come to change his attitude and even help him to develop his talents. Just like in “A Painter Behind The Curtain”, I am expecting that the master will teach Baek Na-Kyum to write and read. Secondly, we know for sure that he has connection to the Royal Academy

and Baek Na-Kyum has for the first time painted on another topic: the inauguration of the low noble Jung In-Hun. (chapter 44) The drawing was detailed and totally different from the erotic pictures. So I am expecting that Yoon Seungho turns into a real sponsor and becomes more and more like Mr. Raymond. However, the latter will have to choose at some point between power or love. By taking care of Ian so well, he wanted him to open up but at the end, Raymond fell in love with the genius too. While one artist could incite arousal with his creations, the other could calm the resentful merchant. Strictly speaking, their art had a huge impact on the life of the two semes.

Despite the suffering and their tragic past, both artists have the chance to meet someone who will help them to get recognition for their talents and to become more independent. But just like I have been showing all along, the painter’s life in the past relied a lot of sponsoring. The French novelist Emile Zola wrote a novel called “L’Oeuvre” (The work) where he described the struggling of an impressionist. The latter was determined to create a masterpiece with innovations and to get recognition but failed at the end. Zola, a close friend of Cézanne, was inspired by his friend’s life and the impressionism, yet this book became the reason why Cézanne cut ties with his childhood friend as the painter Claude Lantier was portrayed in a rather negative way: he was obsessed and neglected everything else including his family. The reasons why I am mentioning this work are the following. First, it outlines the importance of a sponsor and confirmed what the manhwas are telling in their fiction. Then it reveals the difficulties the avant-garde painters had in order to get accepted. Finally here comes the biggest reason. I had to read this book when I was a high school student and through this work, I came to understand the significance of paintings. That’s how I discovered the impressionism and fell in love with their works. Because of this novel, I could finally understand better why innovations in art movement were related to a fight against Academy and rules. Painters are indeed fighters because what they do can go against social norms and etiquette. That’s why their life is so difficult. The rape, the exploitation might be fiction in the manhwas, yet they symbolize the struggles painters from unknown origins had in order to make a breakthrough.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My Reddit-Instagram-Tumblr-Twitter account is: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading and for the support, particularly, I would like to thank all the new followers and people recommending my blog.

Painter Of The Night: “Spring Awakening” part 3

June 27, 2020 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ Leave a comment

This essay represents the last part of the comparison between the theater play “Spring Awakening” from Frank Wedekind with the manhwa Painter Of The Night. In order to be able to compare the characters from the German theater play with the ones from the Korean manhwa, it is important to give a short explanation about the characters from “Spring Awakening” and the role they played in the story. We have the main protagonist Melchior Gabor, his parents and the school director Sunstroke.

Melchior Gabor is a teenager with good grads at school hence he is very confident. Furthermore he is a free spirit hence he knows a lot about sexuality through books and observations. The reason why he stands so much in opposition to Wendla Bergmann is that his mother wasn’t strict compared to the other parents. She believed in her son’s maturity and intelligence and imagined that he wouldn’t do anything stupid. However, as you know it, Melchior Gabor will force himself on Wendla Bergmann. Moreover Melchior is the friend of Moritz Stiefel (Boots). The latter has problems with his grads therefore later, the pessimistic teenager decides to commit suicide because he is expelled from school. He is unable to face the disdain from his parents and the humiliation. But before killing himself, Melchior Gabor tried to help him in many ways, like giving his own homework or giving him a lesson about sex education. This led to the situation that Moritz Stiefel asked Melchior to write notes for the sex education because the former is rather shy and embarrassed. However, after Moritz’s suicide, the adults which means the parents, the school director and the teachers put the blame on Melchior because of the notes about the sex education found in the belongings of Moritz. They claim that the student did it due to the shock he received, when he saw the “vulgar and dirty” papers. As you already know, the real cause was the pressure to perform well coming from the family and the school. Moritz was well aware that he needed to rank among the first 60th students in order to avoid the expel. Even the school director Sunstroke admits this:

“because we have to protect our institution from the devastation of a suicide epidemic that has already broken out in several high schools…” (Act 3, scene 1)

As you can see, the pressure to perform is in fact related to the increasing number of suicides among the students underlining the extreme pressure put on the teenagers. And here, the school director Sunstroke reminds me of Jung In-Hun due to their similar profession and attitude. They blame others for their own failure, especially a teenager which is the perfect target. Jung In-Hun also made the painter feel guilty and dirty with his brainwashing and later with the rejection and abandonment. Since he was born to be a prostitute, the teacher didn’t need to feel responsible for him. Sunstroke doesn’t need to feel guilty for Moritz’s suicide as there is Melchior as justification. Strangely is that both characters are also associated to the same metaphor: the smelling air due to the lack of opened windows. When Jung In-Hun is seen in the library, , the beholder never see any window, only books or walls. In “Spring Awakening”, Sunstroke asks to have a window opened during a meeting but he is unable to have his wish fulfilled. Either one teacher doesn’t want to have his back facing the opened window or one window was boarded up. This underlines their lack of connection to the youth, they are both living in their own world, disconnected from the students or from people in general.

But let’s go back to Melchior Gabor. Instead of changing their methods, the school and as such the adults choose to turn the main protagonist as a scapegoat which leads the father to abandon his son and sends him to a reformatory. His mother Mrs Gabor agrees to her husband’s decision the moment she discovers that her son slept with Wendla. Rejected by society and by his own parents, Melchior escapes from the reformatory and goes to the cemetery. There he sees Wendla’s tomb and in his despair, he begins to hallucinate, where he sees his dead friend Moritz. He is about to commit suicide, when a masked man appears and convinces him to keep living. We have to understand that this hooded man personifies life as such. The masked man tells Melchior how the generation conflict could have been mitigated. The parents should have responded a little to the children’s needs and talked openly to them and simultaneously they should have shown them what was out there in the world. So despite the rejection and abandonment, Melchior decides to follow him and discover the world. He chooses life over his friend.

As you can imagine, we can draw a lot of parallels between Melchior Gabor and Yoon Seungho. Both know about sex quite well, then they are betrayed and abandoned by their own family. Besides, both become the scapegoat for the wrongdoings committed by adults. Both rape, although it was never their intention in the first place. Then their personality is quite similar: they have a huge influence on others (leadership), they are very observant, they read a lot. In other words, the two young men are intelligent free spirits. Moreover, despite the huge pain of losing his friends Wendla and Moritz, Melchior chose life in the end, just like Yoon Seungho. The only first huge difference is that Yoon Seungho is not a social person as he has no real friend. Even his childhood friend Jihwa doesn’t know him that well as the latter always keeps his own thoughts and emotions to him. However, we can conclude that Yoon Seungho’s fate resembles a lot Melchior’s.

Nonetheless, it is important to look closer to their similarities. Strangely, both have a huge libido. Melchior started having erections much earlier compared to his friends (Act 1, scene 2), just like Seungho is able to have sex with Baek Na-Kyum for a very long time. (chapter 33). Their age might differ but they both experience “Spring Awakening”. When Melchior is lying in the hay loft, Wendla joins him. Although he attempts to send her away, she refuses to leave him hence he can’t resist her any longer and starts kissing her. She objects that they don’t love each other that’s why they shouldn’t kiss, however Melchior replies that love doesn’t exist, there is only egoism. In other words, he implies that love is not required during intercourse, they should just follow their impulses. We can observe that he is following his sexual natural instincts. This reminds us of the scene, where Yoon Seungho has sex with Jihwa at the pavilion.

Here the excited noble is also following his instincts. For the first time, he is aroused and feels sex with a man quite exciting. He is neglecting his partner’s needs as well. He experiences something new. He feels pleasure for the first time, he also perceives himself differently. Just like Melchior, the noble is only focusing on sex and doesn’t pay attention to love. He is selfish just like the teenager. Striking is the resemblance in the location, a pavilion and a hay loft are quite similar, since they are open.

However, the huge difference is that Melchior has sex just one time with Wendla and he actually rapes her. With Jihwa, it was different because this was consensual sex and Jihwa did love his childhood friend. Furthermore, Yoon Seungho makes another experience: he makes love to Baek Na-Kyum after the latter confesses his love to him mistaken him for his learned sir. Yoon Seungho thought that he could just have sex, nevertheless he ended up feeling the difference between sex and love. They made love and they had not just sex, though Seungho didn’t realize the distinction. Melchior in the theater play never got to know what making love feels. However, we could say that this represents the second step in the Spring Awakening of our Korean protagonist. Unlike Melchior, Yoon Seungho can no longer say that love doesn’t exist, since the young artist confessed his love … yet the master is unaware of his own feelings.

The readers know that Yoon Seungho rapes the low-born at the pavilion, just like Melchior raped the innocent girl at the hay loft. Both never planned it, even if we can observe a difference between both rapes. Yoon Seungho had planned to have sex with the man there, he thought that Baek Na-Kyum had remembered their night together. Since he thought that the artist had made a painting of their night together, he imagined that he had accepted him as his sex partner. Melchior initially tried to fight his instincts, as he wanted to send his friend away but she refused unaware of the reason for his rejection. In other words, the teenagers acted on his instincts, on an impulse. Yoon Seungho raped the young man out of frustration and not because of a sudden attraction. Besides, Baek Na-Kyum refused more categorically than Wendla, he slapped the noble, whereas she tried to argue with her partner. They shouldn’t kiss because they don’t love each other. The stronger resistance can be explained very easily. The painter knew what the man wanted, whereas Wendla had no idea what was going to happen to her. Unlike Wendla, Baek Na-Kyum received sex education because he was raised at a brothel, furthermore he knew about homosexual sex. Strangely, both rapes start with kisses which shows that there was more than just sex. A kiss serves as a trigger for arousal but reveals a certain tenderness.

Right after the rape, Yoon Seungho calms down and regrets it hence he tries to redeem himself by taking care of Baek Na-Kyum.

For Melchior, it is a little different. Some time passes until he sends a letter to Wendla which is caught by her mother. However, both want to take their responsibility for their wrongdoing. When the sex marathon occurred which led to the uke’s exhaustion, here again the lord wanted to redeem himself for overlooking the health condition of his partner. Hence he made sure that he had some water and have the doctor fetched and was ready to buy some expensive medicine.

Another resemblance is the role played by Melchior in the discovery of sexuality. We know that Seungho forced the uke to look at his facial expressions while having sex with him so that the latter would no longer deny his sexual orientation. In the theater play, Wendla asked Melchior to beat her because she had never experienced it before. She was curious about it, Melchior was quite surprised by her request but decided to follow her request. Through him, she discovered her sado-masochist disposition. Both Wendla and Baek Na-Kyum realized what they like, though the girl has no idea that it is related to sex. On the other hand, Yoon Seungho contrasts so much to Melchior because the latter ran away after beating the girl. He felt embarrassed and had no idea how to deal with those feelings. Yoon Seungho has never been embarrassed about sex and he has no problem to use violence as well. Sure, he is much older than Melchior and as such he has experienced much more than the teenager.

Both young men are excluded from the family. The elder master accused his son of sodomy and cut off his topknot which created a huge scandal. Then he moved to another mansion in the countryside. Melchior Gabor becomes the gossip because of Moritz’s suicide and of the notes he left to him. The father, Mr. Gabor, declares that Melchior needs to be sent to a reformatory which could be considered as an exile. So there is a physical distance between their relatives and the protagonists in both stories. Another similarity is the cowardice of the fathers.

Mr. Gabor blames his wife for their son’s wrongdoings, while he never showed any interest in education before. He could have explained more about sex education but he never did. The father prefers to save his family’s reputation by abandoning his son than to help his son to take his responsibility for Wendla. Both parents are selfish. The result is the same: Yoon Seungho and Melchior felt betrayed and abandoned by their family. On the other hand, we have no idea about Seungho’s mother. Was she alive back then? Did she become a victim of the purge because her parents could have been involved? The mother could have played a role in Seungho’s suffering as well. Either she betrayed him like Melchior’s mother or she became herself a victim of her husband’s action.

Then we come to the ending. Melchior chose life at the end, although he was suffering so much due to his guilty conscience, the loss of two friends, the abandonment and the disowning by his own family. Yoon Seungho must have felt the same way, even worse, since I suppose that he was himself raped. Besides, I have the feeling that Yoon Seungho could have been responsible for the death of the servants (forced to erase every trace of a possible participation in a conspiracy). We only hear that the servants were replaced. Either they moved with the elder master or they were “removed”. But there is a huge difference: Yoon Seungho chose to get revenge on his father by keeping his reputation as a famous sodomite so that the father would be constantly reminded of his own sins and cowardice. Furthermore, Yoon Seungho was barely alive all these years because of his passivity. He was just surviving hence he constantly looked at his courtyard while smoking at the window. Yet there is the appearance of the masked man in the manhwa as well: the drawings created by Baek Na-Kyum. Through the erotic books, Seungho came back to life as he was able to get aroused. Yoon Seungho had no idea who was the creator of these beautiful paintings, however they became the reason for discovering joy in his life. That’s why we can see the huge smile on the noble, when he meets the low-born for the first time. So the meeting of the hooded man happened before the story in the Painter Of The Night starts. And now, you can perceive the contrast: the chronology is totally different. Since the theater play ends with the meeting of the hooded man, we have to imagine that the manhwa could be seen as a continuation of “Spring Awakening”. This is what Melchior is going to experience later: rediscover the pleasure in sex, discover the existence of love and finally have a companion by his side. The hooded man takes his mask away and gets an identity: Baek Na-Kyum. The latter is the reason why Yoon Seungho smiles again, why he can feel emotions again, while he was living more or less like a robot in the past.

The master actually experiences two kind of “Spring Awakening”: the first one with Jihwa and the second one with Baek Na-Kyum in the bedchamber of the low-born. Sure, his “revenge” on the father kept him alive all this time, while Melchior is far more desperate and feels more guilty than the lord at the cemetery. However, you could see that both works have a lot in common, not only because of the topics but also the resemblance of the characters. And the theater play was written 200 years ago which shows how actual it is. The hypocrisy, the pressure on students to perform well, the discovery of sexuality among teenagers and its repercussion, the taboo linked to homosexuality will never disappear.

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Protected: Painter Of The Night: Yoon Seungho a psychopath? (second version)

June 26, 2020June 21, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Painter Of The Night: “Spring Awakening” part 2

June 25, 2020August 23, 2021 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 2 Comments

This is where you can read the manhwa. https://www.lezhinus.com/en/comic/painter But be aware that this manhwa is a mature Yaoi, which means, it is about homosexuality with explicit scenes. If you want to read more essays, here is the link to the table of contents: https://bebebisous33analyses.wordpress.com/2020/07/04/table-of-contents-painter-of-the-night/

In the second part, I’ll compare the mentality and the protagonists from the manhwa with these from the German theater play “Spring awakening” written by Frank Wedekind. I know that many are not familiar with Wedekind’s work but it is definitely interesting to observe the similarities between both works.

I am well aware that Byeonduck has not been inspired by this theater play, however through this comparison I would like to point out that her manhwa has truly the potential to become a classic in the long run due to the topics she covers: acceptance of homosexuality, the conservative moral values oppressing people’s identity and tabooing sex leading to problems, the process of self-discovery, the importance of critical thinking and the unconscious, the inequity in a hierarchical society, coercive persuasion as a method to oppress people, the traumas caused by suppressing too much the unconscious, the decadence of the nobility in the 18th Century, the meaning of paintings, the importance of education for children etc. Therefore people shouldn’t read Painter Of The Night just as a hot and gory story but as a story with many meanings, just like “Justine: the Misfortunes of Virtue” from Sades that is often reduced to sex.

In order to grasp better why this author wrote such a provocative theater play, we have to understand the historical context. This story was written during the German Empire (1871-1918) which is described as an authoritarian state (Obrigkeitsstaat). In this historical era, German society was influenced by strict values, like f. ex. blind obedience, willingness to make sacrifices, ruthlessness, nationalism, high esteem for the army but no critical thinking. That’s why critical ability was not trained rather it was the opposite. Critic was oppressed. At the same time, more and more schools were founded which sounds like a good thing. However, the true reason for increasing literacy was to turn boys into obedient soldiers in reality. [Now, you can understand why Hitler had it much easier later… these values existed before he came to power] This explains why physical punishment and the ruling by fear were common methods during this historical period. Children had to listen to their parents, their teachers and the authorities without question.

Die gar traurige Geschichte mit dem Feuerzeug von Heinrich Hoffmann — This is a story from the Struwwelpeter written by Heinrich Hoffman. As you can see, the girl plays with the matches. Her disobedience leads to her death. She gets burnt. The lesson is that if you should listen to your parents’ words because if not, you can die. These lessons are quite gruesome but reflect the mentality of that period. Fear is used as a tool to get submissive students.

Now, the readers can sense the similarities between both stories. Both societies in “Spring awakening” and “Painter Of The Night” are very conservative. Filial piety and respect towards higher classes are requested and highly esteemed, besides there is a strict and conservative social hierarchy and no one has to question the social norms. The commoners are not allowed to complain, they have to accept the inequity. In the German Empire, nobility still existed in that period despite the constitution. There is no real supervision about the teacher’s methods and skills, they can do whatever they want as long as they are supporting the ruler and his politics. The king and nobility’s authority are not even criticized. This explains why in the German Empire teenagers have no freedom and are monitored all the time. Sex and sex education are taboos, yet the teenagers have to deal with the awakening of their sexual desires coming along with the puberty.

After describing the context, we can now start to introduce the story “Spring Awakening”. We have a 14 years old girl, Wendla Bergmann, who gets pregnant by coerced sex. Her tragedy is that she is not even aware of the pregnancy. Because her pregnancy could be seen as a stain for her family, it is disguised as a disease by the doctor, while the young woman is forced to get an abortion causing her death. Melchior Gabor, also a 14 years old teenager from the bourgeoisie, is the one responsible for her situation. Since he suddenly felt attracted by her, he slept with her, well aware that there is no deep love between them. He is just following his natural instincts. You have to imagine that Wendla Bergman couldn’t even call it a rape because she had no idea what was happening to her. Now, you are wondering how all this could happen.

Since Wendla has been taught to listen to her mother’s words, she believes everything what the mother says. The poor girl listens to her mother so well that at the end, it becomes her downfall. The mother refused to give her a lesson about sex education in many occasions. First, the teenager has a sister named Ina who has just given birth but during Ina’s pregnancy, Wendla was not allowed to meet Ina. Her mother announces her the birth of Ina’s son which surprises Wendla. Wendla’s parent explains the origin of the birth with the legend about the stork delivering the baby. However, she is very curios which explains why she is never really satisfied with her mother’s answers and keeps asking. Moreover, she even begs Melchior to beat her revealing her sado-masochist disposition.

Wendla is not so convinced by Mrs. Bergmann’s lies but the mother is determined not to tell her the truth. The innocent girl doesn’t give up until the mother confesses that children are born out of love after a marriage. So in the girl’s mind, love and marriage become the conditions for a pregnancy. Imagine her astonishment, when her mother reproaches her to endanger their family’s reputation at the end because she is now pregnant. In that moment, the daughter replies that this can’t be possible because she only loves her mother and she is not married. She is not stupid, just really naive. Now, you are wondering where the similarities between Wendla and the characters from Painter Of The Night are.

This is quite simple: Baek Na-Kyum has a lot in common with Wendla. Both embodies innocence and purity. Both become victims of deceptions and as a result both get raped due to the manipulation of a relative. Baek Na-Kyum would have never refused Yoon Seungho so strongly, if he had not been brainwashed by Jung In-Hun in the first place. The “rape” is the consequence of the false belief. The painter is attracted by the noble right from the start but he has to fight against his natural sexual desires since he has been taught that sex is dirty and vulgar. Sure, here it is about homosexuality, yet I am quite sure that Jung In-Hun is no advocate for sex education in general, especially when I suspect that he is a pedophile. Sex is a taboo based on etiquette and social manners in that historical period. Therefore painting erotic pictures about sodomy is like a crime in Jung In-Hun’s eyes. As you know, he had another reason to condemn these pictures. He never wanted the painter to become successful. Wendla and Baek Na-Kyum put so much trust in their “parent” that they fail to notice the deepness of their lies. Then we have the same expectations. Both parents don’t accept disobedience, neither critic nor question.

Wendla senses that she is not suffering from hypochromic anemia but she is not aware of her real condition. She still relies on her mother, just like Baek Na-Kyum who has already sensed that something was wrong and decided to lie in the chapter 38. Yet they still have a certain faith in their relative.

Both characters are abandoned and betrayed by their loved and admired relative. The mother asks for an abortion without telling her daughter. She hides it behind her tears and sweet words. Here, the beholder can witness a similar attitude of the teacher. Behind his sweet talk and smile, he has another intention. The low-born has to spy for him. He is here actually telling him to sell himself indirectly, yet he acts as if he knows nothing about Seungho’s sexual orientation and that Baek Na-Kyum could become his target. His ignorance protects him for feeling guilty and responsible. The mother never told her daughter who Mrs Schmidt was and what she was about to do. She even adds at the end that Mrs. Schmidt is just someone. That way, she can’t be blamed for her daughter’s death and the latter can never reproach her responsibility. In-Hun’s alleged ignorance leads to the rape, just like Mrs. Bergmann ignored deliberately the sex education leading to the rape.

When Wendla senses her death coming, the mother till the end lies to her daughter which shows Mrs. Bergmann’s real coldness. She is actually the one responsible for her future death because she is the one who asks for the illegal abortion out of shame. Moreover, even before the truth about her pregnancy is unveiled, the mother keeps saying that Wendla is just suffering from hypochromic anemia. However, unlike Baek Na-Kyum, Wendla doesn’t resent her mother so much, once she discovers the truth. She just complains: “Why didn’t you tell me everything before?”. Besides, she is left in the dark about her own fate: Mrs Schmidt coming for the abortion.

For Baek Na-Kyum, it is totally different because at the end, he accepts the abandonment and realizes the real betrayal. On the other hand he is still accepting the harsh words coming from his learned sir:

“You were born to be a prostitute”

That’s why he tries to call himself a prostitute in front of the noble but fails (chapter 42).

He has not learnt yet to criticize the teacher’s words because the latter is a learned sir, whereas he has no education. Furthermore the blind obedience in “Spring awakening” is also visible in Painter Of The night, since it is expected by the low noble. Through the rethorical question, Baek Na-Kyum is manipulated into dropping the paintings. The artist has to follow his “adoptive father”‘s values and restrictions. Just like in the German Empire, harsh punishments are a common method in order to create submissive pawns. By inducing fear and giving punishments, Baek Na-Kyum is little by little coerced to give up his own identity and personality. He has to follow the rules and social norms which makes him a perfect tool for deception and lies. He ends up as a drunk because he needs to fill that emptiness. Indirectly, the author is here showing issues concerning blind obedience and filial piety, just like Wedekind. The portray of adults is quite negative: they are superficial, manipulative and hypocrite, unwilling to admit their own failure or guilt.

Another parallel is the importance of the clothing. In the first scene, Wendla’s mother wants her to change her night gown as she has become more feminine and more seductive. She needs to dress more like a woman but the young girl refuses. Then we have Jung In-Hun who wonders why Baek Na-Kyum doesn’t have his headband. Just a simple question and yet it is quite important. Here, Jung In-Hun is reminding him to wear the headband as it is a sign for his social status.

So he is pointing out that he should wear clothes according to his social status. Notice, this servant is also wearing a headband. The parents are here making sure that they are dressed according to their social status and age. There is no freedom in both cases.

But unlike Wendla, the artist has a different fate. First, he doesn’t die, although we could say that the rejection from Jung In-Hun could be perceived as a death in the figurative sense. Jung In-Hun thought that the low-born had no value any longer hence he didn’t need to keep pretense. The second difference is that he has the great chance to meet someone who is about to become his “mentor”: Yoon Seungho. The latter has a different way to teach the painter. He makes the young man question the teacher’s intentions through a question. He wants him to become more critical, to develop critical abilities. Yoon Seungho is a supporter of the education for commoners, as the chapter 6 underlined it with the sarcastic remarks from the powerful noble. I have the impression that the poetry could become the link that brings Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum closer. As you already know, I have no doubt that the noble returned a different poem. As a result, I am expecting that Yoon Seungho becomes the low-born’s teacher. He truly becomes his “learned sir”.

The other difference is that unlike Wendla, Baek Na-Kyum has an idea about sex and sexuality because he was raised at the brothel, whereas Wendla belongs to the bourgeoisie, a higher class from the society and she is a woman. Besides, we have another contrast: Baek Na-Kyum blamed Yoon Seungho for the rape and hated him,

whereas Wendla shows no resent towards the young man due to her ignorance.

Yet their innocence and their fate as victims are the common denominators. They are manipulated by selfish, two-faced and narrow-minded parents who reject their own responsibility. Their methods of education might differ, Wendla was never beaten unlike some of her friends and Baek Na-Kyum, yet the deception was used by both relatives. For her own sake, she preferred to risk her daughter’s life than have her family’s reputation ruined. However, Jung In-Hun is worse than Mrs. Bergmann, since he doesn’t even love the young man and shows no conscience at all. He can’t even cry, he can only fake smiles.

As you can sense, I only compared two characters from the theater play and could outline many parallels. But this is not the end as I haven’t even examined the main character Melchior Gabor yet. This will be the topic for another analysis.

Feel free to comment. If you liked it, then retweet it or push the button like. Thanks a lot. I would like to say that so far, Byeonduck has liked 6 analyses and retweeted 12 so far which represents a great reward for me.

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Sex or love? ❤️

June 23, 2020June 12, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Protected: Painter Of The Night: “Spring awakening” (part 1) – second version

June 22, 2020July 10, 2021 ~ Bébébisous33

Protected: Painter Of The Night: Who is this Baek Na-Kyum? – part 1 (second version)

June 21, 2020August 26, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Painter Of The Night: The window 🪟, the door 🚪, the air and their signification (third version)

June 20, 2020August 3, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 2 Comments

It would be great if you could make some donations/sponsoring: Ko-fi.com/bebebisous33 That way, you can support me with “coffee” so that I have the energy to keep examining manhwas. Besides, I need to cover up the expenses for this blog

If you have already read my former analyses, you know that our protagonist Yoon Seungho is associated to the window, because he spends so much time in a room looking at his courtyard through the window. (chapter 35). But what does the window symbolize?

1. The meaning of the window

In order to answer this question, let us take a look at the definition of the window:

It’s an opening in the wall or roof of a building or vehicle, fitted with glass in a frame to admit light or air and allow people to see out.

Since our story takes place in Joseon, there is no glass, only thin paper or an open frame, yet it doesn’t change the definition. It’s an opening… that admits air and light and allows people to see out. Striking is that the window is connected to fresh air and sun therefore we can say that through the view, people can definitely broaden their horizon as they are able to witness what it happening outside.

However, let us not forget that their view is limited. Yoon Seungho can only see what is happening in the courtyard, but not in the servants’ room or in the painter’s room. Therefore we come to the next conclusion, the window can represent a barrier, a hindrance. That’s the reason why f. ex. writer Emily Bronte used the window in that aspect in her novel Wuthering Heights.

The window can even symbolize the boundary between the inner world of a character (room) and the outside. Therefore the room could be seen as the personification of the protagonist embodying his inner thoughts and feelings trapped in his darkness. Hence he is seeking light and air through the window. Consequently, I interpret that Yoon Seungho sitting or standing in front of the window like the following. The room seems to be a prison, it is suffocating for Yoon Seungho, hence he looks out of the window in order to be able to breathe and survive. He is caught in his darkness, yet the window allows him to escape from his dungeon, from his past. His passivity reflects his resignation, he is already thinking that nothing exciting in his life will ever happen, until he met the painter. That’s why he said in the chapter 18:

From the moment he met the low-born, he started acting differently. First he kept touching the painter and then he even started leaving the room behind and came to the door. It is interesting that in chapter 7, Yoon Seungho even followed the younger painter, after the latter had heard about the arrival of his admired teacher. Notice how the lord stands in the courtyard and looks at the welcome of the low noble.

This picture reflects the social hierarchy. Yoon Seungho stands at the top, and the teacher is closer to him. However, if you pay attention to Jung In-Hun’s gesture, he is turning his body in order to face the powerful noble. It was as if he was pushing away the young artist. Now, you realize that such a single picture can contain so much symbolism. But now let’s return to our main topic, the meaning of the room and the window.

So the room with the window represented the situation of the powerful lord at the beginning (chapter 5) and it is still there at the end of season 1. (chapter 44). It looks like there wasn’t much progression, yet this time, the painter walks towards his mansion and remains by his side. This is important, because I realized that with the vanishing of the learned sir, Yoon Seungho chose to remain in the lord‘s bedchamber. What caught my attention is that the lord always went to the courtyard because of the admired sir. We have two chapters for this interpretation: chapter 7 and chapter 35 . What caught my attention is that when the lord visited the scholar for the first time, both were sitting in front of a door which looked like a window at the same time. (Chapter 7) This is not random at all, as from my perspective, it introduces the role played by Jung In-Hun in the main lead‘s life. He will be the one forcing the lord to move away from the window so that he can leave the bedchamber. Thus we had this scene: Yoon Seungho is observing the learned sir and his student from far away. (Chapter 19) This explicates too why the noble remained so passive in season 2 in the end. Baek Na-Kyum was the lord‘s love interest, hence his „place“ is the bedchamber. So how can the lord move away from the window and as such from the bedroom? Jung In-Hun is the trigger. And note that only in season 2, we discovered how the learned sir used walks through the countryside to console the painter. (Chapter 70) Finally, the main lead organized a hunt for the first time because of his honored guest. (Chapter 22) And if you recall the lord‘s behavior, you will notice that he left the city for the first time, when he wanted to meet the scholar. (Chapter 6) He encountered him in the woods. Under this new light, it reinforces my conviction that the learned sir‘s death will be the lord‘s motivation to become proactive and leave his past behind. Why? It is because of the painter‘s words. (Chapter 94) The painter still respects the scholar, but he already loves Yoon Seungho. He is not disloyal towards his former teacher despite falling in love with the protagonist. With the last incident, Yoon Seungho got aware how much the painter means to him, but at the same time, he realized the importance of the learned sir in Baek Na-Kyum‘s life. He needs to answer his question: (Chapter 102) And this question is strongly connected to the scholar, for the main lead was first sent to Jung In-Hun‘s home. ( 100) Don‘t forget that the main lead saw the room covered in blood, though the latter had already dried. To conclude, the main lead was encouraged to walk thanks to the scholar, and as such to leave his window! (Chapter 100)

Therefore it is not surprising why Yoon Seungho remained in front of the window at the end of season 1. He no longer needed to seek him out and bid him farewell. (Chapter 44) It was the painter’s role. This signified that he was still trapped by his past and trauma, something that he hadn’t revealed to anyone. Since Yoon Seungho is still inside the room smoking in front of the window, it reveals that the lord had not really let go of his past at all, he had not expressed himself in front of Baek Na-Kyum yet. If he reveals his inner feelings and thoughts, this means he will disclose his secret and unveil his vulnerability. This explains why there was no confession from the noble’s side for instance [there were other reasons why he hadn’t confessed anything too], why he was still not sharing his inner thoughts and emotions to his partner.

First, he has never opened up to anyone before. Trust is needed and the artist needs to win that trust, because so far, Baek Na-Kyum had always pushed the noble away. There was still a gap between Baek Na-Kyum and the lord, hence the former didn‘t go to his room, but to his own study. My prediction was that Baek Na-Kyum had to open up first so that the lord could learn from him. And it became a reality. The reason was that the seme was very inexperienced, for no one had ever confided to him. Moreover, he had long internalized that weaknesses must be hidden. Unconsciously, he had already claimed Baek Na-Kyum as his bride, nonetheless this indicated that there was still this distance, this invisible wall between them. We have to understand that Yoon Seungho had never learnt how to share pain and express emotions verbally to others. He had to hide his secret, his past and trauma. (Chapter 37)

The shaking hand with the fist embodies his repressed inner feelings and thoughts. He had learned to keep everything to himself. Now, you are probably thinking that all this is not entirely new because I already mentioned his passivity. And now, you can grasp the origins of Yoon Seungho‘s silence and inactivity. This stroll through the mountain corresponds to his true revival. (Chapter 102) This signifies that Yoon Seungho will act differently in season 4: he will be proactive. Like I mentioned in the essay „Scandal(s) in Jemulpo“, he will become the scholar’s disciple and follow his footsteps: ruthless, but also caring and gentle. The only difference is that his affection for the painter is genuine.

2. Baek Na-Kyum‘s symbol: the door

However, I needed to describe this again in order to contrast Yoon Seungho’s position with the painter’s situation. What caught my attention is that Baek Na-Kyum is connected to the door, unlike the main lead. We have so many scenes where the low-born is seen close to a door or stands on the doorstep. This is what I could gather so far (I still might have missed some):

(chapter 10),

(chapter 12)

Here, in the chapter 19 Jung In-Hun discovers the truth about the painting and the deal

(chapter 20)

(chapter 29)

Now, you realize the importance of the door. But what does it mean? Why is Baek Na-Kyum related to the door? First, the window and the door have two common denominators: the room and the limited view to the outside world. However, since a door connects the outside with the inside, it allows to move. The person can leave the room behind, the painter has more possibilities, while with the window the person inside must feel more trapped.

Since I already pointed out that the room embodies the lord’s inner world, we have to imagine that for Baek Na-Kyum it is the same. However, the room represents something else: his unconscious, his hidden true personality and desires and not his past and trauma, like Yoon Seungho. That’s the reason why the room is not a prison like in Yoon Seungho’s case but rather a secret. The painter is hiding his secret behind the door. And now, you can understand the true signification of the door for the artist. The door embodies the doorstep where Baek Na-Kyum has to admit his homosexuality. Now, if we look back at the different situations where the door was seen. Byeondock even drew many pictures of the door in the same chapter underlining the significance and the true meaning of the door.

Now, I’ll interpret different scenes with the door which caught my eye. Little by little I am adding more and more images with the door. And this is what I found so far. I examined the following scenes: 8, 9, 10, 16, 20, 29, 35, 41 and 44.

When we look at the chapter 8, we have this situation. The young man is about to enter the lord’s chamber standing in front of the door. He has been asked by the lord to go there so that he can paint another erotic picture.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-281.png — Chapter 8

Here, the artist is opening the door. It was as if he was entering a forbidden world, where sex and homosexuality are indulged, where people enjoy their sexuality to the fullest. By entering this room, Baek Na-Kyum is reminded of his own repressed and natural desires. Then in chapter 9,

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-294.png — chapter 9: He has just ejaculated

he leaves the lord’s chamber in a hurry after witnessing a sex session. Right behind the door, he can’t help himself and starts masturbating. Hidden behind the door, he feels his sexual urge growing and starts right away with his masturbation. Since he is touching himself so close to the door separating his room from Yoon Seungho’s room, it outlines that he has trouble to control his repressed sexual desires. His unconscious is urging him to become sexually active again. On the other hand, he ensures that the lord doesn’t see his erection demonstrating that he is still denying his own sexual orientation and attraction. On the other hand, the lord heard him which led him to the following conclusions: Baek Na-Kyum is somehow attracted to him and he has some experience with men as he shows no hesitation to masturbate very quickly. So the door served as a protection, he wanted to keep his sexual desires hidden from the noble. Notice how horrible he feels after his ejaculation. He is burying his face as if he was avoiding reality and his own sexual desires. He still wants to deny these urges.

Then chapter 10, the pavilion could be perceived as the unconscious hidden behind the painter’s body. (Chapter 10) Since the pavilion is open aired, it looks like there is nothing there… it was as if the true sexual orientation of the low-born didn’t exist but since there is a roof with beams, we can conclude that Jung In-Hun’s attempt to eradicate his true sexuality has in reality failed. There are rest of it. In other words, the pavilion mirrors Baek Na-Kyum’s denial and brainwashing through Jung In-Hun. This also explicates why Jung In-Hun used here emotional and cognitive techniques as a warning here. He was coercing him to drop the painting.

Then in chapter 16,

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-283.png

Yoon Seungho catches the low-born, because he wants him to experience sex. He has noticed the reluctance hence he just masturbates the young man. Striking is that the door is opened at some point by a servant. This opening of the door by someone else embodies the fear of being discovered. Baek Na-Kyum is determined to never reveal his repressed sexual desires. Consequently he wants the door to stay closed. So if he is seen then, he fears that his sexual orientation will be discovered, yet he wants it to remain a secret. Now, you can understand the meaning of the door in chapter 37. It is still the same. Despite getting a blowjob, he still wants to hide his homosexuality to the outside. Hence he still gets scared and would like the noble to stop from exciting him. So for the first time, he is experiencing sex with someone.

Here, the door is wide open and this coincides with the commoner’s confession. The young man was drunk, yet he was hiding behind the door until it got opened by the lord. So Baek Na-Kyum’s unconscious wanted to reveal his repressed sexual desires (homosexuality) and his love to the outside world.

In chapter 29, the low noble is bringing him back to the mansion. Striking is that the door is completely open too. This picture illustrates the role played by Jung In-Hun in the painter’s homosexuality. He is the one who “forces” to become an official sodomite, therefore he can no longer hide his sexual preference behind a closed door. I believe that this is related to this incident. Note the opened door. The learned sir caught him by surprise. That’s how the learned sir was forced to repress and hide his homosexuality. This is no coincidence that in season 1, the scholar had the opposite attitude. By feigning ignorance, he actually encouraged the artist to become a sodomite. After their return to the mansion, the teacher showed leniency. He accepted that his student would paint erotic paintings, but he was well aware of their sexual encounter. (Chapter 30) The moment he arrives back and the lord brings him back to his chamber, the nature of their relationship is no mystery any longer, though painting is used as a justification. (Chapter 29) Striking is the thickness of the wall. This symbolizes a long way for Baek Na-Kyum to admit his sexual orientation. Just because people know, this doesn’t mean that he is acknowledging his homosexuality immediately.

In chapter 34/35, there are three different scenes where the door plays a huge part. I have to say that the last scene was the one that caught my attention in the first place and that’s how I was able to connect the door to Baek Na-Kyum.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-285.png

The first drawing shows the lord opening the door for Baek Na-Kyum. This signifies that the noble has somehow given up on forcing the painter to admit his homosexuality and his attraction to the lord. That’s the reason why Yoon Seungho spent the entire night thinking over how to convince the low-born to come to his side and become his partner.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-287.png

However, the sex marathon has not left the young man unaffected. He hides behind the closed door, while his body is shaking and his heart is beating loudly. He eve feels butterflies. For the first time, we see Baek Na-Kyum confronting himself with his repressed feelings… for the first time there is a connection between his thinking and his unconscious. He is somehow admitting that the lord’s presence has left an impact on him. However, with his body he is making sure that no one will ever find out this secret. He is still denying his homosexuality to the outside world. He wants to keep it a secret, yet he is no longer denying the existence of these feelings.

Then in the same chapter, we see Jung In-Hun abandoning the low-born and he even closes the door in front of him.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-288.png — This is the picture that made me connect the painter to the door

This single action has so many significations. First, it visualizes the rejection of the teacher. He cuts ties with him. It also shows that Jung In-Hun is well aware of what happened 10 days before. It reveals his selfishness as he shows no concern. In fact, it was as if the low noble was pushing him back. It was as if Baek Na-Kyum was pressured to become a homosexual even without admitting it. The teacher is forcing him to accept his situation but at the same time, he is denying the responsibility. Imagine the hypocrisy of the lord’s action. In reality, he is the one who pushes the painter to sleep with the lord, since he needs a spy. But by closing the door, he ensures that Baek Na-Kyum doesn’t need to admit his own homosexuality. This scene symbolizes the prostitution Jung In-Hun referred later. The teacher wants to use the artist’s sexual orientation for his own needs and simultaneously he doesn’t need to require this from the painter. As a conclusion, Jung In-Hun is now pushing the low-born to become a homosexual without revealing it to the outside world. At the same time, he acts as if he has no idea what is happening to the commoner. That way, Baek Na-Kyum can never reproach him to have used him as a prostitute or to be a hypocrite.

Then in chapter 41, we see a certain progression. The door has been opened by Yoon Seungho but Baek Na-Kyum doesn’t care any longer. Since he is begging the lord to be held, he is finally admitting his true desires. He likes being embraced by a man. This marks a pivotal moment in Baek Na-Kyum’s life. And this explains why the door is wide opened at the end.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-286.png

Baek Na-Kyum is no longer hiding his true sexual orientation. He is facing the world without being embarrassed. He waited for Jung In-Hun, hoping that the young man would still accept him, but he experienced rejection. He was literally left behind. However, his acceptance of his own sexual orientation doesn’t necessarily mean that he loves Yoon Seungho. In the beginning of season 2, he viewed himself as a prostitute. (Chapter 45) He just accepted him as his sexual partner, hence he went to his room and not to the lord’s side in chapter 44. If we compare their respective situation. Yoon Seungho hadn’t progressed much compared to the painter at the end of season 1, because he needed to express his emotions and reveal his secrets and vulnerabilities to Baek Na-Kyum. It took him a long time to open up, as he had been coerced to view himself as a bird of misfortune. He didn’t dare to voice any wish out of fear that these wishes would get ruined. (Chapter 96) In his mind, he had no right to voice any desire, as they would be perceived as GREED! (Chapter 96)

But like I had written above, the low-born was in a better position right from the start. He had more freedom, while for Yoon Seungho the room is indeed a prison. Under this new approach, it becomes comprehensible how the main lead could leave the window and as such the darkness of his nightmare. Because of the painter, Yoon Seungho met Jung In-Hun, and the latter made him feel superior, but also jealous. That’s how his attention got diverted from the window making him discover the existence of the door! We could say that the painter as the butterfly led the poor protagonist to the door, and thanks to his mind, Yoon Seungho could release Baek Na-Kyum from his cage, as his mind was also trapped by social norms. And this sexual emancipation could only take place in the bedchamber. This explicates why the artist’s liberation was the first step for the lord’s liberation. But by opening the door for the painter, Yoon Seungho could free himself. Therefore it is not surprising that the painter‘s final confession took place in front of a closed door, (chapter 96) and Heena could hear his words. Hence at the end, the door got broken: (chapter 96) This represented the final emancipation of the artist. He no longer cared, if he was seen. He was so moved that he didn‘t pay to his surroundings. (Chapter 96), while it was not the case for the noble. The latter knew about the artist‘s shyness. This truly shows that Heena was responsible for the sexual oppression of her brother. The painter was no longer hiding his affection for the main lead, when he decided to wait for his master‘s return in the bedchamber. (Chapter 98) Observe that the artist was going there on his own will, and he was sharing his bed with his husband.

3. Heena and the opened door

How did the scholar discover that Baek Na-Kyum was painting erotic paintings of sodomy? (Chapter 1) This memory was from the learned sir. Why was he approaching the painter during the day? Secondly, note that he only scolded the artist in his house! (Chapter 34) So he had discovered a secret, he imagined that the painter had assisted to an immoral love session. (chapter 6) In my opinion, the kisaeng was responsible for this incident. We have a clue for this interpretation: (Chapter 94) The noona is the one standing in front of the opened door with her donsaeng. Here, the artist was getting embarrassed and humiliated. That‘s how little by little, the artist associated the closed door to shame and safety. This is not surprising that the kisaeng is also standing behind the closed door, when she hears her brother making love to the main lead. (Chapter 96) In addition, she is constantly seen in connection with an opened door, but this opened door is linked to anxieties, pain, shame and guilt: (chapter 68) (chapter 66) (chapter 88) I have the impression that she was acting out of jealousy, and she had intended to tarnish her brother‘s reputation.

And this leads to my final words. In my first version, I had expressed the following thoughts:

„Does it mean that the lord needs to leave the mansion behind in order to liberate himself from his suffering? If so, then we have two possibilities. Either he gives up his title and everything for the painter or he decides to move to the capital and helps the artist to develop his career and even starts meddling in politics.“

And look at the progression of the story. Yoon Seungho did leave the mansion behind and went to the mountain with the painter in his arms. (Chapter 102) This symbolized the final emancipation of Yoon Seungho. He could finally move on from his past, and as such leave the darkness of his mental prison. He no longer needs a window to view life. This scene announced that he was starting living again. Thus I am expecting to see Yoon Seungho becoming more proactive and funny in season 4. He will show his intelligence and strength in order to defeat his enemies because so far, he never revealed his qualities to others, only to the scholar. His past had left him somehow paralyzed, hence he has laid a low profile. In his past, he believed that his prison was his protection, for he could observe and remain quite wealthy and powerful. For me, Baek Na-Kyum is in reality his strength, the reason why he will be able to leave his cage and shows his true colors and skills.

4. The true form of Jung In-Hun

But if the window symbolizes Yoon Seungho and Baek Na-Kyum the door, what is representing the teacher? In my opinion the open air. He is mostly seen outside.

(chapter 7) (chapter 10)(chapter 19) (chapter 29) (Chapter 22) (chapter 35) He often strolls through the courtyard. Therefore I would say that the air embodies him so perfectly. He is seen with his nose in the air

which shows his arrogance. Simultaneously, he gives himself airs. How can he be touched by this low-born? The picture shows both aspects. Then in the chapter 6, he is just hot air (this expression means empty talk in order to impress) , when he says that he was the one who taught how to read to the painter. Here, he tries to present himself as a good teacher to Yoon Seungho. Furthermore, he is overestimating his own skills and he is definitely daydreaming which is connected to the expression “castles in the air”. His aspirations are boundless, he is aiming at the highest position without being competent or even trying to improve himself. He also attempts to air dirty laundry, when he is hunting with Yoon Seungho. He wants to force the lord to admit his lie so that he can criticize him. But here he fails. As you can observe, many expressions with air reflect his personality. However, there is one scene that contrasts to this observation, that’s when he is in his library in the chapter 40. We actually see him at the library in two occasions:

chapter 7 and 40. However only the scene in the chapter 40 is memorable. Therefore I would say that he is linked to two spaces: open air and closed room like the library. It seems strange that Jung In-Hun is linked to a world with no boundary and the opposite, a closed room. Actually, it is quite simple. The outside signifies that he is actually empty and superficial behind his smile. He is so fake hence he has no real personality. Besides, since there is no limit, then it can also signify that he has no conscience as he knows no boundary. Furthermore, it also illustrates that he has no past and no trauma too. Finally, it also indicates that he will never change, there will be no transformation and as such no progression. Air remains air. Yet he only shows his true thoughts in a closed door in the chapter 40. His words there are suffocating the poor boy, that’s the reason why Baek Na-Kyum is left speechless. (Chapter 40) He can’t breathe properly. Since there is no view and no door to the outside visible in the drawing, we have to imagine this reflects his narrow-mindedness. He is surrounded by books (see the pictures from the chapter 7) therefore he lacks real experience and knowledge. He is literally buried behind his books, therefore his knowledge is superficial. (Chapter 27) Even in his bedroom there are books so his own bedchamber gives the readers a suffocating feeling. Since there is no window visible in his room and the library, there is no fresh air in the closed room which explains why it is asphyxiating. Usually, we say in a closed room that it smells musty. He only knows the world through his books and the moral standards. He is not even opened to the outside, only his words and thoughts count. Everything else has no value hence there is no life next to him. People living by his side will end up suffocated as he doesn’t allow them to breathe. He is stubborn and he will never change, a fake, empty and narrow-minded man with no conscience. Because of this connection, I realized that Jung In-Hun had no future in Hanyang. He would end up buried, and this became a reality. Because the moment he left for the capital, he ended up dead. And now, if you think carefully, you will recognize that the learned sir is associated to nature! Thus he was seen in the woods (chapter 6, 22) or in the countryside admiring the moon. (Chapter 70) Air means also breathing! Hence he represents the fresh air entering Yoon Seungho‘s bedroom, hence we had such a scene: (chapter 35) The lord witnessed the intimate interaction between the learned sir and the artist, thus he was incited to leave the bedroom. Strangely, we could say that he was the initiator for the lord‘s liberation. No wonder, why Kim wished to get rid of the learned sir in the end, and just viewed the artist as less annoying and evil!

So the moment he left the domain, the admired sir was confronted by reality. His stay in the mansion had made him dream (Chapter 18) so that he ended up letting his guard down. He was not so competent and intelligent like Yoon Seungho, he relied more on the stupidity on others. He could deceive commoners, but not spies. In my first version, I had envisioned that the learned sir had many tricks up his sleeves so he would survive, but I had not realized that he had met a fake servant (chapter 37) definitely a noble who could see through him. For me, it was the pedophile himself. I had predicted that he would disappear into thin air, and it became a reality, especially if my theory about his assassination is correct. We could see the transformation of the scholar into a ghost, (chapter 50) who would come to haunt the couple because of his resent. (Chapter 98) As the air, he became a spirit! And note that the lord was encouraged to stroll too!

Painter Of The Night: “Master and Man” (second version)

June 19, 2020July 4, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 2 Comments

Yes, I chose this title because of the Russian short novel written by Leo Tolstoy. In this story, the rich land owner Vasili Andreyevich Brekhunov died by saving the servant’s life Nikita, because he realized that the low-born’s life was as worthy as any other man. Furthermore, he also got aware of his own selfishness, for he was responsible for their predicament. They were caught in a snow storm and the noble initially abandoned the peasant. However, at the end, the lord changed his mind and revealed another side from himself. This outlines that status is very superficial and the readers witness the master’s conversion leading a huge change in his behavior and thoughts towards commoners and low-born.

In the following analysis, we will examine the lord- low-born relationship between the nobles Yoon Seungho and Jung In-Hun and the commoner Baek Na-Kyum, when the latter becomes sick. All this was triggered because one of my followers asked me this: Why didn’t Seungho return home for days? From my point of view, the conversation between the nobles and Yoon Seungho, triggered by Min (chapter 33), forced the lord to realize that the artist was indeed a precious treasure, and he was not willing to share him. (chapter 33) At the same time, due to Black Heart’s words, the noble was reminded of the painter’s health conditions. Although the lord was talking about the artist, as though the latter was just an object, the reminder forced him to recall that Baek Na-Kyum was a human who could die. That’s why he returned in the end. His abandonment reflected his cowardice, he didn’t desire to be confronted with the consequences of his bad behavior. Consequently, just like in the Russian novel, the main lead was reminded that the low-born was just a human. As you can see, both characters had a similar disposition and also a change of heart.

Striking is that the butler tried to cover up his master’s cowardice and abandonment. He diverted Baek Na-Kyum’s attention by showing his concern for his master.

But before this, the servant Kim mentioned that the lord’s room was the best, as it was the warmest. (chapter 34) Kim’s remark was in fact insinuating that the lord had been very generous and caring for him. He gave the impression to the low-born that the noble was treating him like a noble, as the latter had sacrificed his bed for his recovery. However, this was not true, as the lord had brought the artist to the study before the doctor’s arrival. (chapter 33) At the same time, the butler was not entirely lying either. The lord had indeed shown generosity and care, since he had called for the physician. Yet, once he had heard about the doctor’s precription, the aristocrat had ran away from his responsibilities (chapter 33) and left everything in Kim’s hands. Remember my statement: Kim is always telling half-truths. Kim was in reality the one who brought him to the noble’s bed. (chapter 33) He needed to portray his master in a much more positive light in order to obtain the painter’s cooperation. The valet hoped that the artist would follow his order (chapter 34) and become the lord’s sex toy:

So in my opinion, while Yoon Seungho had indeed showed worries and benevolence towards the painter, he was relying on his right-hand, therefore he never came to verify if Baek Na-Kyum was recovering properly. The irony is that although the valet treated the painter as a honorable guest (bringing him to the lord’s chamber and taking care of him as if he was his master), in truth he was just viewing the low-born as an object and tool. was truly making sure that Baek Na-Kyum would get the best treatment, but the domestic used the opportunity to praise his master indirectly.

And now you understand why Yoon Seungho didn’t return to the mansion. First, he felt guilty, as he knew why the young man got so sick. His remorse were definitely bigger, as the artist could lose his life. He even heard the critic from the doctor.

His guilty conscience is actually visualized in the chapter 33. He has no erected phallus and looks exhausted. (chapter 33) While he was at the sex orgy, he remembered the exhausted young face of the painter, while they were talking about him.

The black coloring about the head is a sign for flashback and memory. We saw in another chapter that Byeonduck uses the color black to announce that this is a flashback. However, I feel that Yoon Seungho avoided his mansion because he was confused too. He wanted to find out if his “obsession” for the painter was related to sex. We shouldn’t forget that in the past, the lord used to go to such parties very often which is revealed during the chapter 33.

It becomes clear that the moment he slept with Baek Na-Kyum, he dropped off his visits there. Yet after the sex marathon, he started visiting the sex parties again. the relapse was a sign of his torment. But there are other explanations as well. He thought that going back to the sex parties could help him to lower his strong libido for the uke. He wasn’t sure if his urge for Baek Na-Kyum was caused by the lack of sex, as he had stopped going to these sex orgies or if it was related to something else, to the person itself. Furthermore, I believe that by going back to the sex orgies, he experienced that he was no longer interested in sex, but he was looking for something else. He wanted to be with the artist. And now, you comprehend the second relapse in chapter 51: The lord was suffering, but unlike in the past he couldn’t keep his distance from his lover. He needed to sense his presence. He was no longer his sex partner, but he wasn’t treated like an object or a servant. During these two separations, Yoon Seungho was full of worries for Baek Na-Kyum which he was trying to forget, yet he couldn’t. At the same time, he was reflecting on his past actions:

– Why did he force the man to sleep with him for so long and overlook his current state? What drove him to drop off his visits to the sex parties, when he used to go there very often?

I perceive the lord as someone who does think deeply, hence he wouldn’t be spending so much time in front of his window in general. From my point of view, Yoon Seungho had to introspect himself and was making sure despite his sense of guilt that his “obsession” or love for the painter was not related to his strong stamina but to his desire to share his thoughts with him. He wanted to have a true companion. Let us not forget that Yoon Seungho has never experienced love before and has never received love from his father. So he had no role model, hence he was confused and couldn’t recognize the true cause for his behavior. He didn’t know how to show love. So far, the world he grew up was full of treacherous and vain hypocrites where there is no love. Let us not forget that even Jihwa doesn’t reveal his love for him. Furthermore, his past made him experience sex without pleasure and even without love. However, the moment he met the painter, he could finally connect his sexual orientation with ecstasy. In the first season, without the painter he was experiencing if his “obsession” with the painter was related to sex or to something else. Like I had truly recognized, the noble had not realized the existence of his feelings for the commoner. I believe that he couldn’t name his affection as love due to his lack of knowledge. He was confusing his mind with his heart. There is no denial that he was already in love with Baek Na-Kyum, as the man affected him so much right from the start. The moment they met, he acted differently. Besides, love is never a constant feeling. It changes all the time. Moreover, there are different kind of love. He was attracted by the painter due to his paintings, then due to his face and gaze… little by little he fell for him. However, the lord never realized it, unlike his servant Kim. However, in my opinion, the butler only judged it as an obsession and not as love. He imagined that his master had fallen too deeply into sodomy (chapter 18) In my eyes, the butler’s cowardice is connected to the social norms. He had deeply internalized the social values from Joseon, hence he represents a reinforcement of authorities. As you can see, there are many explanations for his behavior: guilty conscience, out of concern, self-introspection… On the other hand, he is only partially running away from his responsibility, as he had asked the servant Kim to take care of the artist. This is why this “abandonment” stands in opposition to the scholar’s. The latter betrayed during the rape, as he didn’t intervene and acted as if nothing was happening. And the next day, he brought him back to the mansion and abandoned him by letting Yoon Seungho drag him to the bedchamber. At no moment, he tried to stop his sponsor. That’s why he remains invisible in chapter 32.

But if we look back at the first picture at the beginning, you’ll notice that Kim’s words are reflecting something else. (chapter 33) He was acting as a mediator between the master and the low-born which looks like a good thing. In reality, he was meddling in their relationship. Who was he to intervene? That’s why he acted like a father. With his words, the butler was implying that his lord had been affected by his illness, hence he remained away. However, I believe that in the valet’s mind, there existed a different explanation. For Kim, his master was just a coward. That’s why he said this comment in front of the physician: (chapter 33) He anticipated that his master was avoiding to face the consequences of his selfish behavior. For me, Kim doesn’t truly love his master. He views the Yoons as terrible, but he will never confront them. But for his own safety, he needed to deceive the painter. Let’s not forget that Kim had played a role in his escape and the low-born could reveal it to his master. That’s why he needed to fake his care and concern for the painter so that the artist wouldn’t mention the past. Thus he begged the young man not to wander around as a sign of care and gentleness.

Simultaneously, Kim needed to manipulate the painter so that the latter would realized that he had won Yoon Seungho’s trust. He desired to obtain his obedience. What appears as mediation was in reality manipulation, which would create misunderstandings. He hoped that Baek Na-Kyum wouldn’t go to the teacher’s side. He was well aware of his master’s jealousy. In other words, this scene revealed many important points:

– The lord might have been away but he thought about him and made sure that he would get the best treatment

– Yoon Seungho’s behavior has drastically changed, he hasn’t returned home hence there is something upsetting the lord

The loyal assistant is acting like the lord’s lawyer. And here, in the chapter 34, we can see the contrast with Jung In-Hun’s attitude. Baek Na-Kyum asked Kim about the teacher. Was he worried about him? Has he asked after him? Kim denied all of his questions which upset the young man.

That’s the reason why he cried in the bed, covering his face. His gesture revealed his pain, but it also indicated that he didn’t want to be confronted by reality. Kim showed him that his admired sir had abandoned him, but the artist was in denial. He only explained it as a lack of concern. He was veiling his face in front of the truth. On the other hand, this scene was important for another reason. It truly exposed the learned sir’s stupidity and blindness. Without the artist by his side, Jung In-Hun meant nothing to the protagonist. Note the contrast between the butler and the scholar’s attitude. The former had understood the artist’s importance, though he didn’t like it, while the learned sir seemed to be in denial. The low noble didn’t even imagine that Baek Na-Kyum could lose his life. Then if you compare both aristocrats, you’ll detect the huge difference. Although both nobles were away from him, one kept his distance out of concern and guilt, the other felt nothing. The words Kim said did affect the painter, he could sense that the powerful noble had been caring and kind. Kim’s words made sure that the low-born wouldn’t push away his master like in the past, and wouldn’t blame him for his sickness. At the same time, the butler was trying to “tame” Baek Na-Kyum.

And Yoon Seungho’s humbleness and selflessness was revealed with the kiss. (chapter 32) However, the valet Kim was not present, hence when he lied to Baek Na-Kyum, he had no idea that in reality his words were containing more truth than lies in reality. That’s why I chose the kiss as illustration for the analysis. The roles were switched. The master acted as a servant, and the low-born was now the lord. The male lead was acting like Vasili Andreyevich Brekhunov from the Russian novel. Yoon Seungho was even willing to give water to the exhausted man. This situation was repeated in chapter 76: (chapter 76). The lord made sure that the painter would feel better with the water. But let’s return our attention to chapter 33. In the bedchamber, the main lead was to blame for Baek Na-Kyum sickness, as he hadn’t paid attention to the artist’s condition. He had acted selfishly, exactly like the protagonist from Master and man. Both realized their huge mistakes, came to regret and took some responsibility, although the chronology in the Russian story diverges. But this shows that both aristocrats came to realize that commoners were humans and no possessions.

This is not surprising that In-Hun’s indifference and even selfishness hurt the young man more at the end. It was really visible in the next chapter. The young man had to hear that what Yoon Seungho did was not normal (chapter 35) and his preparations for the exam were more important than the painter’s life. (chapter 35) For the first time, Baek Na-Kyum could sense that Jung In-Hun was selfish and not kind. Moreover, he even reminded him that as a low-born the noble shouldn’t spend so much money for him. Indirectly, Jung In-Hun was telling him that if he had been Yoon Seungho, he would have done the opposite: not giving him the best room, not sending for the physician and not spending so much money for the medicine. In that chapter, Baek Na-Kyum could finally see glimpses of Jung In-Hun’s true personality. Therefore I think that the servant’s words did influence the young man, he didn’t blame and resent the noble for his condition. He saw the caring gestures, although he was absent… whereas Jung In-Hun was absent due to his own interest. (chapter 35) Here, the low-born’s head is down which indicates a certain resignation and pain. While the one did change his behavior and showed a new side to the young painter, the other remained indifferent. The caress on the cheek could no longer mask the learned sir’s lack of concern and selfishness. (chapter 35) No wonder that after his departure, the artist was disappointed and heartbroken.

To sum up, one aristocrat felt remorse and guilt, hence he tried to redeem himself by taking care of the artist to his own detriment, he even left the mansion for days, the other acted like usually. Here, we can see some similarities between Yoon Seungho and Vasili Andreyevich Brekhunov. Both are able to feel empathy. Baek Na-Kyum started seeing the powerful master’s caring side. Due to Kim’s words, he thought that the lord even sacrificed his own comfort and health for the young man… just like the Russian land owner sacrificed his life for Nikita, the peasant. The chapters 34 and 35 are important, because they marked a turning point in Baek Na-Kyum’s life. The perfect image that Jung In-Hun had been able to create was starting showing cracks. Little by little, the painter could sense that his relationship with the teacher was defined by his status, while Yoon Seungho’s behavior made him realize that he was not treating him like a low-born, but like a human. This explains why later Baek Na-Kyum lied to the teacher for the first time. The lord had showed him his vulnerable side and had even let him stay by his side, when the brother visited him. The artist felt the learned sir’s lack of empathy and concern for him and his selfishness. In his eyes, he was just a low-born, and Baek Na-Kyum could already sense it. Therefore he lied.

But let us not forget that he still hoped that the servant Kim had not told the truth, hence he went to the teacher in order to get confirmation. Yoon Seungho’s conversion was also visible, because after his return, he spent the whole night thinking how he could improve his relationship with the artist. And notice that from the chapter 36 on, he started lowering himself in front of the painter literally and figuratively. The blow-job in this chapter

contrasted so much to the blow-job in the chapter 28.

Their places had been switched: the low-born had become the master. First, the noble acted like a master with the soft punishment (chapter 36), until he saw the painter’s erection. He was willing to give up his position as master. That’s why he prioritizes the painter’s pleasure all the time. (chapter 36) So their relationship master-servant stopped at this moment, hence he lets him stay by his side, when the brother Seung-Won is in his chamber.(chapter 37) Notice that his position had changed. He was sitting by the lord’s side. He even asked the artist to sleep by his side and let him stay in his bed without waking him up the next morning. As you can observe, the characters’ position illustrated their actual position in their relationship. When Baek Na-Kyum woke up the next morning, he was alone in the bedchamber. The lord preferred to leave his bed and eat elsewhere. In other words, Kim’s words from chapter 33 became a reality. He let him rest in his bed. Yoon Seungho showed so much consideration that in the chapter 39, he even went to the kitchen in order to fetch the low-born. (chapter 38) He didn’t even send his loyal assistant. He had become the “servant” himself. In other words, we witnessed the lord’s slow conversion during the chapter 36 and the small changes from that moment. The nature of their relationship had changed, hence he claimed Baek Na-Kyum as his bride unconsciously. (chapter 40) So both characters, Yoon Seungho and Vasili Andreyevich Brekhunov transformed into a different person, more selfless and caring. They were willing to sacrifice things for them: status and pride. On the other hand, the nature of Baek Na-Kyum’s relationship with the teacher changed for the worse: from a teacher to a student, it became a lord-servant relationship, and the painter sensed the change of their relationship. But let us not forget: Jung In-Hun never considered the young man as a student, for him he had always been a low-born. It is just that he was so good to deceive the commoner.

And these observations in the first season were confirmed in the second season. The only difference is that this switch of social position from chapter 33 on was more momentary. The lord still viewed himself as a noble, he never realized his transformation. Yet in chapter 71, the noble chose to confirm the change of status: (chapter 71) Baek NA-Kyum was no longer a low-born, but a noble, while the main lead was his “servant”. This explicates why the noble was no longer asking for him in the evening (chapter 74) and visited him secretly during the night. But this switch of position didn’t remain a secret, the moment the lord embraced his panicked lover. (chapter 76) At the end of the second season, the lord’s true personality is more and more unveiled: he has a kind and generous heart, and he is able to reflect on his wrongdoings, which contrasts to Jung In-Hun. And now, you can comprehend why right from the start, I was fascinated by the infamous sodomite. The first season let us see glimpses of his warmth and selflessness. This means, the noble’s courage and strength will shine more and more.

As a conclusion, Yoon Seungho is a figure that resembles the noble Valmont from the “Dangerous Liaisons” and the land owner Vasili Andreyevich Brekhunov from “Master and man”, a man full of redemption despite his sins. As you can see, from a simple question “Why didn’t he return to the mansion?”, it became an analysis about master and servant and the transformation of Yoon Seungho.

And here again, I could use a classic story for an inspiration and comparison which shows how well written this manhwa is.

Painter Of The Night: “Persuasion” and “Pride and Prejudice” in the manhwa (second version)

June 18, 2020October 7, 2020 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ 4 Comments

Now, you are wondering how this manhwa can be connected to these English novels written by Jane Austen in the 19th Century. The reason is simple: the titles contain aspects that play a huge part in the manhwa and therefore persuasion, pride and prejudice will be in the center of this analysis. I am using the titles just like Jane Austen did.

Actually, my focus will be on Jung In-Hun and his special relationship with Baek Na-Kyum, where persuasion, pride and prejudice affect their relationship. However, if the title had been too obvious, I am not sure if people would have been inclined to read another analysis about this rather quiet character. Yet, when in the past I used to compare him to animals, my judgement was still too nice. Here, you’ll discover his true personality. Instead of explaining right away about the new discovery and knowledge, I will show you how I came to these terrible conclusions.

After writing my analysis about the mirror and its functions, one reader commented that in the chapter 31 you could sense that the mirror combined with the eyes was somehow used as a tool for hypnosis. [That’s why it is very important that people leave comments, through exchange I can even get new insights too.]

Hypnosis is a trance-like mental state in which people experience increased attention, concentration and suggestibility. This method can be used to treat people suffering from traumas so that the unconscious can reveal itself and free the repressed natural feelings and thoughts so that through suggestions, the patient can be influenced to overcome his fears and trauma.

Now, let me contextualize the sequence of the drawings again. Seungho is forcing the painter to look into the mirror and see his own reactions while having sex with the lord. He wants him to acknowledge his own sexual orientation and his attraction for the master hence he holds Baek Na-Kyum’s face in front of the mirror. And then the author focused on the eyes. The first image above shows the reflection of Baek Na-Kyum’s eyes in the mirror, since the thumb is on the right just like in the 4th picture. So here the beholder observes through the mirror the painter’s gaze and here we feel something has been triggered in his mind therefore the image from his daydream resurfaces (second image, it appeared in the episode 2). In this case, the unconscious is starting to emerge from this repression. The third drawing is focused on the lord’s gaze but here we have to imagine that this is viewed from the painter’s perspective. The lord’s gaze has caught his attention and as such, the artist seems to be put into a second state, into hypnosis. Thanks to the reader’s observation with the hypnosis, something really important caught my eyes: the gaze. Yoon Seungho’s gaze is so captivating for the uke that his eyes can’t leave his gaze…. that’s how the hypnosis started so that after that sex marathon, Baek Na-Kyum was so affected and started feeling butterflies in his belly. Then I was suddenly reminded that in the chapter 2, Baek Na-Kyum is remembering his vow and now pay attention to this image:

Striking is that the eyes are missing. There is no gaze, only the mouth moving has been engraved in the painter’s mind which means that the teacher’s voice and words must have played a huge importance. Yet, why couldn’t the artist remember Jung In-Hun’s face? I came to realize that it must have been related to the physical abuse as we see him getting beaten with his head down. So from his position, he could never catch the teacher’s eyes but he could only hear his voice. So this single scene contains so much info in reality. While it looks like a normal punishment, the spectator is actually witnessing the brainwashing called by psychologists “coercive persuasion”. And now, you understand why I chose “persuasion” as part of the title. Since I am no expert in psychology, I had to do some research about this topic. There are 4 different methods to use coercive persuasion: Environmental, emotional and cognitive techniques. The last one (4th) induces dissociative states but it is not relevant for our case as it is far too modern.

Here, I am listing the different ways for an environmental coercive persuasion: isolation, control of information, creation of a state of existential dependence, psycho-physical weakening. https://exploringyourmind.com/brainwashing-coercive-persuasion-techniques/

From this list, we can see a lot of common points with Baek Na-Kyum’s situation. Although he was raised in a gisaeng house and seems to have been treated quite well, he is introduced as a drunk and lonely person.

In the second season, we discover why he cut ties with his family (the head gisaeng). The latter abandoned him and entrusted him to the scholar. She thought, she was doing him a favor and imagined that with the teacher’s support, his career could progress. Because of her abandonment, the painter relied even more on the teacher. Exposed to isolation, the teacher could start influencing him about his views: sex and sodomy are filthy and vulgar. As time passed on, he relied more and more on the teacher so that the moment the vow was made, Jung In-Hun somehow abandoned him. Therefore the painter started drinking alcohol in order to survive his existential dependence on the teacher. Then we witness in the chapter 22 how Baek Na-Kyum has some issues to follow the hunters. He is out of breath and he also falls easily. His weak constitution is no coincidence as we have to remember that he is actually a young man.

This also explains why he got sick after that sex marathon. The psycho-physical weakness of the low-born is the consequence of the coercive persuasion. But here is the next question: did the teacher just use environmental techniques to get his way?

Now, it is time to focus on the second method of coercive persuasion, the emotional techniques. Like before, I am listing its features: Emotional activation of pleasure, then emotional activation of fear, guilt and anxiety. It means that the person uses rewards and punishments so that emotional responses of fear are established. Due to guilt and anxiety, the person becomes dependent and submissive.

As you can observe, Jung In-Hun did use emotional techniques too. The poem and the smiles were his rewards, while the beating was his punishment. While abusing him, he kept explaining that these pictures were abnormal and filthy. In other words, Jung In-Hun has been manipulating Baek Na-Kyum’s emotions by making him feel guilty and dirty. And I believe that it is no coincidence that Baek Na-Kyum was always paralyzed, when he was hugged by Yoon Seungho from behindand why Jung In-Hun always touched the commoner in the front (chapter 24 or chapter 29). If you pay attention to the artist’s behavior, he never showed his back to the teacher, only walked behind or by his side because deep down, his body remembered that he was beaten on his calves, hence unconsciously he protected his back.

Finally, we come to the last techniques of brainwashing, the cognitive methods. Interesting is that this type of coercive persuasion techniques are mediated by previous techniques. A subject who is physically weakened and feeling guilty is perfect for cognitive persuasion: Critical thinking denigration, Lies and deception, identification with the group or with the authority (this means that the person loses his own personality and habit), control of attention and control over language.

Now, you can sense that in reality, Jung In-Hun’s brainwashing consisted of the last techniques: the cognitive techniques, since he first applied environmental and emotional techniques too. We have one scene, where it is clear that Baek Na-Kyum is not allowed to have his own opinion and must think like his “mentor” (critical thinking denigration).

That’s why he is not able to perceive the lies and deception in the teacher. He has been so manipulated by him that he falls for his lies every time and the teacher knows that. The chapter 10 reveals the coercive persuasion at his best. We have the critical thinking denigration, then the teacher makes him feel guilty by reminding what his paintings and sodomy are (vulgar and dirty)

Pay attention to Baek Na-Kyum’s reaction. He is put under pressure, totally stressed hence he is sweating. Finally, Baek Na-Kyum is coerced to abandon painting (identification to the group or authority). If he wants to be acknowledged and accepted by Jung In-Hun, he needs to stop working as a painter.

We can also observe the control of attention in this scene, when he touches the artist’s chin, he makes sure that his words are heard. Simultaneously, the spectator witnesses the control of language. The result is visible in another scene. The expression “consumed by lust” is something that Jung In-Hun uses as well. Here, the young man is just speaking like a parrot in reality.

And we still have people thinking that Yoon Seungho is far worse than the teacher. Since we have exposed his methods how he manipulated and brainwashed the young man, we need to go back to this picture: So Jung In-Hun’s gaze is not remembered. And this is not the only time, when we see the face of the man without eyes.

If you pay attention to the images from the chapter 20 and 21, you’ll notice the similarities. The eyes are not visible, only the chin and the mouth are clear. Nonetheless, in his drunkenness, Baek Na-Kyum acted as if he was seeing the man, but he was not. So why did he act like that? Alcohol can not be the only explication because he couldn’t remember the teacher’s eyes as well, when he was awake and normal (chapter 2). In my opinion, it is related to the coercive persuasion, it is a side effect. This shows how despicable this man is.

Sure, during that fateful night, Baek Na-Kyum wished that the man would be Jung In-Hun that’s why he was calling for his name. Now, we have to question if his intoxication liberated his unconscious, his repressed sexual desires. From my point of view, it is a mixture of both. Yes, he is longing for the warmth of a man but due to the brainwashing, In-Hun became the loved one. The teacher was even able to establish a relationship, where he could maintain his clean image without any physical touch. That’s why his love remains so pure. In-Hun made sure that Baek Na-Kyum would never get close to him but at the same time would long for him. Since the latter had indoctrinated him that homosexuality is vulgar and dirty, the poor man’s unconscious fused his repressed sexual desires with the image of In-Hun, but only his voice and mouth were visible. In other words, what we see is the Stockholm Syndrome. The painter has adopted the point of view of his abuser.

“Stockholm syndrome is a psychological response. It occurs when hostages or abuse victims bond with their captors or abusers. […] Over the course of time, some victims do come to develop positive feelings toward their captors. They may even begin to feel as if they share common goals and causes.” https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/stockholm-syndrome#definition

His so pure love for the scholar is a mechanism to cope with the huge trauma inflicted on him. That’s why his love declaration is so focused on the spiritual aspect: However, the coercive persuasion could never be effective on the artist’s unconscious. This explicates why the painter’s deeply repressed desires keep wishing to have sex with Yoon Seungho. Even awake, he imagines the lord getting closer to him, illustrating his desire that he would like the lord to feel attracted by him. (chapter 15)

This is the reason why Baek Na-Kyum worshiped the poem so much. He could remember the low noble’s voice which reinforced his dependency on the man. And now imagine the reaction of Baek Na-Kyum when he heard the critic from Yoon Seungho. Since he had been brainwashed, he could only react with such an insolence. I wouldn’t say that he was behaving like a freak but I am quite sure that the coercive persuasion explains his rather violent behavior. He yelled and tried to take the poem away from the lord.

At the same time, let us not forget that Yoon criticized the teacher for his poor skills in the chapter 22. You can understand now why Jung In-Hun was so infuriated. He had been able to trick the painter, to have such an admirer and felt that his methods were working well, until someone reminded him what he had actually done in reality: plagiarized a poem.

Now, we have to wonder why the teacher was so adamant to brainwash the young man, since he was just a commoner. My opinion is quite simple: he was terribly jealous of Baek Na-Kyum who, as a low-born, was able to publish many erotic books under a pseudonym. Jung In-Hun’s pride couldn’t take it that someone he considered far below from him was able to raise his financial situation and even get some recognition from the nobles who bought his books. His prejudice and pride were the cause for this coercive manipulation. But this is far from being finished. Why would he spend so much energy on such a single person?

From my perspective, Jung In-Hun is mentally sick. He is suffering from a narcissistic personality disorder. Here I have just listed all the characteristics for this mental illness:

A grandiose sense of self-importance
Preoccupation with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love
Belief that one is special and can only be understood by or associate with special people or institutions
A need for excessive admiration
A sense of entitlement (to special treatment)
Exploitation of others
A lack of empathy
Envy of others or the belief that one is the object of envy
Arrogant, haughty behavior or attitudes
Resent in case of a critic (this was taken from psychology today website and another French website)

Now, if you compare the list with Jung In-Hun’s behavior and words, you’ll notice that they have so much in common. He feels so superior to others that he failed to realize Yoon Seungho’s mockery in the chapter 6. He is definitely overestimating his own capabilities. In the chapter 18, we see him envying the powerful noble while strolling through the property (point 1, 2, 8). For the second point, he is already dreaming how he can betray Yoon Seungho, once he succeeds with the service civil examination. In the chapter 44, he wants Yoon Seungho to follow him to the capital as he wants to be seen with him which I relate to the point 3 above. He was so bothered and jealous that the master helped Baek Na-Kyum in the chapter 22.

He couldn’t bear the thought that Baek Na-Kyum was favored by Yoon Seungho (chapter 10, 22, 40). He wanted to use the painter as spy and had no problem to send him back, although he knew that the man had been raped (see point 5, 6, 7 above). He feels that his status and knowledge are the reasons why he should get a high position. He truly feels entitled, hence he said to Yoon that he was waiting for the right time. The problem with this type of person is their strong reactions, when it comes to jealousy and critics. Since they seek admiration, they hate it, when someone else is getting attention. Their jealousy can even lead them to destroy the person who got admiration. And this is what happened to Baek Na-Kyum. His true goal was to destroy him without dirtying his fingers but he failed, because Baek Na-Kyum caught the attention of the powerful noble. At the same side, he attempted to keep this admiration from the painter as he loves being in the center of attention, this explains why he isolated the painter in the first place. Such people react strongly to critics, they will do anything to get revenge on the person who dared to criticize them. And we have Yoon Seungho who humiliated him many times. The other problem with people suffering from a narcissistic personality disorder is to bring them to get aware of their own mental issues. Sure, back then this “diagnosis” didn’t exist, however this doesn’t change the consequences. People around them suffer very much because they can become abusive and that to anyone. Imagine that such a person gets a high position. First, it will reinforce his entitlement and secondly he will expect to be admired without doing anything. He will exploit the subordinates.

And now, let’s go back to the start of this analysis. The hypnosis was the moment when Baek Na-Kyum was actually liberated from his brainwashing. That’s why his body started reacting after, when he was close to Yoon Seungho and why he started listening to him. However, I doubt that the noble had an idea about the coercive persuasion. This also explicates why the lord was rejected all the time. Baek Na-Kyum was still under the teacher’s influence. I hope that at the end of this analysis, you’ll come to the same conclusion: Jung In-Hun is the real villain in this story and he can become very dangerous.

At the end of the season, he still thinks that he has some connection with the young man, as despite the rejection and the abandonment in the past, Baek Na-Kyum still admired him that’s why he still believes that his harsh words spoken in the chapter 40 out of resent and jealousy didn’t affect his relationship with the low-born. He has the impression that he can still use him as a pawn. Nevertheless, I can imagine that the moment Baek Na-Kyum starts getting more admiration and recognition by society, Jung In-Hun will wish to have him killed.

Persuasion, pride and prejudice towards low-born and nobility are the aspects that define Jung In-Hun so well. His delusion was the cause of Baek Na-Kyum’s unhappiness and tears in reality. Strangely, although the sex session with the mirror seemed to reflect a rather abusive relationship, in reality it freed the painter. That’s why it is important to distinguish between seem and reality. The reality was the coercive persuasion that is so well hidden that you truly need to pay attention to details. I had always said that the man had been brainwashed, yet by discovering the employed techniques, the atrocity of Jung In-Hun’s actions becomes more palpable. Furthermor, it makes me realize that his love for the scholar was fake in reality, just the result of captivity: Stockholm Syndrome.

Feel free to comment. If you have any suggestion for topics or manhwas, feel free to ask. If you enjoyed reading it, retweet it or push the button like. My tumblr-twitter account is: @bebebisous33. Thanks for reading and the support.

Painter Of The Night: Traces of “Dangerous liaisons” and “Justine: the Misfortunes of Virtue” in the manhwa

June 17, 2020June 17, 2020 ~ Bébébisous33 ~ Leave a comment

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.

If you have already read about my biography, then you know that my real work is teaching French and History. This means that French literature is part of my lessons. I am not sure if many of you are acquainted with French literature, but at some point while writing my analyses, I came to realize that Painter Of The Night contains many parallels to two famous French novels written just before the French Revolution that started in 1789. The first obvious connection is the historical period.

Moreover, the first novel “Dangerous Liaisons”/”Les Liaisons dangereuses” written by the noble Choderlos de Laclos and the second book “Justine: The Misfortunes of Virtue/ Justine ou les infortunes de la vertu” from Marquis de Sades, also another noble, describe both the libertinage and as such the decadence of high society in 18th Century.

Libertinage or libertinism means that a man or woman lives disregarding authority or convention in sexual or religious matters. They are not bound by social etiquette or even religion. This is a movement existing in the 17th and 18th century influenced by The Enlightenment but it doesn’t necessarily mean that this mentality is something positive. Actually, the perverted side of libertinism is criticized in both works as it became reduced to sex. “Dangerous liaisons” and Justine: The Misfortunes of Virtue” caused a huge scandal and even Marquis de Sades was sent to prison due to his writing. Why? The reason is simple: both books portray the old and high nobility as obsessed with sex and full of vices, while at the same time nobles from high and old nobility called themselves honorable and looked down on poor people and new nobles. No one wanted to be seen as a depraved lord or lady.

Now, if we compare these novels with the manhwa, the similarities are quite visible. All the nobles we met are corrupted, living in debauchery or dishonesty. They are far from being honorable and pure. While the low noble Jung In-Hun didn’t take his position seriously and never taught the children, the others from the high nobility were busy with different kind of pleasures: hunting

, sex

or even sex orgies.

We never see them working as officials, it looks like only the old beared men, mentioned by Yoon Seungho,

are working for the King, while the young lords show no real interest in improving the country and the living conditions of the commoners. They are all selfish and self-centered thinking about their own pleasures or about their own career in order to get power and wealth. Yet, the commoners have always represented the biggest part of any society in the past. In France, the third state (commoners) represented 98% of order society. I doubt that in Joseon the society was very much different. Consequently, nobility acts as if it was honorable and pure, while in reality they have sex orgies and even practice sodomy which is condemned by social morals. And here is the hypocrisy: for commoners, sodomy is kind of forbidden, while it is tolerated for the nobility. Then in Painter of The Night, we see the nobles visiting the giseang house, a brothel, as a diversion.

Whereas they condemn the painter for being unclean and filthy because he was raised there,

they are actually the reason why the brothel can exist. Without rich nobles, the gisaengs wouldn’t be able to live. Here, the author criticizes the double standards and the hypocrisy of nobility. In my opinion, the teacher didn’t visit the brothel, not because he was virtuous, but because he had no rich friend and no mean to afford them. Remember that he is just a low noble: no huge wealth and no connection. This explains why Baek Na-Kyum doesn’t like nobles

which is revealed in the beginning and sees in Yoon Seungho’s behavior the typical attitude of a noble: selfish, depraved, “consumed by lust”. Besides, I already mentioned in another analysis that Jung In-Hun could have a hidden vice: pedophilia. Furthermore, the popularity for erotic paintings is another clue for the debauchery of the high nobles. In other words, all three works (the manhwa and the two French novels) give a similar portray of the high society: a very pessimistic and corrupted nobility supporting the inequity and the injustice of that system. Their titles give them the authority to rule over the commoners. No one seems to be questioning this order society and its rules. It is fine as long as they benefit from this system.

Nonetheless, this negative picture of the high society (nobility) is not the only common denominator between these three creations. I also see some similarities between the characters from “Dangerous liaisons” and “Justine: The Misfortunes of Virtue”. Let me summarize the first novel “Liaisons dangereuses”. Valmont, a lord from the “noblesse d’épée” (old nobility/sword-nobility) is a libertine and as such has a lot of sexual encounters. He loves seducing women and uses sex as a weapon. All this time, he is exchanging letters with Madame de Merteuil, the female version of a libertine. She is his ex-lover but she would like him to seduce a young woman, Cecile de Volanges, the fiancee of the Marquise’s ex-lover. Her purpose is to get revenge on her former sex partner. During this time, Valmont has another target. He has already planned to seduce the virtuous Madame de Tourvel, the wife of the parliament president, a former bourgeois who became ennobled by the king which means that he is wealthy and influential. In other words, Monsieur de Tourvel belongs to the rather new nobility: “noblesse de robe” (“nobility due an official position”) which was considered as a rival by the old and traditional “noblesse d’épée”. The resent for the new nobles leads the protagonist Valmont to seduce the virtuous wife. It was as if he was declaring war to this new nobility as they are often much richer then the old nobility “noblesse d’épée”. This explains why the author of this novel commented in his notes the following:

“The love of war and the war of love. Glory. The love of glory. Valmont and Merteuil [both protagonists or better said antagonists in the novel] talk about it all the time. The love of combat. The tactics, the rules, the methods. The glory of victory. The strategy to win a very frivolous prize.”

Love, or better said sex, is associated to war. As you can perceive, the author Choderlos de Laclos created Vicomte de Valmont and Madame de Merteuil as unscrupulous cynic, full of sarcasm, cold and calculating. Here, the man perceives Madame de Tourvel as conquest and every possible method is allowed to achieve his goal. Now, you understand how the lord is: cold, manipulative and quite determined in order to achieve his goal. Sex is like war in reality but in order to deceive his victim, his actual prey, he has to act as if he was in love. But for the libertine, sex has nothing to do with love. Sex is just a pleasure, a weapon to defeat and humiliate his rival. Now, you understand why I even imagined that Min would be interested in Yoon Seungho and used Jihwa to get rid of Baek Na-Kyum. Here, sex has become a game of power and submission, just like in war. Just like Yoon Seungho had sex with other nobles, sex was his weapon to show his authority and power. In this manhwa, sex is indeed associated to fight and power. Seungho used his position as lord to submit Baek Na-Kyum at the pavilion. Now, if we compare Valmont with Yoon Seungho, we will find some parallels:

– He acts like a libertine, as he pays no attention to moral values and etiquette. He is definitely more enlightened than his “friends” because he values people based on their talents and actions. He puts a lot of trust in his assistant Kim and accepts the painter right from the start despite his social background. He appreciates the man for his talent.

– He acts like a libertine because he often has sex and doesn’t even hide it. Sex has nothing to do with marriage or love. It is just to bypass time.

– For him, sex has never been real pleasure but war. The true purpose of his depraved life is hurt to his father, to remind him of his sins. Besides, I also think that he never felt his sex partners from the nobility as true friends. They were rather his tools, just like Valmont treats other nobles. On the other hand, the nobles thought that they were using him. Thanks to him, they could get to enjoy parties, even take some benefit. However, the lord was always aware of this. Both were never really free in their choice in reality. Seungho had to choose among the nobles, just like Valmont.

– Their way to approach their target is quite similar. There is strategy behind Seungho’s actions. In the scene 16, he wants to know if the artist is a bottom or a top hence he uses a remark to get his answer.

Then he touches the painter’s head with the headband, that way he creates a certain closeness. Finally, the masturbation symbolizes the climax of his slow approach. He knows that he has to be careful with the painter, since the latter was forced to remain by his side by using Jung In-Hun as leverage. In this scene, it becomes clear that he was already aiming at the commoner.

– Both fall in love with their prey. Striking is that Valmont has to act as if he was in love with Madame de Tourvel and as time passed on, the boundaries between appearances and reality became fuzzy so that the noble fell in love with the woman for real. We have also a mixture of seem and real in the “wedding night” because the noble acts as if he was the “learned sir”. He thought, he could seize the opportunity and taste the young man, yet the latter made love to him so that Yoon Seungho could never forget their night together. Sure, the lord had already fallen for the artist before but he was unaware of it. But the “wedding night” was the trigger for him to have him as his real sex partner/lover. So the illusion plays a big part in their falling in love.

However, there are also huge differences between him and Valmont.

– Seungho became a sodomite due to circumstances hence he never came to enjoy sex, whereas the French Vicomte had pleasure with his partners. Only through the painter’s creation, the lord in Joseon comes to perceive himself in a different light and accepts his homosexuality and the ecstasy accompanying sex. He is liberated.

– Moreover, at the end, Valmont chose to sacrifice his lover over his pride and arrogance so that Madame de Tourvel has a tragic end. I sense that our couple in Painter Of The Night has another ending.

– The biggest difference between these two lords is that Yoon Seungho is less conventional and more open-minded than the French libertine. Yoon Seungho despises Jung In-Hun for not teaching the commoners properly. He reads a lot which shows that he pays attention to education and he has a lot of knowledge. This explains why he doesn’t care about gossips and opinions. Valmont hid his career as womanizer hidden, just like Madame de Merteuil. They hid their “sexual libertine life” behind etiquette and manners which is not the case for Yoon Seungho. He is even willing to cut ties with Jihwa, while Valmont still kept a relationship with Madame de Merteuil through the letters. Both are real hypocrites, whereas Yoon Seungho is by no means deceitful. He is a man of his words, hence the promise to take Baek Na-Kyum as his “bride” should be taken very seriously. He is very self-confident too but his pride didn’t stop him to lower himself in order to give pleasure to Baek Na-Kyum. He is willing to do anything so that the artist accepts him as his lover. As a conclusion, “Dangerous liaisons” has a lot of common points with the manhwa.

Now it is time to take a closer look to the novel “Justine: The Misfortunes of Virtue” written by Marquis de Sades. The author is indirectly famous as the word “sadistic” is deviated from his name. In his book, the described debauchery truly represents the climax of sexual perversion. There is everything as sex is connected to pain and crimes: rape, torture, murder, strange sexual practices, theft etc. The enlightened author thought that evil was the product of nature which would explain why God always permits that crimes and injustice happen. He had a very pessimistic view of humans. He was one of those who somehow doubted the existence of god. Anyway, in this novel, Justine is the “heroine” and she embodies virtue. She is so innocent but because of her virtuous nature, she becomes the prey of sadistic, selfish and greedy persons. She encounters so many misfortunes which lead to her death. Virtue can not be victorious, only sins and crimes have the upper hand. Now, I am sure that you are wondering why I connect this novel to the manhwa. This is quite simple. Sades wrote:

“In order to know virtue, we must first acquaint ourselves with vice.”

And here is the connection between Seungho and “Justine: The Misfortunes of Virtue”. Seungho met first vice, he had sex without feeling anything. He lived as a man “consumed by lust”, until he met Baek Na-Kyum who mirrored him his true self with his words. Baek Na-KYum embodies virtue and innocence and that’s the reason why the lord is able to recognize the difference between his sex partners from the nobility and the young man. He is the total opposite of them, which the lord realizes. He feels and witnesses the virtues exuding from the painter which leads the master to change. Furthermore, through his first sexual encounter, he experiences the difference between sex and love… because of his past experience, he is able to notice the huge contrast and enjoys their love making. Without Baek Na-Kyum’s innocence and virtue, the lord wouldn’t fallen in love with him so quickly. He remained pure, although he was raised in a brothel reinforcing his virtue. It was as if he had resisted temptation to carnal desires in a place full of temptations. His virginity symbolizes his purity and innocence. Finally, during the first season, we witness all the misfortunes Baek Na-Kyum encounters:

– brainwashing and physical abuse by the teacher

– the witnessing of a murder (episode 1)

– the straw mat beating (episode 12)

– the injustice of being accused of a crime he didn’t commit (damage the painting) : episode 10/11

– rape

– “drugged” as he is influenced by the aphrodisiac (chapter 35/36)

– the harsh words coming from the teacher “He was born to be a prostitute”

– forced to paint against his will

– Being held captive by the lord through different means (theft, blackmail)

– The sex marathon

– forced to do a blow job

– Victim of theft (the retrieved poem)

– Victim of blackmail (In-Hun as hostage)

– the slaps, being grabbed and dragged by Yoon Seungho

He is definitely a new version of Justine. Just like her, he cries a lot. Tears should be here considered as proof of his purity. It was as if his tears would wash away the sins he just experienced or saw. Sure, he is a little different from her as he lies and is quite daring towards the lord. However, let us not forget that his lies are no real lies as they ooze honesty. Yoon Seungho perceives the truth in his lies. Besides, the insolence is somehow connected to sincerity and honesty which are virtues as such, he is unable to control his thoughts and emotions. It is just that Baek Na-Kyum doesn’t follow completely the social conventions, when it comes to Yoon Seungho.

The only huge difference between two works is the pessimistic perception of humans in Sades’ novel. Here, Yoon Seungho changes for the better, which was not the case for Justine’s enemies/sex partners. Love is the trigger for Yoon Seungho to become a better person, less selfish and more caring. This never happened in the French novel “Justine”. She even dies due to lightening showing that nature is quite evil. There is no love in Sades’ novel due to his negative opinion about nature and humans. Since he wrote many sex scenes, his work is unfortunately reduced to sex, while in reality he used his works to describe the corruption and the decadence of the Ancien Régime. [Explanation for this expression: The Ancien Régime was the political and social system of the Kingdom of France from the Late Middle Ages until the French Revolution of 1789, which led to the abolition of hereditary monarchy and of the feudal system of the French nobility.] He went even further and questioned the nature of god meaning that he criticized religion and Catholic church. That’s the reason why he was sent to prison and spent many years there.

Nevertheless the debauchery in all these works makes me wonder if a coup d’Etat or a huge incident concerning the king will happen. Let us not forget that a purge happened in the past which shows that there was some conflict between noble families and the king. “Dangerous Liaisons” and “Justine: The Misfortunes of Virtue” announce the arrival of French Revolution because of the perversion of nobility. Commoners are no longer satisfied with the privileges of nobility and their scandalous way of life is no longer accepted as such. We should remember that this decadence is described by two nobles revealing that even some nobles felt that something was wrong. Therefore, we have to wonder if the described decadence in Painter Of The Night announces changes in politics too. It is definitely possible that Yoon Seungho will meddle in politics because of Baek Na-Kyum and might change things for the commoners. He did show some concern for them in the chapter 6, when he disapproved Jung In-Hun’s attitude. However, there will be no revolution and abolition of privileges because this never happened in Joseon. The other reason for this assumption is that in another manhwa (“A painter behind the curtain” from Munamu, https://www.tappytoon.com/comics/painter-behind-curtainm), just like Baek Na-Kyum, the painter Ian was exposed to physical abuse and exploitation. In this story he also witnesses the debauchery of nobility in the Ancien Régime which leads to a revolt and later somehow to a revolution. As you can see, I feel that Painter Of The Night could become more political later, yet there won’t be a total upheaval of the social order and the state due to Joseon’s history.

I hope, this analysis has made you want to read more about the two French novels. Feel free to comment. If you liked it, then push the button like or retweet it. Thanks for reading.

Protected: Painter Of The Night: The helping hand 🤝 (second version)

June 16, 2020August 3, 2022 ~ Bébébisous33

Protected: Painter Of The Night: The mirror 🪞and its functions (fourth version)

June 15, 2020April 27, 2023 ~ Bébébisous33

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