Painter Of The Night: Yoon Seungho’s mouth 👄

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/

Since I wrote a long analysis about “Legs That Won’t walk”, this time, my essay related to Painter Of The Night will be short. Nevertheless, I wanted to keep my promise to write each day something about this manhwa.

Now, you are wondering why I am focusing on Seungho’s mouth. The reason behind this is quite simple. I observed something very important while paying attention to the drawings. We have many pictures about Seungho’s gaze and the hands, yet Byeonduck did zoom in different chapters on Seungho’s mouth. All the following pictures have something in common. The reader can only see the protagonist’s mouth and each time, it is impossible to see his gaze. Why did the author focus on the main character’s mouth? This list is what I could gather so far (I might have missed some), nevertheless this selection will serve as an illustration.

We have this image in chapter 4:

In chapter 12, Yoon Seungho is seen threatening the painter.

Then in chapter 16, the beholder witnesses how Seungho is calling Baek Na-Kyum by his name, while whispering into his ear.


Moreover, our main character keeps whispering in chapter 20, when he orders his loyal valet to close the door:

The beholder sees a similar drawing in chapter 35, although I have here to add two other pictures for the explanation.

In chapter 39, we even have two such drawings (here I added the one in the middle for the explication :

If you compare all these pictures together, you’ll note that there exists two kind of zooms focusing on the protagonist’s mouth.

The first one is, when he is talking to Baek Na-Kyum very closely. These mirror the evolution of their relationship. First, in chapter 12, he is threatening the low-born in order to submit him. We can observe that they have a master-servant relationship. Seungho has problems to approach and impress the man, so far Baek Na-Kyum showed a certain defiance in his behavior. Then in the chapter 16, he is whispering his name “Na-Kyum” revealing his intention of being intimate with him. While talking, he is even licking the commoner’s ear in order to arouse him. He is seducing him with his words and actions. Hence we can say that he no longer treats him as his “servant”. In the last one, the characters are kissing each other representing the climax of intimacy. Striking is that Seungho can’t help himself smiling and letting a sound out. He is expressing his happiness. Finally, the painter is no longer rejecting him, he is even reciprocating his kisses and his face is even blushing. So Seungho is finally able to have the man reddened. Each time, he saw the artist blushing for the teacher, he got so jealous and now, he can provoke the same reaction. The sound “pfft” shouldn’t be judged as the protagonist is mocking the painter. He is just showing his joy.

Now, the second kind of zoom on the main lead’s zoom is when he is speaking. These kind of drawings are important because these reflect the moment where the seme is expressing his deep thoughts and emotions. Remember that I said that the protagonist is someone who keeps his thoughts and emotions to himself. The drawings with the mouth only indicate that Seungho is opening up, is voicing his inner thoughts.

At the pavilion, he was actually talking to himself, since he paid no attention to Jihwa. He can’t help himself saying what he is seeing in his mind. He is amazed that he can feel so free… he is liberated from the oppressing and condemning gazes. He is accepting himself because of the painting. It was as if his own gaze from the painting had hypnotized him and helped him to overcome his trauma.

Then in chapter 20, he whispers to Kim to close the door. Sure, he doesn’t want to scare the drunk artist. However, I perceive the whispering, as if he has some problem to reveal his true desires. Here, he has to admit in front of Kim that he wants to taste the painter for himself. In fact, he is giving an order to the butler. Little by little he is opening up, expressing his true thoughts and as such revealing his true personality: his wishes and desires. At the same time, it exposes that the main lead is acting more and more like a lord.

In chapter 35, our protagonist is at his lowest. He could never obtain the artist’s heart and is about to admit defeat. Strangely is that the “camera” is focusing more and more on the protagonist’s mouth. First, with the gaze and after only with the mouth. We can detect here the main character’s struggles. He has problems to externalize his inner thoughts. He has no idea what he could say because he fears the painter’s reaction. That’s why he stops himself, the three dots illustrate his concern. The low-born could reject him one more time. Interesting is that we only hear the seme’s question in the black picture. The author lets the reader vizualize the main character’s shyness. He is expressing himself with great difficulties. It was as if he was hiding himself. But he is able to overcome his fear and shyness hence he asks the painter about the painting. Then in the chapter 39, he has no problem to show his reproach and concern for the uke in front of the servants. Little by little, Seungho is no longer hiding his desires and as such his personality. He starts more and more voicing his true thoughts and emotions.

That’s why we have less pictures with the mouth only. This mirrors his inability to voice himself. However, the readers assist to a transformation of our main character. We have to imagine that this man has lived like a zombie for a long time and was even the master of deception. He never externalized his inner thoughts and emotions. This explains why we have no love confession from our beloved seme. He is just at the beginning of opening up. He hasn’t voiced any inner thought in front of the painter. For that, he needs practice and time.

That’s the reason why my favourite chapter in the first season is chapter 39. For the first time, he shows to his servants that they can’t talk to the artist like that behind the master’s back. He is very protective of Baek Na-Kyum. We shouldn’t forget that he was well aware that his domestics were gossiping about him (Yoon Seungho) but he never intervened before. In the chapter 39, he makes a statement: no one is allowed to gossip about the artist and his relationship to the lord. He was very firm about this. And his words were pretty effective because later, Jihwa’s spy has problems to find out what is happening at Yoon Seungho’s mansion.

chapter 41: the servant can only get info through other persons, Yoon Seungho’s domestics don’t dare to gossip any longer. So when the seme voiced his reprimand, they knew that they could no longer ignore the warning.

Moreover, we have the clothes showing Seungho as a man in love but he is still trying to hide these feelings. Furthermore, we get to see the inner thoughts from the main character with the drawing focused on the hand. (Chapter 39) The beholder can detect his jealousy. Then the “pfft” reveals his ultimate happiness but he can only make a sound. He can’t even say it directly to the painter who has his eyes closed. In this chapter, the master is revealing himself the most. He shows his teasing side and his huge sense of responsibility as well. But this huge step forward can be explained that for the first time, Baek Na-Kyum accepted to share his bed with Yoon Seungho. However, this huge progression is stopped due to the events in chapter 41 and 42. Jung In-Hun did damage their relationship. They might have sex together but I believe that Baek Na-Kyum is not spending the night with the lord, like in chapter 37/38. But for that, Seungho needs to voice his true thoughts and feelings. Maybe the poem (see my analysis about the hypotheses for the second season) will help them to get closer again. Seungho likes poetry and it could help him to externalize his love for the painter.

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.

Legs That Won’t Walk: First impressions 🥊

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

Now, you might be a little surprised that my focus is only on the manhwa created by Black Apricot. There is a simple reason for that. I wanted to treat the topic first impressions and its negative or positive impacts. “Legs That Won’t Walk” is really suited for this topic because the manhwa has just started and we are meeting all the characters for the first time. Hence first impressions play a huge role for the readers of this manhwa. First impressions are generally important that’s why the American actor Will Rogers once said

You never get a second chance to make a first impression”.

The American film director Miranda July explained the reason for the significance of first impressions

“People tend to hold on to their first impressions that’s why those first descriptions can be so important. You don’t necessarily look at people that carefully after a while, you just hold on to that early impression.”

Now, you can understand why first impressions play a huge role in people’s life, they help to judge people quickly and serve as an orientation. However, they can be deceiving, especially if someone is making sure to leave a good impression. Therefore many authors condemned first impressions as it is connected to appearance and illusion. Hence Frank Kafka, a German speaking author (1883-1924), wrote

“First impressions are always unreliable”

and even the American comedian Daniel Tosh expressed a harsher opinion about these

“You know who makes a great first impression? Liars.”

In other words, these persons are pointing out that people should always question first impressions as these don’t necessarily reflect being or better said, the true nature of a person and of an action. They can even be fake, just an illusion. Yet we have to remember that first impressions are truly related to our experiences. What the person saw and felt before will lead him/her to perceive people differently later.

So now, let’s take a closer look at the different characters under the perspective of “first impressions”. We have for example Kwon Soo-Young’s employer expressing empathy and pity for the main character.

First, the reader think that he is a nice person because he is not indifferent to the former boxer Kwon Soo-Young. However, what follows is actually that the man is firing our protagonist with the excuse that he can’t bear to see the handicapped man working under these conditions. He explains that he couldn’t find him a desk job at his company hence he doesn’t want him here any longer. He thinks that this kind of job is too tiring and hard for a disabled man. So the supposed good man is forcing the main lead to resign, while the latter never complained about his job conditions. The first impressions of his words can be deceiving, in fact the employer is lying to himself thinking that he is doing a good deed.

chapter 1

He thinks so because he would give Kwon Soo-Young some compensation so that the latter would get money without working. What the boss fails to see is that he is worsening Kwon Soo-Young’s life conditions. Even a benevolent man is not willing to let an injured man work. How can Kwon Soo-Young find a job then? The former employer is treating our protagonist not as a real person because he only perceives the former boxer as a disabled person. All the persons Kwon Soo-Young meets only view his crutch and his weird walking. It was as if his disability had taken over his identity and his existence that’s why the former boxer is so infuriated with their “sorry attitude”. Strictly speaking, first impressions scar the unfortunate man even more.

But the readers have a different impression of our main character because the first thing we see is his fighting spirit as a boxer.

chapter 1

He is a very brave and strong-willed person for although he lost all his fights, he never gave up and kept fighting until he got injured. And this is what defines Kwon Soo-Young. He might be disabled now but he still hasn’t lost his spirit to live and fight. He was willing to work as a package lifter and he still wants to remain independent. The causes for his need of independence and for remaining strong is the abuse he suffered in his childhood.

His father was an alcoholic and abusive parent hence Soo-Young learned through the hard way how to become independent and strong. That’s why he is on his own and has no family. Due to his traumatic childhood related to his father, he learned how to recognize a dangerous person. It is written on person’s face and behavior.

Due to this experience, he fell into Song Si-Jun’s trap, the latter appeared in his life with such a smiling face. He was nice, gentle and caring. However, he never got to see the double personality of his admired hyung, his dark and violent side because the first impressions were deeply engraved in his memory. I haven’t read much of this manhwa but I have the feeling that the constant defeat of Soo-Young’s fights were actually no coincidence and his hyung was behind it. The more the main lead wanted to unleash his anger and fury due to the unfairness in his life, the more he punched into the air because hyung wanted him to rely more and more on him. The offer proposed at the end of the first chapter looks good on the surface.

Hyung seems caring and is willing to sacrifice himself for the protagonist’s sake. Hence we can say that when the hyung appears in the first chapter, the readers are a little fooled by the author. Yet, there are certain signs showing a certain aggressiveness behind Song Si-Jung’s actions. He is kissing Soo-Young, though the latter doesn’t want to and keeps asking the hyung to stop. The latter is ignoring his complains.

Here, he refuses to be kissed but Si-Jung manipulates Soo-Young by saying that his rejection is caused because they are outside on the street which is not correct in reality. Soo-Young doesn’t want his kiss.

Since Soo-Young was hurting his wrist by punching against the wall, I initially had the impression that the former boxer was just emotionally unstable due to his disability. We are close to think that Si-Jung is his savior, the reality differs and the forced kisses were just a small clue.

However, the second chapter already indicates the true personality of the boyfriend. He actually rapes our main character but the uke will never press charges against him because of his first impression left by the boyfriend. During the sexual encounter, Soo-Young sees glimpses of Si-Jung’s dark side

and even gets scared but because of the way they met for the first time and the way hyung seemed to treat him in the past, he can’t really judge Si-Jung correctly. Fact is that his “tempting offer” in the first chapter was just a bait, Si-Jung wanted to bind the uke to him forever. And this would mark the descent to hell. Deep down, Soo-Young felt that he needed to keep his distance from Si-Jung but he could never explain why. That’s why he is torn apart in the chapter 2. On the one hand, he declares to Si-Jung and pushes him away, whereas on the other hand, he went to the boxing club and wished that his hyung would find and help him. Deep down, Soo-Young has already sensed the danger of the offer and the violent personality but he is struggling to admit this because of the first impressions he had about Si-Jung and the experience he made through his abusive father. Bad people will never smile and be caring, they will always be violent. And this leads me to the introduction of the other protagonist: Park Tae-Sung.

chapter 1

The latter is the boss of a mafia gang and he is a loan shark. Soo-Young’s father took a loan from him and now our main character has to reimburse the huge amount of debts left by his despicable father. Striking is that when Park Tae-Sung met our former boxer for the first time, he was sitting on the ground hence he couldn’t see the handicap.

chapter 3

So for the loan shark, the main lead was just a normal citizen, a poor son who got exploited by his father. He expected that the former would beg and plead for more time, yet Soo-Young behaves the opposite to what he envisioned. He shows no fear and defies the boss.

All this incites Park Tae-Sung to beat up the man until he stops resisting. In this moment, the latter recalls his abusive father and has the impression that he has returned to his past. Hopelessness is arousing in him because it looks like he can never escape from this world of violence and abuse. He imagined that boxing would be a way to protect himself but he failed. Tae-Sung reminds him of his alcoholic and brutal father hence he has no good first impressions about him. That’s why at some point he shows no reaction to Tae-Sung’s words and punches so that the latter wonders if something is wrong. It looks like Soo-Young is finally admitting defeat. The poor man’s face is so damaged that even the boss starts showing some concern which contrasts so much to the attitude of Soo-Young’s father. He used violence because he thought he had to so that he would get back the money. Striking is that after seeing his bruised face, Tae-Sung wonders if he hasn’t met him before. And this underlines that so far, Soo-Young hadn’t made any impression on him, he expected that he would behave like the other creditors begging for more time aso. What caught the mafia boss by surprise is the sudden attack of the former boxer. Besides only when he is able to stand up, the chief gets to see Soo-Young’s handicap. As we can observe, the disability has another signification in the gangster’s eyes: he sees it as a strength. Despite his handicap and original disadvantage (position), Soo-Young didn’t fear him and was able to change his situation. The latter is even capable to overcome the mobster’s strength. At some point, he stands up in front of the gangster before going after him.

Whereas average people reduced him to his handicap and saw it as a burden, Park Sae-Tung judged it differently. He was so impressed therefore he hires him. Observe the huge contrast between the beginning of the chapter 3 and later. Soo-Young was first lying on the ground with his hands tied together, at the end his hands are freed and he stands in front of Park Tae-Sung and even assaults him. Despite the beating, Soo-Young never gave up, although he was so close to surrender. Moreover he’s taking it out on him, all his resent and hatred is directed at the boss. It was as if Tae-Sung had become his punching ball. The mobster is impressed by the man’s attitude and fighting spirit and doesn’t get angry because of his reactions.

So Tae-Sung has a very good impression of Soo-Young hence he wants to keep him by his side. On the other hand, Park Tae-Sung’s initial behavior left a negative image on the former boxer as he was reminded of his own abusive father due to the beating. No wonder, if the disabled man calls him a bastard. This explains why the main lead is not accepting any sign of kindness from Tae-Sung. That’s the reason why Tae-Sung will have to show his good will and intentions by treating him well for a long time so that Soo-Young can start trusting him.

Then we have the gangster Lee Min-Hyuk with a handsome face. He stands so much in contrast to the other minion because he looks less muscular and is quite passive whereas his colleague Mr. Kim is torturing a man in order to get info about Zu You Long, their enemy. He doesn’t seem like a mobster due to his smile and his passivity. He appears at the end of the episode 4 but the readers get to know him better in the 5th episode.

What caught my attention is his admiration for his boss, Park Tae-Sung. We actually get a good introduction of Park Tae-Sung through Min-Hyuk’s perception, just like the pictures above illustrate it. Lee Min-Hyuk sees Park Tae-Sung as a hardworking boss who was able to gain respect thanks to his ruthlessness. This doesn’t bother the second character at all, it is quite the opposite. Hence behind his gentle manners, Lee Min-Hyuk should be judged as someone as ruthless and violent as his boss, since he views him as his model. He even says it himself.

“We need someone like him”.

The first impression we have is that Min-Hyuk is a trustworthy and reliable minion who listens to his boss pretty well and I must confess that this admiration makes me wonder if Lee Min-Hyuk will betray his boss at some point because of our main character Kwon Soo-Young. But this is just a speculation from my part.

After hearing about the new “employee”, Lee Min-Hyuk starts imaging the face of the new recruit. He is curious about the identity of the man who could impress his boss so much, which is really unusual for him. It is quite funny because in his mind, it is either an old but experienced minion or a woman. That’s why the handsome minion is so surprised to encounter a man with a baby face.

And for the first time, he starts doubting his chief’s decision hence he needs to test the man. The latter has not only a baby face but also is standing on a crutch. So the appearances leave a negative impression on Lee Min-Hyuk. Only after feeling the strength in the grip, he realizes the former boxer’s force.

Imagine that Min-Hyuk is not spared and his hand is hurting after the little struggle. He has to admit defeat and he never expected it from such a man. That’s the moment he wants to get to know the man.

On the other hand, what Min-Hyuk fails to recognize is that he also has a similar face, he doesn’t look so manly compared to Tae-Sung, Mr. Kim and the other minions. Furthermore, he lost the “fight” against Soo-Young while they were messing their strength. Hence for Kwon Soo-Young, Lee Min-Hyuk seems to be weak compared to him and Mr. Kim. Appearances can indeed be deceiving, because this first impression of Lee Min-Hyuk on the disabled man will affect their relationship in the future.

When angry minions barge in the room because they want to get revenge on the former boxer for punching them and humiliating their boss, Soo-Young feels the need to protect Lee Min-Hyuk.

But since the latter has worked for Park Tae-Sung for a long time, we can assume that he can definitely protect himself. Lee Min-Hyuk who had been impressed by the fist fight earlier, is definitely attracted by the man. He is already admiring him for his force and fighting spirit. That’s why he calls him “hyung” indicating that he is submitting himself. He is deeply impressed and even fascinated, just like his boss. He continues wondering what could have caught his boss’ interest. As you can see, Lee Min-Hyuk had a false image of the former boxer first but corrected it very quickly. However, it is not the same for Kwon Soo-Young. The latter perceives Lee Min-Hyuk as someone who is physically weaker and didn’t protect himself correctly, when the main character assaulted him because he thought that the angry minions were coming back. So will this first impression be corrected in the future? How much will this affect his relationship with Lee Min-Hyuk?

As a conclusion, the introduction of all the important figures in Legs That Won’t Walk were all somehow affected by first impressions. The mobsters misjudged Kwon Soo-Young, just like the latter didn’t perceive the vicious and manipulative side of his boyfriend Song Si-Jung. So what Miranda July and Kafka said was proven correct in this manhwa.

Strangely, only Park Tae-Sung was able to see Kwon Soo-Young’s true personality without any prejudice. He only discovered his disability after the former boxer had freed himself. No wonder, why he has the impression to have met him before. I suspect that the boss must have felt connected to the boxer due to his unleashed emotions (hatred, resent). I have the feeling that he must have experienced something similar in the past. Maybe they had similar childhoods. But here, these are just suppositions from my side. And we have to wonder if Will Roger’s words are correct, when it comes to Lee Min-Hyuk. Will he get a second chance to change the first impression he made on our main character?

Feel free to comment or to give any suggestion for an analysis (topic, manhwas). If you enjoyed reading it, either retweet it or push the button “like” so that this writing doesn’t become pointless. Thanks for the support.

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

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:

  1. 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.
  2. The lord sent the low-born to his own tailor so that he could get expensive winter clothes
  3. 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.

chapter 39

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:

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

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/

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.

chapter 7

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 8
chapter 9

(chapter 10),

(chapter 12)

chapter 16
Chapter 18
Here, in the chapter 19 Jung In-Hun discovers the truth about the painting and the deal

(chapter 20)

undefined (chapter 29)

chapter 34
chapter 35
chapter 35
chapter 37
chapter 41
chapter 44

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.

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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,

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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,

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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.

undefined 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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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 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

chapter 7

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!

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Painter Of The Night: Seungho’s weaknesses

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/

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After reading the title, you are probably thinking that this analysis will be about his tragic past. But no… not really, as my focus will be what makes the lord happy and unhappy. As you know, weakness can be negative or positive, like for example chocolate is my weakness and as such many weaknesses are connected to the low-born. Thus I chose different scenes as illustration for my affirmations concerning this topic.

Right from the start, we can observe how Baek Na-Kyum’s face become Seungho’s first and important weakness. He is literally glued to the painter’s face, in particular his hair and his eyes. That’s why in chapter 1, the noble is willing to lower himself and touch his face the moment he sees the painter crying.

Chapter 1

Look how gentle and caring he is in this situation, although they have just met. He acts in a similar manner in chapter 26 after the forced sex. He doesn’t like it, when the painter is crying so much.

Chapter 26

Here he does show some concern again with the same tenderness. Moreover, the image of the painter’s face full of tears (from the chapter 1) left a deep impression on the main lead so that while having sex with Jihwa at the pavilion, he remembers the artist’s visage. (chapter 3). Fact is that he is so drawn to his face that he can’t help himself to caress the lips or cheek (e. g. chapter 12)

or the hair (chapter 16)

(chapter 35). As you can observe, the master is so attracted by the painter’s beautiful head and face that he always looks at him and even feels the need to touch him. Furthermore, the seme made sure that the commoner would keep his pretty visage without a scar that’s why the former asked Kim to put the ointment directly on his lips after the straw mat beating. This signifies that he even ordered medicine for a simple commoner outlining that Seungho was willing to do anything as he was attracted to his face. And let us not forget that this happened before the seme and the uke made love. The obsession for his face is also confirmed directly by the noble, when in the chapter 31, the protagonist declares that he knows that Baek Na-Kyum has been attracted to him.

Chapter 31

This is a proof that his eyes were literally fixed on the artist all the time, even when he was having sex with others. I sense that the eyes are the biggest attraction for the main lead which I will explain further later.

I believe that beauty is not just the only explanation for his fascination. Baek Na-Kyum is so transparent which the noble feels refreshing. Despite the lies and the insolence, Yoon Seungho is capable to perceive the young man’s innocence. Everything in him is exuding sincerity. However, even if the low-born is so easy to read, as time passed on, he becomes the biggest puzzle to solve. Even at some point, Seungho has reached the point that he has to admit that he can’t win this guy over. Imagine, the powerful and fearless lord was almost defeated by such a pure commoner. Why does he find his transparency so interesting? It is related to the world and society he grew up with. All the nobles we saw are or were scheming and manipulative. His so called friends like Min made the “suggestion” to Jihwa to kill the “lover” and the red-haired noble Jihwa played a trick on Baek Na-Kyum by damaging a painting. Then the teacher Jung In-Hun is so fake that he copied more or less a poem from a famous poet and finally his own father betrayed him too. He experienced treachery from his closest relative hence he mistrusts nobility generally. That’s why he doesn’t care about standard morals and etiquette as they are fake. Yoon Seungho is very cautious with people from the same social status, since he has got used to their fakings and schemes. The lord had already felt the naturality and genuineness in those paintings, then he experienced it again with the painter. The latter stands in opposition to the nobles Seungho mingles.

But the lord is not just weak in front of the artist’s face, eyes and his purity, he has a softness for his reddening and tears. Unlike Jihwa who hides his feelings and thoughts behind his closed eyes, his smiles and his rude remarks, Seungho is able to see honest and natural emotions on someone’s face for the first time. As you can observe, the facial expressions are another reason why Seungho fell for the genuine artist. He is able to see that Baek Na-Kyum can’t control his emotions and thoughts. For the first time, our seme is confronted with real emotions through the facial expressions and the gaze. And it definitely helps him to reconnect to his own feelings which had been repressed for so long. Therefore as the story evolves, the more expressions the lord is able to make: he smiles more (chapter 12)/ (chapter 35), his eyes are shining or if he is so angry, his gaze gets so dark.

chapter 28

It was as if his eyes became weapons so that he would kill someone with them. (chapter 30). The beholder is witnessing more and more expressions coming from the lord, while he was so detached in the beginning, when he was sitting in his room looking out of the window. Through Baek Na-Kyum, our seme learns to discover his inner emotions, that’s why we can say that the uke serves as a mirror unconsciously. The eyes were definitely working as a mirror. Baek Na-Kyum showed his sadness, true desires, anger, happiness and thankfulness… a full range of different emotions. But our seme needed to learn how to control them as he had not been used to feel anything for a long time.

But let’s return to the observation mentioned above. Seungho falls for Baek Na-Kyum’s blushing. Each time, he sees the man reddening because of him, he is happy or feels better, just like in the chapter 35.

Chapter 35

Although he was terribly fatigued, he couldn’t restrain himself from smiling, when he saw (chapter 35) the painter’s reaction. I could use the scene in chapter 39 as another example. In that scene below, he hears from the low-born that he is blushing because of him.

chapter 39

That’s why he starts teasing him. So this blushing is first connected to his face and secondly to his honesty, which reinforces the idea that the face as such plays a huge part in his falling in love.

The other weakness is that simple words coming from Baek Na-Kyum have a great impact on the protagonist. He is so affected by his comments that he behaves differently. First, he is truly bothered by Baek Na-Kyum’s critic, when the latter reminded him that he was just a man consumed by lust. (chapter 5) Hence he can’t even have sex with Jihwa the same day. Let us not forget that these words were told the day before and the noble had not taken these too seriously. However, this time the critic is not said because the uke is upset but because he is serious. During their exchange, the low-born is trying to say the opposite: he is not a man consumed by lust. So he is lying, yet as I mentioned before, the lies are so transparent that they are no real lies. In other words, the uke didn’t realize that he was in reality reproaching the man to be obsessed with sex. The innocent reminder did the trick. Seungho has now something to think deeply.

chapter 5

Then we have this terrible scene in the bathroom (chapter 26), where Baek Na-Kyum is brutally honest with the lord. While the latter tried to put the blame on the artist that everything happened, because he had accepted the proposal and mistaken him for the teacher, then the low-born replies with such a honesty that Seungho can no longer hide from the truth:

Chapter 26

He dares to tell the tyrannical master that he is the one responsible and deep down, the lord knows that he is right. Remember that he didn’t respond to the kiss immediately in chapter 20. Look now how shocked the noble is. His honesty makes it impossible to reply. He is left speechless. No one has ever dared to be so frank and he knows that deep down he can not deny it. Then Baek Na-Kyum yells at him how much he hates him.

Chapter 26

This triggers the lord to grab his sword and announce him that he is about to kill someone.

Chapter 26

He doesn’t even need to give the identity of the future victim. As you can observe, Baek Na-Kyum’s words have such a power over the lord. He can’t help but react to these reproaches or critics. If we compare this confrontation to the one with Jihwa, we can perceive a huge difference. Seungho is always able to reply and even have the final words, whereas it is not the case with Baek Na-Kyum. And in each time, the painter’s gaze played a huge part in it. Here, he could see the hatred reflecting in these eyes and he couldn’t bear looking at them any longer. He had no response to this harsh reply. Then the most important scene where the beholder can witness the power of Baek Na-Kyum’ s words is in chapter 41. While crying, he begs the lord to leave him alone. He uses the imperative twice so he acts as if he has the upper hand. He gets so upset that he ends up yelling at him.

Chapter 41

Furthermore, with his words he is rejecting the lord’s presence. However, Seungho kept holding his hand and forced the young man to show his face because he wanted to see his eyes and facial expressions. Pay attention to the first facial expression when he observes the painter crying.

Chapter 41

He is honestly worried and must feel the urge to console him. That’s why he wants to look at the painter’s face because he knows that his facial expressions will reveal the cause of his distress that’s why he refused to listen to him. Here, he acts like a lover full of concern for the painter. However, the way he is rejected upsets the master. I believe the slap was triggered for two reasons. Until chapter 41, we always saw the protagonist being very lenient towards the uke’s boldness. By reminding him of his status, Baek Na-Kyum can’t push the man away. As you see, he used the slap as a way to stay by the painter’s side. Furthermore the reproach Baek Na-Kyum expressed that he did everything he wanted. He was following his order: he painted as requested. However, Seungho was no longer interested in the paintings. He is longing for the commoner’s love. So here again, the noble is reminded of their actual situation. The painter is just an employee hired by him. The words Baek Na-Kyum screamed provoked a certain reaction: he used his status in order to be able not to follow the painter’s wish, besides the uke’s words did reflect the truth. They had a master-servant relationship. On the other hand, the lord wanted to comfort him in the beginning, until he saw the picture of In-Hun and comes to a different conclusion. He believes initially that it is related to the departure of the teacher, then that the painter has been asked to sleep with the lord on In-Hun’s request.

The other weakness is Baek Na-Kyum’s erection. The rich man is desperate to be the cause of his erection. Hence he tries to stimulate him in chapter 31.

Chapter 31

The expression “for me” at the end of the sentence emphasizes the expectation of the noble. He wants to be the cause of his sexual desires. Now, you can understand why the lord was so happy to see that the commoner had an erection because of him in the chapter 36. We all know that the real trigger for his erection is the aphrodisiac but if he hadn’t been sexually aroused by the lord before, I doubt that this would have ever happened.

Chapter 36

That’s why he is smiling with this erection. He is still careful in this chapter because he knows about the weak constitution of painter but he is very insecure about Baek Na-Kyum. He has no idea how he could improve their relationship. So the erection helps him to provoke pleasure in his sex partner. He knows that it is important for the uke to feel ecstasy so that he will be accepted as his partner.

In other words, Baek Na-Kyum seems to be his weakness: his face, his eyes, his facial expressions, his words and his genuineness are the causes why he fell hard for the painter. But this is not the end. The protagonist has other weaknesses which were revealed in the first season: the shaking hand, the nightmare and the insomnia. They are all mostly related to his family and past. Striking is that only Baek Na-Kyum is able to witness all these reactions. He saw the exhausted face in the chapter 35, (chapter 35) indicating a certain lack of sleep, then the shaking hand with the fist,

chapter 37

while the lord was talking in a confident manner in front of his brother Seung-Won. He is definitely hurt by the request from his brother because he is reminded of his own past. Yet he can’t reveal anything: his own suffering and what really happened back then. He has to suppress everything and the shaking hand with the fist outlines the resent and frustration. Finally, he asks the young man to sleep with him. He hugs him in his sleep, however he seems to suffer from a nightmare.

Chapter 38

Yet he has to hide all of this in front of his servants and other nobles because this could be used against him. He is not allowed to reveal his vulnerability. I come to the conclusion that his hidden vulnerability represents another weakness.

Yet, though the painter has become the biggest weakness for Yoon Seungho who fell in love with him, I believe that he will become his biggest strength. Yoon Seungho will be forced to leave his lethargy behind and even to meddle with politics and officials, since Baek Na-Kyum has been able to evoke true protective instincts. Therefore the weaknesses I listed above are actually positive aspects. All of this proves the deepness of the master’s affection. This is not just a physical relationship.

On the other hand, it seems that the lord’s vulnerability will be one of the reasons for Baek Ny-Kyum to fall in love with the lord. First, he was already attracted to him right from the start. Secondly, he noticed the straightforwardness of the lord. He never deceived him (even with the warnings and the blackmail) so that at some point he even started listening to his words. Because of him, he starts questioning the teacher’s true intentions. He has finally accepted to be by Yoon Seungho’s side. I also think that in the second season, Baek Na-Kyum will discover new sides from the lord: his intelligence and education. I am even expecting that Yoon Seungho teachs the uke himself how to read and write so that he can be called “learned sir” and replaces the teacher totally.