Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood

Examine the generational conflict in Lost Names, especially as Mr. Kim depicts them in “In the Making of History—Together.” Is Mr. Kim’s assessment correct? Is it fair to his and his father’s generations?

In school, Kim receives terrible treatment from the Japanese teachers. Examine instances of cruelty from the Japanese colonists. What does this reveal about the nature of colonial occupation?

Analyze the interactions Mr. Kim has with both his fellow Koreans and Japanese officials. What does this reveal about his character and his society?

A large goal of the Japanese colonial occupation of Korea was to quash Korean culture in order to force assimilation into Japanese culture. Examine the ways that the Japanese colonial forces do this in Lost Names. In what ways do Kim and his fellow Koreans resist this cultural dominance?

Kim’s narrative focuses on the men in his life; the society he depicts is decidedly patriarchal. However, Kim relies on his mother’s memories to reflect on many parts of his story. What roles do women play in Lost Names? How are these roles different than those of the men?

Kim never reveals what his father did to be imprisoned by the Japanese after college. What evidence does Kim give about Mr. Kim’s “crime?” What effects does it have on his family’s life years later? How does Mr. Kim address his son about it? What does it reveal about his character?

In the preface of the novel, Kim states that he wants to focus on the “remembrance of things lost.” Why is this important to Kim? How does this factor into the way he recounts events from his life in Lost Names?

Analyze the different teachers Kim has throughout his school years. What do their actions expose about the Japanese authorities and the Koreans who work for them?