[Lee Jong-gil's Movie Reading] The Despair of the American Dream, Hope That Finally Took Root

Director Lee Isaac Chung's film 'Minari'
Husband desires economic success, wife prioritizes education and healthcare
Depicts immigrant family overcoming conflicts... Minari grown by grandmother symbolizes hope

Arkansas, a state in the United States, is an unfamiliar administrative region to us. Its name sounds strange, and nothing particular comes to mind. The local license plates read "The Natural State." Its nickname is also "The Sunflower State," suggesting there is nothing especially remarkable about it. Arkansas is a word from the Caddo language, meaning "land of the people who live downstream." The French settled there while farming along the Mississippi River basin.

In the movie Minari, the couple Jacob (Steven Yeun) and Monica (Han Ye-ri) also start farming. Director Lee Isaac Chung does not explain why they moved from California. We only hear a conversation indicating that chick sexing alone was not enough to achieve their dreams. Jacob desires economic success, while Monica prioritizes education and healthcare. Their conflicting dreams deepen into conflicts in the remote rural community where farmers gather.

◆An American and Korean Story

The realistic approach to the couple’s conflict is inevitably American. This country has developed through immigration of various ethnicities and races. Most people’s homelands are countries other than the United States. They share only residence and citizenship, without a common history or culture. This tendency intensified after the 1965 abolition of the national origin quota system for immigration.

The biggest beneficiaries of the quota abolition were Asian and Hispanic communities. In 1970, white Americans made up 88% of the total population, while Hispanics and Asians accounted for only 1.4%. However, by the 1980 census, the background of Minari, whites had decreased to 83%, and Hispanics and Asians had increased to 7.1%. By 2050, it is projected that whites will be 53%, Hispanics 24%, and Asians 9%.

Despite racial and cultural diversity, Americans have maintained unity as one nation. The Trump administration’s comprehensive anti-immigration policies caused some division. But generally, people live together without damaging each other’s identities. Immigrants have either fully assimilated into the established American society or become Americans without losing their identities. Jacob and Monica belong to the latter group. This is why Minari resonates with us as well.

◆The American Dream

Jacob cultivates a wasteland into farmland. Paul (Will Patton), who delivers the tractor, works with him. Paul says at their first meeting, "If you let me work here, I’ll work so hard I won’t even sleep. I’m good at what I do. (...) I knew we’d be friends the moment I saw you. Can I pray?" "What did you say?" "Thank you. Thank you, God. Bless this family. Bless this sacred meeting. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah."

He is a typical Protestant, the foundation of the American Dream. He shows both strong labor and ascetic attitudes. Paul believes that salvation comes only if one maintains strict self-control and a cold attitude toward life. So he avoids alcohol and cigarettes, wears a cross every Sunday, and repents. He also confirms his faith through hard work. At that time, Protestantism encouraged the pursuit of wealth as a way to glorify God. It emphasized secular asceticism and regarded profit-seeking as God’s will.

The noble value of this concept has long been lost. Paul is mocked by neighborhood children. "There goes the cross guy." "He has dirty wounds on his face and pooped in a basin." As capitalism intensified, the achievements of immigrants were ignored. The Trump administration’s promotion of racial prejudice even caused social division. Thus, the American Dream became a thing of the past.

◆The Goose Couple

Jacob keeps trying even after failing at farming. Monica tries to dissuade him, but he insists on staying in Arkansas. "Can’t you come with me? I can’t live without you." "You’re the one who wants to leave. (...) The kids should see their dad accomplish something at least once." "For what? Isn’t being together more important?" "You go and do whatever you want. Even if I lose everything, I have to finish what I started here."

His declaration as a "goose husband" is a foreseen decision. When his son David (Alan Kim) sees smoke at the chick hatchery and asks, "What is that?" Jacob replies, "They’re disposing of the males there. (...) Males don’t taste good. They don’t lay eggs. They’re useless. So you have to be useful." The hwatu (Korean card game) that David receives from his grandmother Soon-ja (Youn Yuh-jung) also hints at this. Director Chung shows a close-up of the August Gong San Myeong Wol (空山明月) hwatu card, which depicts a dark reed field where geese fly by.

Originally, geese symbolize marital harmony. Once paired, they never separate. A person left alone is called a "goose without a mate." If one dies, the survivor lives alone until death. Perhaps Jacob and Monica keep repeating what they said when they married because they dreamed of being such a goose couple: "Let’s go to America and save each other."