Color of Earth
Kim Dong Hwa’s Color of Earth is the first in a coming-of-age trilogy about a young girl and her mother. Ehwa and her mother run a local tavern in pastoral Korea. Dong Hwa uses the narrative to explore what his mother’s childhood may have been like. The trilogy follows Ehwa from youthful innocence and exploration to her marriage. The text is marked with frank conversations with her mother about bodies, sexuality, and social expectations. Her mother certainly isn’t conventional as she is single, is verbally harassed by those visiting the tavern due to her unmarried status, and has an ongoing sexual relationship with a painter who visits her when he is able. The mother’s confidence in the life she lives is passed on to Ehwa as the mother doesn’t recoil from questions about genitalia but answers the questions poetically. Discussing bodies in nature metaphors may be seen to indicate shame surrounding the body, but these metaphors are consistent throughout the text regardless of subject matter, indicating that they are a cultural way of approaching the world rather than a way to hide from uncomfortable subjects and teach using half-truths.
The artwork of the text stands out in its use of simplistic faces and rich, almost photo realistic backdrops. Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics second chapter suggests that this is a common style found in Asian comics. There are sweeping scenes of Ehwa walking through fields that leave readers with a sense of peace and openness in her life rather than loneliness and exile. Ehwa’s childhood is not without stress or conflict, but the attention and comfort of her homelife gives her a way to process challenges as she comes to a better understanding of herself and the world.
The text’s approach to sex and bodies has frequently led to it being criticized for being inappropriate for younger age groups. As a college instructor, these concerns are less worrisome in my classroom. However, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has covered the issue well and discusses the text in a balanced manner showing its merits as well as the scrutiny it has received. For my classroom, the text provides an opportunity to discuss multicultural feminism and approaching texts with openness for the values the country of origin holds rather than holding the text to American expectations. Multiple students have selected this text to research Korean feminism, coming to a greater appreciation of how the movement differs there and how this text can be viewed through a feminist lens.
