Third space and integrity of reconciliation in Han Kang’s human acts

Abstract

Han Kang’s Human Acts (2014) explores the clouded boundaries between life and death, authority and rebellion, and presence and absence. This study examines how characters like Dong-ho and Jeong-dae embody the tension between legitimate and illegitimate power, reflecting on how these blurred lines affect individual identity and collective resistance. Using a qualitative textual analysis grounded in Gloria Anzaldúa’s Borderlands Theory and Homi K. Bhabha’s concept of liminal space, the research argues that conflict resolution lies in recognizing the "in-between"—a "transitional space where binaries collapse and transformation occurs. The study portrays how the merging of symbolic and physical spaces and the blurring of power structures reveal a third space where social rupture can be understood and healed. Ultimately, the study underscores how identifying this liminal zone helps dismantle rigid hierarchies and opens possibilities for collective renewal and emotional catharsis. Posthumous narration blurs the line between life and death, the transformation of the soul obliterates physical and symbolic space, and a role reversal blurs the authoritative and unauthoritative power. Recognition of the liminal space, in other words, the third space, minimizes territorial conflict, maximizes the financial and power-related boundaries that, in turn, synchronize national and international relations among people.