Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Girl with Seven Names, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Oppression, Human Rights, and North Korea
Identity and Nationality
Family
Kindness
Summary
Analysis
At the immigration office, Hyeonseo is told that she must make an official request to see Mother and Min-ho. She spends the next week bribing the officers with money and cigarettes, and then she must call Kim in Seoul and ask him to wire her more money. He agrees, and seven days later, Hyeonseo is allowed inside the women’s prison to see Mother; however, she won’t be able to see Min-ho on the men’s side.
Kim’s willingness to wire Hyeonseo money in Laos is more proof of kindness and compassion in the world. Like North Korea, the Laotian government is terribly corrupt, and they extort all of Hyeonseo’s money out of her, which again demonstrates how oppression follows vulnerable people like Hyeonseo everywhere.
Themes
Prison officials tell Hyeonseo it will take at least six months and $5,000 to get Mother and Min-ho out of prison. She finally talks them down to $700 a piece, but she still doesn’t have enough money. Plus, she realizes, her own visa is about to expire. Hyeonseo is told she can travel to Vientiane, the capital of Laos, and apply for a new visa, but this too will cost her several hundred dollars. Hyeonseo doesn’t know what to do, so she throws her head back and closes her eyes. Then, a kind English voice interrupts her thoughts. “Are you a traveler?” the voice asks.
The difficulties Hyeonseo faces in Laos and the extreme expense of both the bribe and her travel visa underscores the privilege implied in traveling through the country; it’s only a simple process for people with ample resources. Hyeonseo doesn’t have any money, and Mother and Min-ho are both refugees seeking asylum, and their situation highlights the human rights violations against North Koreans, even in Laos. Furthermore, there is a huge difference between $5,000 and $700, which implies just how corrupt the Laotian government is.
Themes
