Throughout the novel, various female characters have told Sunja that women suffer. They usually make this sound like a consolation, as if Sunja is not alone in her suffering at that moment because half the world's population suffers too.
To be honest, I'm not sure how I feel about this mentality. On on hand, when so much of Pachinko has to do with belonging, and when Sunja so often feels alone, it might be comforting for her to think of herself as part of a larger community who feels what she feels. The phrase also retracts the blame in any situation from the woman. It makes the suffering not seem to be her fault and in doing so may reduce self-hatred and shame.
However, the saying "women suffer" classifies this suffering as an unfortunate inevitability. I think this is dangerous because it makes it seem like a lifetime of suffering is something women just have to accept and deal with, rather than actively work to dismantle. "Women suffer" is pacifying in this way, it encourages apathy and negates social justice.
Finally, the phrase specifying that women suffer automatically calls a comparison with the suffering of men. I am not sure what the women who say this, and Min Jin Lee herself, are trying to imply. Are they insinuating that the women of Pachinko suffer more than men? Or are they trying to raise awareness that women also suffer, and even if that suffering isn't as obvious as dying on a battlefield or being the main financial provider of the family, it still exists and deserves to be recognized. I'm curious what y'all think: in Pachinko, does "women suffer" mean "women suffer more" or "women suffer too"?
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