An expression of color psychology and human consciousness: Deconstructing the binarism of white color in Han Kang's the white book

Abstract

From time immemorial, human beings have tried to uncover the meaning of their existence. Philosophers and scientists alike have tried to answer the puzzling questions on human consciousness. Consciousness can be considered as the most familiar yet the most mysterious aspect of human lives. Human consciousness is often the outcome of what we see and what we perceive. The colors that we see around us can have a great impact on our moods and feelings. Color Psychology studies how hues determine human behavior, moods and feelings. In literary texts, especially in the autobiographical ones, authors have tried to express their self, identity, consciousness and their mental and physical beings through symbols and binarisms. The dichotomies in the society in which one lives affect the existence of the individual. Binary opposites are considered as 'western construct'. French anthropologist Levi Strauss, who is considered as the father of modern anthropology, proposed the theory of binary opposites and spoke about how books and media use binary opposites to strengthen their plot, develop narratives and bring about contrasts. Han Kang in her semi-autobiographical novel, The White Book, has extensively used the color 'white' to express her moods, feelings, memories and thoughts. White is a color that comprises of all the other colors in the color spectrum. The white color is usually associated with peace, purity and hope. On the contrary, it also symbolizes death, detachment, disinterest and dryness. This dichotomy is used very beautifully throughout the novel. The current paper thus tries to deconstruct the binarisms of the color white as used in the novel, The White Book. The paper also tries to examine how color psychology affects human behavior and consciousness.