Another great one from the LTI Korea/Dalkey Archive’s collection of novels!
Lee Ki-ho’s At Least We Can Apologize is narrated by the simpleminded Jin-man, institutionalized as a young boy by his father. The institution he was left in is a horrible place, lorded over by two caretakers — nephews of the superintendent who runs it — who regularly beat and otherwise abuse the patients. Not knowing any other kind of life, Jin-man has rationalized what happens there; along with his buddy, Si-bong, he has come to expect the beatings and to play the role he believes is expected of him. Often they don’t know what they are supposed to have done wrong and even invent wrongs to confess to the caretakers — though if they invent a wrong they then deliberately commit it in the service of “fairness.” This, in fact, leads to the caretakers appointing them as “apologizers” for the other inmates, and this starts a bizarre chain of events that results in two suicides.
