10 5 Ey 25 ‘Work in Translation Extmct “The Vegetarian’ Hang Kang, [My fuer-in-taw mashed the pork to pp on my wife's lips as she struggled in agony. Though he parted he ips with his strong fingers, he could do nothing about her clenched teeth, "Eventually e lew into passion agnin, and struck her in the face once more, father!” “Though In-hye sprang at him and help him by the wast, jn the instant that the force of the slap had knocked my wife's ‘mouth open he'd managed to jam the por in. As soon as the strength in Yeong-ho's arms was visibly exhausted, my wife ‘growled and spat out the meat. An animal ery of distress burst fom her lips. “og away!” At firs, se drew up her shoulders and seemed about to ‘loo in the direction of the front door, but then she turned back and picked up the fut knife that had been lying on the ining table. “Yeong-tye?” My motherindaw's voice, which seemed bout to break, drew a trembling line though the brutal silence. The children burst into nosy sobbing, unable to suppress it any longer. Jaw clenched, er intent stare facing each one of us down Tn turn, my wife brandished the knife. "Stop het.” "Stay back!” Blood ribboned out of her wrist. The shock of red splashed ‘over white china,10 20 Language A Extract ‘Surfacing’ Margaret Atvood tue the mitor around: in it there's a reste ne ‘her animal nor human, fares, only a dirty blanket, shoulders huddled over into a erouch, eyes staring bie as ice from the deep sackets; the lips move by themselves. ‘This was the stereotype, straws in the hai, talking non at all To have someone to speak to and words that ean be understood: ther definition of | sanity ‘That isthe real danger now, the hospital or the 200, ‘where we are put, species and individuals, when we ean no longer cope. They would never believe it's only a natural ‘Woman, state of nature, they think of that as tanned. body om beach with washed hair waving like scarves; nat this, face di-eakod and steaked, skin grimed and seabby, har ke a frayed bathmat stuck with leaves and twigs. A new kindof entrefol, ‘ag anda nose comes out like something being killed: a mouse, bed? This above a that I ean do nothing. Ihave to rcant, give up the old to refuse to e a victim. Unless I ean do belie that Iam powerless and because of it nothing I ean do will ever hurt anyone. A lie which was always more dis- astous than the ruth would have been, The word games, ‘the winning and losing games are finished.