The Origin of Species 종의 기원

The Origin of Species 종의 기원
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In her groundbreaking novel The Origin of Species, acclaimed author Jeong You-jeong, known for her powerful narratives and psychological insight, turns her gaze inward. Following the success of 28, this new work is what the author calls “the birth story of a villain”—a chilling descent into the making of a killer. Abandoning distant or fantastical worlds, Jeong instead invites the reader deep into the human psyche, meticulously exposing the anatomy of evil from within. Life Pattern Korea.
After losing his father and older brother in a tragic accident, sixteen-year-old Yoojin begins taking a mysterious medication prescribed by his aunt, a psychiatrist. Though once a rising star in competitive swimming, he collapses mid-race after secretly stopping the pills, ending his athletic career. Under the stifling control of his strict mother and the unsettling surveillance of his aunt, Yoojin finds small escapes by sneaking out at night—only when he's off his meds. Life Pattern Korea.
One morning, after a night of withdrawal-induced mania, Yoojin receives a call from Haejin, his adoptive brother who replaced the deceased sibling. Their mother has gone missing. As Yoojin stirs from bed, he discovers his room—and his body—covered in blood. Following the trail, he descends from his room to the living room and is met with the gruesome sight of his mother’s murdered body. Life Pattern Korea.
In The Origin of Species, Jeong doesn’t just write about evil—she becomes it. Dissatisfied with past portrayals of villains in her earlier works, she constructs Yoojin as a “pure psychopath,” belonging to the top 1% in terms of clinical severity. To write him, she dismantled the moral and ethical framework ingrained in her since childhood, diving into how evil is formed, triggered, and evolved. Life Pattern Korea. Through Yoojin’s story, Jeong urges us to confront “the dark forest” within all of us. Her goal is not just to horrify, but to offer a tool for recognizing, understanding, and confronting the predator within ourselves, in others, and in society. Life Pattern Korea.
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Author: 정유정
Publisher: 은행나무 EunHaengNaMu (2016)
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