Gendered trauma in Korean cinema: Peppermint Candy and My Own Breathing

<jats:p> <jats:italic>Peppermint Candy</jats:italic> (1999) and <jats:italic>My Own Breathing</jats:italic> (1999) are privileged texts for understanding the historical burdens of Korean society. These films touch upon key traumas in modern Korean history: the Gwangju Uprising and the plight of the comfort women during the colonial era. I argue that the trauma played out in <jats:italic>Peppermint Candy</jats:italic>, under the pretence of progressive political historiography, renders women's traumas invisible and unrepresentable in public discourse. <jats:italic>My Own Breathing</jats:italic>, on the other hand, presents an alternative way of approaching the historical trauma of comfort women.</jats:p>