Bibliography: Park, Linda Sue. 2000. The Kite Fighters. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN 0395940419Plot Summary: Young-Sup is a strong kite flier. His older brother Kee-Sup can design a kite out of paper and wood that is fit for a king. Together they make a strong pair. They can't wait to showcase their talent at the next New Year kite competition. One problem stands in their way- the centuries-old tradition requiring the younger brother to stand behind his older brother. Young-Sup knows he is better than his older brother, but can they convince their father of this?
Critical Analysis (Including Cultural Markers):
The Kite Fighters takes place in Seoul, Korea in 1473. It is the story of two young brothers who live under the Confucion rule which dictates filial law (how a child shows respect to his parents). Kee-sup and Young-sup are brothers. The eldest son, Kee-sup, is heir to all of the privileges and responsibilities of the “House of Lee”. It is Young-sup’s duty to help his brother regardless of what he wants or desires.
Kee-sup’s capping ceremony occurs at the beginning of the kite season. This is an important rite in the Korean culture. The family dresses in their finest clothes, scrolls are hung, and they have a celebration feast. During the capping ceremony, Kee-sup’s hair was “twisted upward and around itself until it formed a smooth knot on the top of his head”. A plain narrow ribbon is tied around the chin. Formal bows are made, and the ceremony concludes with the shedding of his bright jacket and the donning of “the white clothes of adulthood”. Once a boy has his capping ceremony he is treated like an adult. Young-sup struggles with treating him like an adult rather than his oldest brother.
Kee-sup can make exquisite kites, but he is not very good at flying them. Young-sup cannot make a kite, but he can ‘feel’ the movement of the kite and can always get one to fly. The annual kite fighting contest is approaching, and Young-sup wants to participate, but it is tradition for the eldest son to represent the family. Young-sup will have to obey the traditions and let his brother compete if that is what he wants.
After earning a new reel for his kite, Young-sup and Kee-sup go out to the hillside to fly their tiger kites. It is here they cross paths with the King, who is just eleven-years-old. (“The custom and law of the land dictated that his son become King in his place. That was the natural order of things.” When His Majesty the King died suddenly his son was only eight years old.) The King had seen the tiger kites flying, and he wanted to see who was flying them. The King asks Kee-sup to make him a “King’s kite”. He wanted one that would “fly like Young-sup’s tiger”.
Kee-sup’s father freed him of his studies for as long as it took him to build the kite. After several attempts they ask their father for advise, and he tells them to make a dragon kite. The dragon is the “country’s symbol for His Majesty”. Kee-sup builds a beautiful dragon kite, but he is not quite satisfied with it. He refuses to cut the paper for several days and Young-sup argues with him because he thinks it is rude to keep the King waiting. One evening, while the boys were arguing yet again, their father walks into the room. He frowns at Young-sup and tells him he can no longer argue with his brother. “Your brother has been capped. He is no longer a boy. You will not treat him so discourteously again.” he tells Young-sup. The next day he presents Kee-sup with a small jar of “Gold leaf”. It is paint with real gold in it. After many days, Kee-sup decided to “flick and spatter the gold leaf over the whole surface of the kite.”
While Kee-sup was working on the kite, Young-sup went out to the hill to fly his own kite. The King comes out to meet him many times, and they become friends. Young-sup teaches the King how to fly a kite, and he decides he wants to enter the contest at the festival, but he knows he cannot be the one to compete because no one would try against him. He wants Young-sup to fly for him. When the boys tell their father of the King’s request he says that Kee-sup with be the flyer because he is the eldest. It was the eldest son who was expected to bring honor to the family. Kee-sup knows that Young-sup is the better flyer, and he wants to win for the king, so he goes against tradition and asks his father to allow Young-sup to enter the contest in his place. He agrees, but only because it was for the king.
Kee-sup and Young-sup work together to ensure Young-sup has the best chance at winning the contest. After Young-sup gets cut from a small piece of a broken jar, Kee-sup gets an idea. He makes a “heavy mixture of rice paste and powdered pottery” to add to the kite string to make it easy to cut other lines. It is because of this mixture and Young-sup’s kite-flying abilities that he is able to win the contest for the King.
This was a fun story to read, and it showed that although all relationships are complicated they are rewarding as well. Traditions have their place, but sometimes traditions do need to change. I will definitely highlight this book with a book talk at the beginning of the year.
Review Excerpt(s):
From School Library Journal
Grade 4-7-When Young-sup holds a kite in his hand, he knows exactly how to make it fly. His older brother, Kee-sup, struggles to launch his kite, but he knows exactly how to construct one that is beautiful in form and perfectly balanced. One day, the young king of Korea suddenly arrives with all of his attendants on the hillside where the brothers are playing with their matching tiger kites. He requests their help in learning to fly one, and then asks Kee-sup to make a kite for him. The boy is deeply honored and works diligently on it, a dragon flecked with real gold paint. Meanwhile, Young-sup is determined to win the kite-fighting competition at the New Year's festival. He practices on the hillside where the king frequently joins him, and their growing friendship leads to an interesting collaboration and a thorny challenge to tradition in Korea in 1473. The final contest, in which Young-sup flies for the king, is riveting. Though the story is set in medieval times, the brothers have many of the same issues facing siblings today. They play and argue, they compete for their father's attention, and eventually develop a greater understanding of one another. The author has drawn her characters with a sure touch, creating two very different boys struggling to figure out who they are. With ease and grace, Park brings these long-ago children to life.
Barbara Scotto, Michael Driscoll School, Brookline, MA
From Booklist
In this novel set in fifteenth-century Korea, Young-sup and his older brother, Kee-sup, love the popular sport of competitive kite flying. Kee-sup's talent is designing, building, and decorating the kites. Young-sup is less the craftsman, but his senses are in tune with the shifting winds. Their practice sessions attract the attention of the boy-king of Korea, who becomes friends with the brothers and asks them to craft him a kite fit for a king, then fly it in the New Year's Day kite fights. The boys devise innovations to give them an advantage in the contest: a blue kite string that will be lost against the sky and a coating of crushed pottery to sever an opponent's line. But tricks are no substitute for skill, which Young-sup proves he has. Besides catching the excitement of the ancient sport, the novel deals with intense sibling rivalry engendered by Korean family tradition. The conclusion is predictable but satisfying. An author's note authenticates some historical points in the fictional story, which feels consistently well-grounded in its time and place. -Catherine Andronik
Connections:
Discussion Questions and Activities:
*Describe a time when you have flown a kite. Was the experience more like Kee-sup's or Young-sup's? Explain your answer.
*Compare/contrast a capping ceremony to either a quinceañera or a Bar or Bat Mitzvah.
*Design a kite that would be "fit for a king".
*Have a kite flying contest with the kites the students create.
*Do you think it was fair for Young-sup to treat his line with glue and powdered pottery? Explain your answer.
Other Books by Linda Sue Park:
*A Single Shard 2002 Newbery Medal Winner. ISBN 9780547534268
*When My Name Was Keoko ISBN 9780440419440
*The Firekeeper's Son ISBN 9780547237695
*Archer's Quest ISBN 9780440422044
*Seesaw Girl ISBN 9780547248882
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