not speak English, the father ordered the children to speak to him in Korean.
They tried. They used the Korean they could remember, but it was rusty. It
had been a long while since the children had spoken the language and they
had forgotten little things, like the intricacies of the deferential system.
They used none of the forms that children must use when speaking to an
honored relative like their grandfather. The grandfather was shocked at the
apparent disrespect the children were displaying towards him. He did what
the situation called for: He scolded his son--the children's father--for not
having trained his children properly. The father did what the situation required
of him: He punished the children--with a stick--for their rudeness
and disrespect. What was sad was that no one seemed to realize the role language
played in this family drama.