My posts on the drama Dong Yi (MBC 2010) are still the most read posts on my blog. And here’s an interesting question about Jang Hui Bin …
Dong Yi, MBC, 2010, the villain, Jang Hui Bin
Hi, i’m from malaysia and i just finished watching dong yi, i know im late but i had to take my time because i had to concentrate on my studies. i dont know where to post my questions as there are no discussion about Jang Hui Bin in your blog. i am very confused by this character. while i love her 3 dimensional character, im still confused by how she can choose to commit to henious acts and the same time, claiming that she did it out of love for the king. how could she say that? she seemed to set her eyes on power from the very beginning, even before she was made a concubine. how can she blame the king when it was actually she was the one who made the choices? i desperately need to discuss this with someone but my mather has not finish watching Dong Yi so i have no one to discuss this with. whitevenusandmars
Dong Yi, MBC, 2010, Dong Yi and Jang Hui Bin face off
Hmm. It has been a while since I watched this drama, but I remember being OUTRAGED at Jang Hui Bin’s behaviour! (Dramatically though, she was a great baddie and this kept me hooked through the drama.) I think Jang Hui Bin does love the king at first and so feels VERY jealous when Dong Yi arrives. (But I agree she was definitely after power from the beginning.) Up until now SHE has been the king’s favourite. But Dong Yi seems to have such a special relationship with the king – and Jang Hui Bin gets pushed out. (I felt sorry for her at this point. After all, the concubines spend their time waiting for the king to come and see them. So it must be upsetting when he loses interest in them …) Jang Hui Bin probably had a lot of time to sit and think bad thoughts about Dong Yi!
But I think the big change comes when Dong Yi has a son. Before, Jang Hui Bin was upset because she was losing the affection of the king. But now she is upset as a mother – and this is totally different. She worries that her son, the crown prince, could lose the throne to Dong Yi’s son. And this is UNTHINKABLE to her. So her thirst for power plus her hatred for Dong Yi turn her jealousy into an obsession. (By now, surely any feelings of love for the king are overpowered by her feelings of jealousy, greed, and hatred of Dong Yi)
Along with her power crazy brother, she is prepared to do anything to make sure her son becomes king. I don’t think she was like this at first but her brother and mother don’t help matters. She is pushed further and further into evil – by her own actions, but also by her family’s behaviour. She becomes neurotic – she refuses to trust Dong Yi who tries to reach out to her several times. Jang Hui Bin can’t believe that Dong Yi is not interested in power because she herself craves it so much. And on top of this, things just don’t go in her favour – her son becomes ill and it is clear that Dong Yi’s son (who became King Yeongjo) is intelligent and healthy and will make a great king. Poor Jang Hui Bin. It’s a pity she became so desperate. She was simply unprepared to accept the situation. She says she acts out of love for the king, but I think this is just her way of trying to excuse her actions – even to herself. But in the end, she has nobody to blame but herself. Anyone have any thoughts?