In South Korea, the LGBTQ+ community faces complex cultural and social challenges. Despite the gradual progress, the deeply rooted Confucian values, which emphasize family hierarchy, heteronormativity and social conformity, influence Korean society’s point of view on the LGBTQ+ community. Queer theory, which examines various categories of sexuality, gender identities and the hierarchies among them, offers a framework for the exploring the relations between the traditional Confucian values and the realities faced by the LGBTQ+ community in South Korea. Literature plays a crucial role in depicting the challenges this community faces. In recent years, many LGBTQ+ novels have gained popularity in South Korea because they have given voices to this marginalized community. The novel Concerning My Daughter by the author Kim Hye-jin, which has been translated into numerous languages, including Slovene, is notable not only for the themes it addresses, but also for its well-developed characters and narrative, which allows readers grappling with the complexities of family relations, social expectations and the acceptance of theirs sexual identity to see themselves reflected in the novel’s characters. This thesis introduces the author Kim Hye-jin and her novel Concerning My Daughter. It also analyzes the novel from the perspective of queer theory and Foucault’s theory of sexuality and power. It also evaluates it through the lets of actualization. The novel Concerning My Daughter presents the challenges and discrimination of the LGBTQ+ community in South Korea. Furthermore, it explores how Confucian values influence the perception of queer individuals and the various form of family relationships depicted in the novel.
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