Character Relationship Map: Vegetarian

Characters

• Yeong-hye (played by Chae Min-seo) — protagonist

  Central protagonist whose psychological breakdown begins after a disturbing nightmare. She abruptly swears off meat and gradually withdraws from social and familial obligations, ultimately retreating...

• Min-ho (played by Hyun Sung) — protagonist

  Yeong-hye’s husband who initially pressures her to resume eating meat. As her condition worsens, he becomes fascinated by her physical transformation and documents it for his writing. He represents co...

• Ji-hye (played by Kim Yeo-jin) — supporting

  Yeong-hye’s older sister who attempts to maintain household stability amid the family crisis. She oscillates between compassionate support and frustrated pragmatism as she witnesses her sister’s progr...

• Kil-soo (played by Kim Young-jae) — supporting

  An artist who becomes intensely preoccupied with Yeong-hye’s physical transformation. He perceives her rejection of meat and human society as a pure, natural evolution, ultimately seeking to capture h...

• Ji-hye's mother - Special appearance (played by Son Hee-soon) — minor
• Ji-hye's Father (played by Ki Joo-bong) — minor

  Ji-hye’s father is Yeong-hye’s father. At a family celebration, he pressures her to eat and tries to force food into her mouth. Yeong-hye responds by grabbing a knife and cutting herself, after which...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Ji-hye's mother - Special appearance → Ji-hye (mother)
• Ji-hye's Father → Ji-hye (father)
• Yeong-hye → Kil-soo (Family Estranged Spouses) — Their marriage deteriorates amid Yeong-hye's refusal to eat meat and withdrawal, culminating in divorce.

  The plot says Kil-soo becomes angry and violent after Yeong-hye says she does not want to live this life, and that their marriage eventually ends in d...

• Yeong-hye → Min-ho (Professional Artist And Model) — Min-ho recruits Yeong-hye for an artwork and secretly rents a studio to prepare the project; the supplied events end before her response or its consequences are shown.

  Min-ho asks Yeong-hye to model for a video artwork and explains that he would paint flowers on her naked body. She agrees to consider the proposal.

• Yeong-hye → Ji-hye (Family Mother And Daughter) — The mother's prepared food becomes part of the family gathering where Yeong-hye's refusal to eat meat is challenged.

  At a family celebration, Yeong-hye's mother has prepared familiar dishes, but Yeong-hye refuses to eat them.

• Yeong-hye → Ji-hye's Father (Family Father And Daughter) — His attempt to make Yeong-hye eat escalates the family confrontation and ends with her being rushed to the hospital.

  The plot identifies Ji-hye's father as Yeong-hye's father and describes him pressuring Yeong-hye to eat during a family celebration. When he tries to...

Story Analysis

Yeong-hye's rejection of meat and ordinary social expectations intensifies into family crisis, marital collapse, isolation, and an unresolved artistic proposal.

Plot Progression

1. Dreams and the Refusal of Meat — Yeong-hye describes a disturbing dream during her hospital stay while Ji-hye tries to reach her. The narrative then turns to Yeong-hye's rejection of meat and eggs at home.
2. A Family Gathering Erupts — At a family celebration, Yeong-hye refuses the food prepared for her. Pressure from her father escalates into a physical confrontation, and Yeong-hye cuts herself.
3. Marriage and Separation — After the family crisis, Kil-soo becomes angry and violent as Yeong-hye voices her despair. Their marriage eventually ends in divorce.
4. Care and an Unresolved Artwork — Ji-hye worries about her sister's isolated life and offers her work at the shop. Min-ho proposes a video artwork, rents a studio in secret, and prepares to begin while the supplied events leave the ou...