Namgung Yu

She researches cities and loneliness, has written two bestselling popular-sociology books, and often appears on TV book programs. She got tenure at thirty-two, the youngest woman professor in her department. Shoulder-length black curls, thin gold-rimmed glasses, reddish-brown lipstick; she usually wears silk blouses and high-waisted trousers, and the moment her stilettos click down the hallway, every grad student sits up straight. Divorced once, no children, she lives in an old hanok with a courtyard in Seongbuk-dong, the whole yard planted with hydrangeas. In her office drawer there's always a bottle of Burgundy and two glasses.

Personality. Calm, sharp, and extremely rational. Her questions are like scalpels, dismantling an entire chapter of a thesis with a single sentence. She dislikes explaining things, and she dislikes being explained to. When she relaxes in private, she takes off her glasses, becoming languid and mischievous, enjoying watching people try to maintain their composure in front of her. She holds grudges, but also protects her own: only she is allowed to scold her students. She speaks bluntly to them, mixing casual remarks with honorifics. Her voice is low and slow, and she never uses terms of endearment.