Money Is The Root Of All Evil: Characters In ‘Parasite’ (2019) And ‘Squid Game’ (2021-) Who Rely On Cash As A Source Of Motivation

Money is a quintessential factor in many individuals’ and families’ lives, but when money becomes a driving force that can be used to get out of the debts of life both figuratively and metaphorically, that’s when there’s a problem. In the Oscar-winning film Parasite (2019) and the Netflix hit series Squid Game (2021-), money is a theme that is easily implied through characters’ actions or easily identified through their lives.

All of these characters took risks to get out of their current crises, and as a result, it cost them everything. Though all of the characters in both Parasite and Squid Game have made decisions based on their desire and motivation to obtain money, this central obsession that permeates Parasite‘s and Squid Game‘s storylines makes it clear that money is the root of all evil and can change a person’s character for the worse. 

What Are Parasite And Squid Game About?

The film Parasite is about the Kim family, who takes the opportunity to get out of poverty by taking advantage of the wealthy Park family. The Park family was everything that the Kim family wanted to be: rich and financially stable, all while being classified within a higher social class.  

On the other hand, the Netflix series Squid Game is about individuals who volunteer to be a part of a series of childhood games that test their fate. The winning prize is a surplus amount of cash that will pay off their debts. Each character who participates in the game has similar lives that revolve around money — money that they do not have. Every participant in the Squid Game can’t seem to obtain funds due to certain life circumstances. 

How The Kim Family Is Motivated By Money In Parasite

The Kim family is a family that has struggled with putting food on the table and paying the bills. An opportunity to get out of their situation and experience a wealthy life for the time being was presented to one of the members of the family. This then created the perfect plan for not only the son of the family to get out of the poor state of their household but allowed the whole family to sleekly slide into the scheme of experiencing lives that were better than what they had.

Ki-woo

Ki-woo is the son of the Kim family, and he was given the opportunity to be a tutor for Da-hye, the only daughter of the Park family. So he tutored her and brought up the idea of having his whole family replace all the other workers of the Park family, which included the tutor, housekeeper, chauffeur, and therapist. 

The best way to describe Ki-woo is both cunning and irrational. He steps into opportunities slyly, and for the most part, he has received help from his conniving sister but doesn’t put much thought into his decision-making. His central focus was to earn money because his parents were out of work. The desire to earn money takes over his state of mind and fuels his motivation to help his family out of the environment that they live in.

Ki-jung

Ki-jung is by far the smartest character in Parasite. She was able to create a fake college acceptance letter to help her brother Ki-woo look more qualified so he could get the job of being the tutor at the Park family’s home. She also made fake business cards for her mother and father. Ki-jung had the creative capabilities of creating phony business cards to get her mother to work for the Park family as a housekeeper as well as getting her father hired as their chauffeur.

Not only is Ki-jung creatively ambitious, but she is also good at communicating and is very controlling. She can make another character obey her orders, even though it isn’t her right to force someone to follow her lead. She has a seriousness to her character, which was enough to help her father get a job for the Park family. When she is all into a plan, she gives all of herself to accomplish and execute that plan in an efficient manner. Like Ki-woo, Ki-jung’s motivation is to gain money to help her family. 

Ki-taek 

Ki-taek is the patriarch of the Kim family and the man of the household. He immediately does not fit the image of the man who controls his household because he doesn’t have a job that can provide for his family. Also, it wasn’t his idea to get out of his current situation by taking advantage of the Park family. Ki-taek is similar to his son Ki-Woo because they both don’t think when it comes to new plans or schemes that could result in a negative result. 

Ki-Taek cares deeply about money, which impacts the rest of his family members’ motives. His children Ki-woo and Ki-jung both see how tough life is and how beat up their father is from not having a job, which motivated his children to get out of their predicament. This plan was executed by adding fuel to the fire. That fire was already scorching, and it wreaked destruction on their family and the Park family. The fuel is the plan, and the fire is their life battle. 

Chung-sook 

Chung-sook is the matriarch of the Kim family but acts more like its patriarch. Her background of taking care of her family after her husband’s Taiwanese shop went out of business by working several minimum wage jobs proves that she holds dominance over herself, unlike her husband, Ki-taek. Though she wasn’t the one who conceived of the idea of taking advantage of the Park family, she went along with her son’s maniacal plan of stealing the jobs of the people who worked for the Park family. 

Chung-sook possesses qualities similar to Ki-jung, or should I say Ki-jung possesses qualities similar to her mother Chung-Sook because it’s likely that Ki-jung has those characteristics because of her mother. Unlike Ki-jung, however, Chung-sook is considered to be aggressive and scornful.

The Park Family’s Differing Relationship With Money In Parasite

The Park family’s financial status is hauntingly unmatched compared to the Kim family. The haunting quality comes from the fact that both households are capable of earning a lump sum of money just by each character’s capabilities; however, each family treats money differently. The patriarch and the matriarch of the Park family are excessively rich.

They deplete their endless amount of funds by paying for a tutor, housekeeper, chauffeur, and a therapist instead of being responsible for some of these jobs without external help. The mother and father of the Park family are incapable of fulfilling everyday tasks like cleaning, cooking, and teaching their kids. Because of this, these skills can never be passed on to their children. As a result, the Park family lives a carefree life that eventually comes to an end once the members of the Kim family arrive at their front steps.

Yeon-kyo

Yeon-kyo is the wife of Dong-ik, she’s a bit “simple.” In other words, she believes anything, even if the facts do not add up. This is why the entire Kim family easily manipulated Yeon-kyo. She and her husband are wealthy and live in a mansion which could not even begin to be compared to the Kim family’s home. Yeon-kyo does not know how to cook or clean properly, which is the complete opposite compared to Chung-sook.

Dong-ik

Dong-ik is the father and patriarch of the Park family. He is also very wealthy and has worked hard to create a sense of stability in his household.

He is also easy to fool but not as gullible as his wife. Money is a way of life for himself and his family. Unlike the Kim family, his family is not part of the characters that use money to get out of debt or out of life circumstances. On the other hand, the Park family is a family who uses money for pleasure and comfort. 

Da-hye And Da-song

Da-hye and Da-song are the daughter and son of Yeon-kyo and Dong-ik. They were also manipulated by the Park family but were the closest to discovering that Ki-jung was not a real therapist and that the workers that replaced the other workers in their household all had the same scent. This was a clue that was announced that quickly went over Yeon-kyo and Dong-ik’s heads.

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The two siblings were born into a wealthy family, so money was not a source of motivation for either of them. However, unlike the children of the Kim family, they are young and don’t fully understand the drive to receive money and the fact that money could negatively influence someone.

Characters In Squid Game Who Are Motivated By Money

The characters in Squid Game are trapped in a life-threatening game where money is involved. Whoever wins will receive enough money to pay off their debts. Each character participating in the Squid Game has one focus: to receive the ultimate cash prize. Similar to the Kim Family, each character in Squid Game has the drive to get out of their situation or predicament. However, the weight of each character’s issues does not amount to the weight of what was to come.

Seong Gi-hun

Seong Gi-hun is the protagonist of the Netflix hit series Squid Game. Similar to his fellow competitors in the Game, his life before entering the Squid Game was in shambles. He lived with his mother and did not have custody of his daughter Seong Ga-yeong. Gi-hun’s ex-wife was married to another man, and it hurt him deeply. He treated his mother poorly and did not have a job that would let him provide for her. His mother is older and is suffering from diabetes. Seonh Gi-hun is a very trustworthy man who grows stronger throughout the Squid Game.

Sang-woo

Sang-woo is another character of Squid Game but strays from the typical protagonist characteristics. He is considered to be the most intelligent character in the series but is not the most reliable. As valedictorian, Sang-woo was accepted into Seoul National University (SNU), a business school. However, just because he has the best grades doesn’t mean he’s the most sensible person in the show.

Sang-woo had an astronomical debt that was not feasible or realistic to pay unless he participated in the Squid Game. He owed six billion won (roughly $5 million). He lost stocks and “used his own mom’s shop and house as financial collateral.” The drive to earn the millions of dollars that he owed infiltrated his mind, and that became his central focus. This caused him to have a major character development because of his actions that took place during the Squid Game.

Kang Sae-byeok

Kang Sae-byeok is a woman who deeply cares about her younger brother Kang Cheol. She did whatever it took to take care of him after their father was killed, attempting to escape from North Korea to South Korea. Sae-byeok and her brother escaped and made it out alive while their mother was taken and sent back to North Korea.  

Sae-byeok became a pickpocket, but that wasn’t enough to provide for herself and Kang Cheol. Pickpocketing was her downfall and is one specific action that changed her for the worse. So, she decided to join the Squid Game and fight for money that would provide for her family. She is not someone to mess with because of her serious attributes, similar to Ki-jung, but is just more intense. 

Ali Abdul

Ali Abdul is an immigrant who moved to South Korea to have a better life and job to provide for his family. He has a wife and an infant child. He has a job where his boss won’t pay him frequently, and he waited six months for his next check. He joined the Squid Game because he wanted a better life for his family. 

Ali Abdul is a very caring individual who doesn’t fit the mold of the people who join the game. Unfortunately, that might have been his downfall. 

Jang Deok-su

Jang Deok-su is a drug dealer, and the money he owed would get him killed if he didn’t pay up. So he fled an ambush set up against him and decided to join the Squid Game because he had no other options to obtain money, considering that he is a criminal. 

His character is egocentric, manipulative, untrustworthy, and possesses fake leadership qualities, but deep down, he’s fearful — fearful of dying. 

The Message Behind Parasite And Squid Game

Parasite‘s and Squid Game’s message or theme is all about money. In Parasite, social class is a major element of the film that sets up the characters’ motivation and drive to receive money. In Squid Game, money is similarly a driving factor for each character. Both storylines prove that gaining cash through manipulation and being desperate to participate in a life-threatening game where its risks will always outweigh its affluent reward are sure ways of destroying a character. With money being a character’s center focus, money becomes all they see, which leads to a life of sadness and perpetual dissatisfaction. Based on some of these characters’ actions, this ultimately leads to a life filled with unhappiness and an insurmountable feeling of guilt that inevitably eats them alive.