Ring by Kōji Suzuki

As a kid, the movie The Ring terrified me. It was one of the first scary movies that I enjoyed but wanted to know more. Who was Samara and what was her back story? It is what got me into reading horror books. 

One day thrifting, I found this book called Ring by Koji Suzuki. Thirteen year old me did not know that this movie was inspired by this book. I immediately bought it and dove in.

There are some major theme differences between the book and film versions of Ring: the film is more of a spiritual horror vs the book that incorporates science into the supernatural. In the book, Sadako, (the girl) is a human with psychic powers that becomes the origin of a biological curse. Her story critiques societal repression of women, sexuality, and the “abnormal.” There’s a strong element of social commentary on how Japan silences what it doesn’t understand. 

I was shocked with the ending...because it was very different than the movie. I do think this book has a predictable plot: find a way to break the curse.

However, the shocking part was how Sadako's rapist used her AIS (Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome) to dehumanize and attack her. It made me understand Sadako's alienation - she felt like an outsider; unwanted for her psychic powers and for being physically different.

I don't believe the author was trying to stigmatize intersex identity, he was critiquing how society’s prejudice transforms difference into monstrosity. He wanted to show that Sadako became a vengeful force because she was made into a monster by human cruelty. Her syndrome symbolizes society’s inability to accept what it doesn’t understand, a recurring theme in Japanese horror.

Is Sadako villain, victim, or both? How does gender play a role in this book? With the rise of technology - a VHS is used as a vector of evil. Would today's version be in form of a Tik Tok?