"Our Twisted Hero", set in the latter part of the era of military dictatorial rule, brings us a microcosm of society as demonstrated in an elementary school classroom, which serves as a metaphor for Korean society at the time. When the protagonist is forced to move from his high-class school in Seoul to a provincial school, he finds that his fifth grade class is controlled by a charismatic but corrupt student monitor.  He resists submission to the bully as long as he can and finds himself an outcast. He finally capitulates in a dramatic scene, after which he is elevated to second in command.  Despite the oppression, the class attains outstanding academic and athletic status due to the leadership of the class monitor. The bully is deposed when a new sixth grade teacher forces the students to acknowledge their subservience and to stand up to their oppressor. The new teacher not only brutally thrashes the bully but also the boys who let “what was rightfully yours” be taken away. The protagonist is the only student who refuses to denounce him. After the monitor is deposed, an election for a new monitor is held. Prior to the election, the sixth grade teacher hands out copies of U.S. President Kennedy’s "Profiles in Courage," a symbol of an idealized liberal democratic system. A new more democratic order is imposed, but that leads to bickering and loss in classroom achievement.