Culture

illustration of two hands holding a copy of the book The Let Them Theory
Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: Stefanie Keenan / Getty.

Where Did ‘Let Them’ Come From?

Years before Mel Robbins published her best-selling self-help book, a struggling writer posted a poem with a similar message.

abstract collage portrait of Lee Chang-dong
Photo-illustration by Ben Kothe / The Atlantic. Source: Stephane Cardinale / Corbis / Getty.

A Book That Doesn’t Seek to Explain Itself

In his movies and his writing, the South Korean director Lee Chang-dong has long used images to suggest what can’t be expressed.