World Literature Research Project: South Korea

Reggie Bobson
Sep 9, 2018 · 8 min read

Brief Overview of Korea

Since 1948, Korea has been divided into two countries: North Korea and South Korea. South Korea is located in East Asia and is, as the name states, on the southern side of the Korean Peninsula. Neighbouring countries include China and Japan. As of 2016, South Korea had a population of 51.25 million people. This meant that South Korea had a population density of 526 people per square kilometre. Moreover, the official language of South Koreas is obviously Korean.

Historical Overview of Korean Literature

There are many influential figures in Korean Literature. One of them is Park Wan-Suh. Having been born in 1931, Park had firsthand experience with the Korean War, and because of this traumatic experience, she went on to write many texts revolving around the theme of family, separation and of course the Korean War itself. Examples of her literary works include “The Naked Tree” and “Who Ate Up All the Shinga”. And as mentioned before these books explored the idea of post-war trauma; especially the tragic and horrific effects it had on the families.

The next person I will be discussing is someone who man Koreans consider as the “greatest living (Korean) writer”. Ko Un, a Buddhist monk and democratic activist, was a poet who also dealt with the post-trauma of the Korean War. Accordingly, this meant that Ko Un too also went through the horrors of the Korean War. However, it can be said that Ko Un experienced and witnessed a lot more of the war than say Park Wan-Suh as he had dealt with the war for TEN years (1952–1962). From this trauma, Ko decided to find peace in the Buddhist monastery. During his time in the monastery, Ko wrote many different poems and books. In fact, it was at this monastery where he wrote his first volume of poetry. When he returned to the world, Ko had become a heavily influential and present figure in Korean politics. And because of his opposing political views, Ko was unfairly sent to prison. However, Ko continued to write and publish his poems whilst in jail. One of the most famous poems from Ko is titled “Ten Thousand Lives” and discusses the many people he was met and dealt with in his life.
The third and final Korean writer is Shin Kyung-sook. Shin can be considered as an influential literary figure in Korea as she was the first Korean writer to be awarded with the Man Asian Literary Prize in 2012. She was awarded with prize for her novel “Please Look After my Mother”. The complex story line of the novel can be said to explore the theme of family in the midst of the modern and urbanising Korean society. Shin too is considered as one of the greatest Korean writers because the

countless prizes she was bee awarded with.

Short Stories Section

The two short stories I have chosen from South Korea happen to be two very famous fairy tales. I chose these two particular short stories not only because of its interesting themes and messages, but also because I read and heard them as a child. The first fairy tale is titled “Gold Axe Silver Axe” and is essentially the Korean version of Aesop’s fable originally titled “The Honest Woodcutter”. So, what is it about? The story revolves around a woodcutter who lives an honest and humble life. One particular day, the woodcutter is yet again working very hard when he accidentally drops his axe into a river. Being his only axe the woodcutter starts to cry and weep. Seeing this, the God of the mountain goes into the river to retrieve the woodcutter’s lost axe. Instead, the God returns with a golden one. A golden axe that glistens and glow brighter than any other axe. Despite its glory, the woodcutter turns down the God’s offer as he knows that it is not his. Having been declined, the God returns to the river to retrieve another axe. However, this time, the God returned with a silver axe that was again superior to the woodcutter’s original. Being an honest person at heart, the woodcutter again rejects the God’s offer and simply asks him to retrieve his original one. Impressed by his honesty, the God returns from the river with not only his original axe, but also the two other golden and silver axes. The honest woodcutter was thrilled with these new axes and returned to work even harder and harder. However, rumours of this event started to circulate in the village. Having heard of thus, a neighbour woodcutter decided to test this “rumour” out for himself. So, the following day, he went to the same river and purposely threw in his axe (in the river). He started to shed fake tears and show fake emotions. Despite this, the God of the Mountains had come. The neighbour woodcutter explained his situation and the God, as thought, returned with a golden one. However, unlike the honest woodcutter, this deceitful woodcutter immediately accepted the golden one as his own. Seeing this, the god realises that the man is lying and refuses to give the woodcutter any of the axes, including the original that he purposely threw in the river.

My second fairy tale is titled “Heungbu and Nolbu” and is again a story that centralises the idea of honesty. The story was reportedly written in the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1897), and because of this, the writer is unknown. So again, what is this story about? The main characters Heungbu and Nolbu were brothers. The older brother, Nolbu, was said to be very greedy and wanting. The younger brother, Heungbu, on the other hand was very kind and empathetic. One day, their father had died, and the fortune was to be split in half. Hearing this, Nolbu decided to kick out his brother to keep all the fortunes. Despite this, the kind and understanding Heungbu accepted his fate of poverty. Later, he discovers an injured sparrow with a broken leg. Seeing this, Heungbu heals it and the sparrow flies away happily. However, the sparrow returns with a seed for Heungbu. Not knowing what it was, he simply decided the plant it and to his delight, it grew into a huge gourd which had massive diamonds inside. Of course, this information then found its way to Nolbu, and being greedy, he decided he wanted this as well. Thus, Nolbu went on to found that same sparrow and purposely broke its leg and then acted as a saviour in healing it. The sparrow flew away and of course returned. Gave Nolbu a seed, and he immediately planted it, waiting for it to bloom into wealth. However, when the gourd had fully grown it was a little different. When Nolbu cracked it open, elements of destruction smashed its way to Heungbu, including imps that beat him and took away all of his wealth. Having nothing, Nolbu and his wife crawled back to Heungbu and asked for forgiveness; eventually living happily ever together. These kinds of fairy tales not only highlight the importance of honesty and kindness, but also show the consequences that follow for those who choose to cheat and manipulate their way to satisfaction. These lessons and messages of honesty and kindness is emphasised heavily in Korea. For instance, there are many rules and expectation for younger people to take care for their elders. And by elders it does not mean the elderly people who live in retirement villages, it refers to ANYONE who is older than yourself. These rules and acts of kindness and respect can be found anywhere from family gatherings to drinking alcohol with your peers.

Poetry Section

Poem 1

The first poem I have chosen is titled Cute Rhymes and unfortunately the writer is unknown. However, the absence of this piece of information does not take anything away from the meaning of the poem. The poem seems to be have written from the perspective of the youngest child from a certain family, hence the title “cute rhymes”. The youngest child of the family (known as the “maknae” in Korean culture) seems to be thanking her eldest sister for taking care of her. In early Korean times, the family wasn’t always “run” by the father and mother. As the two parents of these families were busy making a living, it was quite usual for the oldest child to take care of her younger siblings. And the thankfulness and gratitude of the youngest sibling (for her oldest sister) is strongly evident in the poem above.

Poem 2

The poem seen to the left is titled “Mothers and Sisters” and was written by Kim Sowol. Much like the poem above, this poem also centralises the theme and idea of family and togetherness. The narrator of this poem is imagining how they will soon one day live in peace and harmony. In the earlier periods of Korea, the family (as mentioned above) was left for the oldest child to supervise. So, it was also their duty to help their younger siblings when dealing with stress. If their younger siblings were to ask for instance “when they would live in peace”, the oldest child would usually answer with something like the poem seen right here. Looking back, it was quite unfair for these oldest siblings as they had to tell everyone it was okay and that there was nothing to stress about when they could have been suffering as well.

Poem 3

This poem is titled “Every Living Thing Lives for others” and unfortunately the poet is unknown. The poet is discussing how we should embrace everything around us and treat them with respect. These type of messages and ideas of respecting others was heavily enforced in Korean families. Even the slightest fault in talking to someone older than you could cause a huge punishment. So, this respect can be seen being enforced in this particular poem. It tells the audience to respect everything and everyone from flowers, butterflies to yourself.

Poem 4

This poem is titled “family” and again doesn’t specify an author. Much like the first three poems, this poem again writes about the idea of family and respect. Unlike the other poems, this particular poem allows readers to envision what it was like for the children of Korean families in the earlier periods of Korean history. Some time ago, it was very common for Korean families to have many children and many pets (especially dogs/puppies). All of those things can be read about in this “family” poem. It also shows how the young children don’t always think about the fun and games and the “snow and ice”. It also shows how they are already concerned about the “pitiful life of road!”.

Poem 5

This apologetic poem written by Kim Chul seems to be referring to fighting in the Korean War. It seems as though Kim is writing reasons as to why he must fight in this war; listing all the mistakes he has made and wishing that those affected may forgive him. However, in a twist, Kim tells his homeland not to forgive him if he lets his comrade die from his ignoration. Although it doesn’t seem like it, this poem also discussed the them of “togetherness and family” because it shows the author’s family like connection with his country; referring to it like a person/parent.

Concluding Comments

From this research project, I was able to refresh my view on how critical respect was in Korean society. Of course, as I child I was told to and disciplined to show respect, but it was from this research project that I was able to learn why it was and how essential it was that I show respect to those around me. I also learnt the detrimental effects of the Korean War, and how it affected the Korean people who were living within that dark period of Korean history. I was able to see the mental outcomes of the witnesses of the Korean War through the books and literary texts they had written which especially seemed to revolve around the idea of family, belonging and separation. I believe that through this project, I learn a surprising amount of my home country, which has allowed me to gain a stronger connection (with Korea) despite living in Australia.

Bibliography

https://theculturetrip.com/asia/south-korea/articles/a-century-of-tumult-ten-important-modern-korean-authors/

https://tradingeconomics.com/south-korea/population-density-people-per-sq-km-wb-data.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Korea

www.koreanliteraturenow.com

www.korea.net

www.anthony.sogang.ac.kr

www.freshkorean.com

www.ayearofreadingtheworld.com

https://www.honestpublishing.com/news/kim-chul-the-poet-who-said-sorry/

http://www.poetrytranslation.org/poems/from/south-korea

http://www.korea.net/NewsFocus/Culture/view?articleId=139256