#한강

[b-liba]

Han River ducks

[without-ado]

한 강 Han Kang – awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature – was born in 1970 in the South Korean city of Gwangju before, at the age of nine, moving with her family to Seoul. She comes from a literary background, her father being a reputed novelist. Alongside her writing, she has also devoted herself to art and music, which is reflected throughout her entire literary production. (x) more at wiki

[oojnim]

다음에는 오후부터 김밥사와서 저-앞에 자리 잡고 누워 보자는 촛불요정님. 내년에는 한강에서 푸른 하늘도 붉은 노을도 반짝이는 불꽃도 보게 생겼네.

[achillessulks]

can i ask how many languages you know? u mentioned enjoying han kang's the vegetarian in korean and not the translation so i was wondering if u could read korean.

Hi, thanks for asking! I get this question a lot, haha. Usually I say I’m functionally bilingual (French + English) with a dozen-odd languages and dialects rotating in the background. My experience in the fields of linguistics and translation studies means that I can understand a lot more about how languages work, and intuit meanings, without having to specifically study each individual language. This is pretty much the only “cheat code” when it comes to learning languages. Also, I studied Latin and Ancient Greek for many years, which helped a lot with the descendants thereof.

I can read Korean pretty well (I studied it formally for about two years and have been steadily amassing a collection of literature ever since) but always keep a dictionary on hand just in case. 한강 is one of my favourite contemporary Korean writers, in no small part because I love her dreamy, unsettling, surrealist prose style, so naturally I was disappointed in the English translation of ‘채식주의자,’ which “beautified” the text to make it more palatable to a Western audience. Personally, I will always prefer a literal translation over a loftier interpretation, even if that means the resulting product isn’t as “pretty” or even as popular.

My original review of “The Vegetarian” (tr. Deborah Smith) was preserved on my blog.

[lachatalovematcha]

◡̈⃝✩‧₊˚₊·—̳͟͞͞♥ ༊*·˚OuiOui (위위) - 한강 (River) ༊*·˚

[hypnotherapye]

한강 작가의 노벨상 수상 소감을 기록해둔다.

여덟 살 때의 어느 날을 기억합니다. 주산학원의 오후 수업을 마치고 나오자마자 소나기가 퍼붓기 시작했습니다. 맹렬한 기세여서, 이십여 명의 아이들이 현관 처마 아래 모여 서서 비가 그치길 기다렸습니다. 도로 맞은편에도 비슷한 건물이 있었는데, 마치 거울을 보는 듯 그 처마 아래에서도 수십 명의 사람들이 나오지 못하고 서 있는 모습이 보였습니다. 쏟아지는 빗발을 보며, 팔과 종아리를 적시는 습기를 느끼며 기다리던 찰나 갑자기 깨달았습니다. 나와 어깨를 맞대고 선 사람들과 건너편의 저 모든 사람들이 ‘나’로 살고 있다는 사실을. 내가 저 비를 보듯 저 사람들 하나하나가 비를 보고 있다. 내가 얼굴에 느끼는 습기를 저들도 감각하고 있다. 그건 수많은 일인칭들을 경험한 경이의 순간이었습니다.

돌아보면 제가 문학을 읽고 써온 모든 시간 동안 이 경이의 순간을 되풀이해 경험하고 있었던 것 같습니다. 언어라는 실을 통해 타인들의 폐부까지 흘러들어가 내면을 만나는 경험. 내 중요하고 절실한 질문들을 꺼내 그 실에 실어, 타인들을 향해 전류처럼 흘려 내보내는 경험.

어렸을 때부터 궁금했습니다. 우리는 왜 태어났는지. 왜 고통과 사랑이 존재하는지. 그것들은 수천 년 동안 문학이 던졌고, 지금도 던지고 있는 질문들입니다. 우리가 이 세계에 잠시 머무는 의미는 무엇일까요? 이 세계에서 우리가 끝끝내 인간으로 남는다는 건 얼마나 어려운 일일까요? 가장 어두운 밤에 우리의 본성에 대해 질문하는, 이 행성에 깃들인 사람들과 생명체들의 일인칭을 끈질기게 상상하는, 끝끝내 우리를 연결하는 언어를 다루는 문학에는 필연적으로 체온이 깃들어 있습니다. 그렇게 필연적으로, 문학을 읽고 쓰는 일은 생명을 파괴하는 행위들의 반대편에 서 있습니다. 폭력의 반대편인 이 자리에 함께 서 있는 여러분과 함께, 문학을 위한 이 상의 의미를 나누고 싶습니다. 감사합니다.

[koreanbibliophilegirl]

What is your opinion about Han Kang winning the 2024 nobel prize in literature? Is she the best representative of Korean literature nowadays?

This took a while to answer, sorry nonnie. I wanted to try making this as informative and helpful as possible- plus I was(and still am) kinda busy with preparing for college entrance stuff😅.

So!!! To answer your question:

The Korean author 한강(Han Kang) mainly writes fiction about human life and resisting violence, or historical fiction dealing with Korean modern history; I'm gonna focus more on the historical fiction side here though.

Her historical novels focus on the mental & physical scars left on Korea during the tumultuous period right after the Japanese Colonial Period & the Korean War, through the eyes of ordinary people whose lives were destroyed by each event. So Han Kang winning the Nobel Prize is super meaningful to us, because it means the world is taking an interest in Korean history, and the pain we went through.

There's a well-known quote in Korea; it was said by the Japanese Colonial Period Independence Activist & leader of the Provisional Korean Government, 김구(Kim Gu).

"오직 한없이 가지고 싶은 것은 높은 문화의 힘이다. 문화의 힘은 우리 자신을 행복하게 하고, 나아가서 남에게 행복을 주기 때문이다."

("The only thing I wish we had limitlessly is high power of culture. For the power of culture brings joy to ourselves, and furthermore gives joy to others.")

This quote means cultural power is crucial in drawing in the world to our side. If other countries enjoy our culture, they'll also take an interest in understanding us, which will in turn lead to them taking an interest in our wellbeing & listening to our voice. In fact, it's happening right now! People are learning Korean for K-Pop and K-Dramas! People are getting interested in Korean culture!! Han Kang won the Nobel Prize for books about our history!!!

So, yeah. I think Han Kang's Nobel Prize is very important to Korea, because we're now one step closer to the world acknowledging the sufferings of our country that previously went unrecognized.

And yes, I think Han Kang's novels are a good representation not just of Korean literature, but of the spirit of Korea as well! A number of her works describe some horrific incidents in our history, and others present a calm sort of criticism on the violence of society. <채식주의자(The Vegetarian)>, one of her better-known works of fiction, is a neat slightly grotesque(?) example of this recurring theme of advocating for peace and resisting violence. (This one isn't about history BTW! It's about a woman resisting the lifestyle of her secular family.)

Both history and peace are especially important themes to Koreans. History, because we're always striving not to let it repeat & not to let unsolved disputes be forgotten. Peace, because we're in constant danger, from being the world's one and only divided country, among other things.

BUT, as many Koreans are pointing out, Han Kang is- though undisputedly very talented- one of many amazing writers in Korea. In fact, I've even heard people say up to 60~70% of Korean authors are likely capable of winning the Nobel Prize, if only their work would be translated properly. I- and a lot of others- think Han Kang's success on the international level is not only thanks to her own stellar talent, but also to her translator, Deborah Smith. Deborah Smith has been translating Han Kang's works for a while now, and her thoughtful translations have been much appreciated. NGL, I've seen so many Korean-to-English translations that suck so bad, so seeing Korean literature get translated by someone who very obviously cares a lot about the text? It was like a breath of fresh air after being stuck in the school auditorium for two hours. (And yes, I have just walked out of the school auditorium after being stuck there for two hours.)

This is a lil besides the point, but this is part of why I'm planning to start a Korean literature YouTube channel after I graduate. So many great works of Korean literature either have low-quality translations or don't have any at all, and I want to introduce those works to the wider world properly.

I still have a few months to go till graduation though, so in the meantime, I hope Han Kang's works, at least, get all the well-earned love and respect it deserves.

Thanks for the ask nonnie, and sorry again for the late answer! Feel free to ask if you have any additional questions- though I'm gonna be honest, I'll probably be late in answering those as well.😅 College entrance preparation is hard haha.

-Lilly xx

[higherentity]

[inhwa-kim]

January 4, 2024.

Yeouido, Seoul.

[inmyworldpyo]

[cinoman]

i just picked up 소년이 온다 by 한강 and i think it's a little harder than i expected but still sooo worth it. kinda hyped for this book

[oojnim]

꽁꽁 언 한강을 구경가야겠다는 촛불요정님의 선언에 기프티콘을 지원해준 징징2와 니니에게 브런치가 맛있었다는 소감을 전합니다.

[choiyesung]

[01606]

한강을 찾아가 보아요.

[librophile]

번역이라는 것이 어렵다고 생각되는 지점이 예를 들어 나같으면 '교련복'을 어떻게 번역할지 엄청 고민이 될 것 같다. 준군사주의 국가에서 교복처럼 교련복을 입고다니는 학생이 군인의 학살에 죽어간 사람들을 정리하는 일을 하면서도 그 교련복을 입고 있는 그 특수한 맥락을 전해야 하는 어려움

[memorize-everyday]

이토록 처절하게 담아낸 이야기에 마음이 엄청나게 무거워졌고, 학살과 독재자 이야기에 먹먹해진 것은 우리만이 아니었을 것이라고 능히 짐작해 볼 수 있겠다. 독재와 학살을 경험한 모든 나라에서 이 작품에 공감했을 것이다.

한강 작가의 노벨상 수상 소식에 e-book으로 구매해서 읽어본 간단한 소감.

노벨상 수상작가가 우리나라 사람이라니 … (감격)