Kim Su-yeong
For other people of the same name, see
Soo-young.
Kim Su-yeong (Seoul, 1921 - 1968) was a Korean poet and translator whose poetry explored love and freedom as poetic and political ideals [1]. He lived in Japan during the first part of the Second World War, following an interest in the theatre and other arts at Tokyo University. In 1943, he fled to Manchuria to avoid the Japanese military draft. However, during the Korean War, he was drafted into the North Korean Korean People's Army. Escaping from the North, he wound up imprisoned in a POW camp in South Korea. Later he majored in English Language and Linguistics at Yonsei University, again without completing a degree. He died in a traffic accident in South Korea.
Kim's literary orientation became clear when he led other young Korean poets in "The Second Half," a group dedicated to redirecting Korean poetry away from the traditionalism and lyricism of the early 1950s by confront social concerns by using language in a new way. Among the innovations were the use of surrealism, abstraction, prose, slang and profanity in Kim's poems [2]. Kim's early poems were in a Modernist style, though later he changed directions, using everyday language in addressing social issues. Many are political, either overtly or by hidden implication.
According to the scholar of Korean literature, Brother Anthony of Taize[3], Kim's significance and impact only really took place after his death. He only published one volume of poetry (in 1959). Shortly before his death, he wrote a theoretical article which sparked a lively debate.
Perhaps his best-known poem is "Grass". The Kim Su-yong Contemporary Poetry Award is named in his honor.
Publications
- Dalnara-ui jangnan (A Game Played in the Moon), published in 1959, was the only book of poetry he produced in his lifetime.
Translated works
(translated by Kang Yeo-Kyu and Uwe Kolbe) Edition Peperkorn: Thunum.
- Kim Soo-Young (2001) Der Wächter der Wolke: ausgewählte Gedichte. (translated by Kim Miy-He and Sylvia Bräsel) Edition Peperkorn: Thunum.
- Brother Anthony <of Taizé>, translator and editor (2001) Variations: Three Korean Poets. Cornell East Asia series ; 110.
Honors
- Korean Poets' Association Prize for Poetry, 1958 (first recipient)
- The Kim Suyeong Literary Award was established 1981 in his honor
See also
References
Bibliography
- Variations: Three Korean Poets - Kim Su-Young, Shin Kyong-Nim, Lee Si-Young. Translated by Brother Anthony of Taizé and Young-Moo Kim. Cornell East Asia Series, No. 110. 2001 Bilingual CEAS Edition, 328 pages. 1-885445-10-5.
- Kim Su-Yong, Cent poèmes, translated into French and introduced and annotated by Kim Bona; introduction by Laurent Grisel; preface by Jean-Paul Michel. William Blake & Co. Edit., 2000. 192 pp. ISBN 2-84103-095-4.
- Paik Nak-chung, "The Poetry of Kim Su-yong; The Living Kim Su-yong," Korea Journal, winter 1999.
External links
- Selected poems in English translation: http://www.sogang.ac.kr/~anthony/SelectedPoems.htm
- Discussion of the poet in French: http://www.poesieschoisies.net/le_poete.php?V=45,,,poeme,11,,2-88340-022-9,,2,,,
- Discussion of the poet and two others in their stylistic and political setting: http://www.sogang.ac.kr/~anthony/Sheffield.htm
- Translation of Kim's "Watchman of the Clouds"
- Three of Kim's poems in English translation:
- Ten of Kim's poems in English translation
- British and American influence on Kim's poetry: http://ref.daum.net/item/554537 (summary of Korean journal article)
- On Kim's poetic response to political conditions: http://www.dbpia.com/view/ar_view.asp?arid=495397 (summary of Korean journal article)
- On Kim's view of poetry: (summary of Korean journal article)
| Persondata |
| Name |
Kim, Su-yong |
| Alternative names |
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| Short description |
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| Date of birth |
1921 |
| Place of birth |
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| Date of death |
1968 |
| Place of death |
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