Hwang Sun-won
Encyclopedia
Hwang Sun-wŏn was a Korea
n short story writer, novelist, and poet. He was born while Korea was under Japanese colonial rule in Taedong, South Pyongan, in modern-day North Korea
; however, following the division of Korea
he lived in the South, becoming a professor at Kyunghee University.
Although he wrote many volumes of poetry and eight novels, Hwang achieved his greatest acclaim as the author of short fiction, which was regarded as the premiere literary genre through most of the twentieth century in Korea. Hwang is the author of some of the best-known stories in the modern Korean literary canon, including “Stars” (1940), “Old Man Hwang” (1942), “The Old Potter” (1944), “Cloudburst” (1952), “Cranes” (1953) and “Rain Shower
”(1959). Hwang began writing novels in the 1950s, his most successful being Trees on a Slope (1960), which depicts the lives of three soldiers during the Korean War. Sunlight, Moonlight (1962-65) depicts the lives of members of the former untouchable class in urban Seoul. The Moving Castle (1968-72) depicts the complex and problematic synthesis of Western and indigenous cultures in rapidly-modernizing Korea. It is also one of the few depictions in fiction of gender roles in Korean shamanism
.
Cranes Article by Hwang Sunwon
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
n short story writer, novelist, and poet. He was born while Korea was under Japanese colonial rule in Taedong, South Pyongan, in modern-day North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
; however, following the division of Korea
Division of Korea
The division of Korea into North Korea and South Korea stems from the 1945 Allied victory in World War II, ending Japan's 35-year colonial rule of Korea. In a proposal opposed by nearly all Koreans, the United States and the Soviet Union agreed to temporarily occupy the country as a trusteeship...
he lived in the South, becoming a professor at Kyunghee University.
Although he wrote many volumes of poetry and eight novels, Hwang achieved his greatest acclaim as the author of short fiction, which was regarded as the premiere literary genre through most of the twentieth century in Korea. Hwang is the author of some of the best-known stories in the modern Korean literary canon, including “Stars” (1940), “Old Man Hwang” (1942), “The Old Potter” (1944), “Cloudburst” (1952), “Cranes” (1953) and “Rain Shower
Rain Shower
"Rain Shower", also "Shower" or "Sonagi," is a Korean short story written by Korean writer Hwang Sun-won in 1959. "Rain Shower" is a translation of the Korean title “Sonagi.” A sonagi is a brief but a heavy rain shower that starts suddenly, usually on a hot afternoon...
”(1959). Hwang began writing novels in the 1950s, his most successful being Trees on a Slope (1960), which depicts the lives of three soldiers during the Korean War. Sunlight, Moonlight (1962-65) depicts the lives of members of the former untouchable class in urban Seoul. The Moving Castle (1968-72) depicts the complex and problematic synthesis of Western and indigenous cultures in rapidly-modernizing Korea. It is also one of the few depictions in fiction of gender roles in Korean shamanism
Shamanism
Shamanism is an anthropological term referencing a range of beliefs and practices regarding communication with the spiritual world. To quote Eliade: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = technique of ecstasy." Shamanism encompasses the...
.
Selected work
English Translations of Hwang Sun-wŏn's fiction:- The Book of Masks (short stories)
- The Descendants of CainThe Descendants of CainThe Descendants of Cain is a novel by Hwang Sun-won .Published in 1954 in Seoul, it was instantly popular and has continued to be a steady seller ever since. It was selected by LTI Korea for translation into English and French....
(novel) - The Moving Castle (novel)
- Shadows of a Sound (short stories)
- Sunlight, Moonlight (novel)
- Trees on a Slope (novel)
- Cranes (short stories)
Cranes Article by Hwang Sunwon