Kim Wonu (Hangul: 김원우) is a modern South Korean novelist.

Life

Kim Wonu was born on April 11, 1947, with sources unclear on

Gimhae Gimhae () is a city in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. It is the seat of the large Gimhae Kim clan, one of the largest Kim clans in Korea. The Gimhae Kims claim descent from the ancient royal house of Geumgwan Gaya, which was based in Gim ...

Gyeongsangnam-do or

Jinju Jinju () is a city in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. It was the location of the first (1592) and second (1593) Sieges of Jinju by Japanese forces during the Imjin War. The Republic of Korea Air Force Education and Training Command is ...

Gyeongsangnam-do, Korea. Kim attended

Gyeongbuk University Kyungpook National University (경북대학교, abbreviated as KNU or Kyungdae, 경대) is one of ten Flagship Korean National Universities representing Daegu Metropolitan City and Gyeongbuk Province in South Korea. It is located in the Daeg ...

from which he received his B.A. in English and Sogang University from which he received and M.A. in Korean. He has been a member of the group "Jakga" since 1979 and served as Editor in Chief on Minumsa Publishing.

Work

Kim Wonu made his literary debut in 1977 with the novella Appointed Posts (Imji), a scathing critique of the philistinism and commodity fetishism that he saw as pervasive in middle-class Korean society. Everyday lives of middle-class Koreans in all its unabashed materialism and self-interest, is an abiding concern in the entire body of Kim Wonu's fiction. His characters possess little or no individual personality, and can only find meaning in their lives through the ceaseless pursuit of profit. Because they are so entrenched in immediate material gratification, they fail to realize the sterility of their lives; Kim Wonu, therefore, frequently employs an outside agent to act as a mediator in his fiction.Source-attribution, "Kim Won-Woo" LTI Korea Datasheet available at LTI Korea Library or online at: http://klti.or.kr/ke_04_03_011.do# There is, however, a certain reflectiveness that pervades Kim Wonu's fiction, and this quality has much to do with the way in which Kim's own experiences are brought to bear in his fictional accounts. The falsity and hypocrisy that underlie middle-class rhetoric of success is part of his life as well; the sense of weariness generated by life's routines can be detected in Kim's reminiscences of his own youth. Kim Wonu's critical voice thus conveys something stubborn yet honest at the same time. Combined effectively with meticulous, insightful descriptions of ordinary people and events, this voice allows Kim Wonu's works to become something more than mere '

novel of manners A novel of manners is a work of fiction that re-creates a social world, conveying with detailed observation the customs, values, and mores of a highly developed and complex society. The conventions of the society dominate the action of the story, ...

' and offer intellectually engaging portraits of life that are at once fiercely critical and heart-warming. Kim has won the 1998 Dong-sa Literature Award and 2002 Daesan Literature Prize.

Works in Translation

Chinese * 禽兽的日子 (짐승의 시간)

Works in Korean (Partial)

Story Collections * Non-organic Youth (Mugijil cheongnyeon, 1981) * Life Studies (Insaeng gongbu, 1983) * Hour of the Beasts (Jimseungui sigan, 1986) * Racing through the Obstacle Course (Jangaemul gyeongju, 1986) * Your Winter (Gyeoul sogui neo) * A Story of Three Sisters (Sejamae iyagi, 1988) * Remote Days (Adeukhan nanal) * Naked Heart (Beolgeobeoseun maeum) * The Sea of Patriots (Ugugui bada, 1993)

Awards

* 1991 Dong-in Literary Award * 1998 Dong-sa Literature Award * 2002 Daesan Literature Prize

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Wonu 1974 births Korean writers Living people Kyungpook National University alumni Sogang University alumni