Na Huideok (, born 1966) is a South Korean poet.

Life

Na Huideok was born in

Nonsan Nonsan () is a city in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. It is located at . The origin of Nonsan's geographical names is said to have come from the small garden " Nolmoe, " which rises in the middle of farming fields, where rice paddies ...

South Chungcheong Province South Chungcheong Province ( ko, 충청남도, ''Chungcheongnam-do''), also known as Chungnam, is a province of South Korea. South Chungcheong has a population of 2,059,871 (2014) and has a geographic area of 8,204 km2 (3,168 sq mi) located in ...

. She was raised in an orphanage in which her parents -

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

who sought to carry out the teachings of their religion through

communal living An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, religious, ...

- served on the administrative staff. Na has confessed that the experience of living with orphans had made her a precocious child, and that the recognition of the difference between herself and her playmates early on gave her a unique perspective on the world. Reportedly, Na Huideok stumbled into the life of a poet unintentionally. While struggling between the religious ideals fostered by her parents and the causes upheld by the student movement she encountered in college, Na sought salvation in poetry. Na graduated from the Department of Korean Language and Literature at

Yonsei University Yonsei University (; ) is a private research university in Seoul, South Korea. As a member of the " SKY" universities, Yonsei University is deemed one of the three most prestigious institutions in the country. It is particularly respected in th ...

with both Master's and Doctorate degrees. She served as a professor in the Department of Creative Writing at

Chosun University Chosun University () is one of the oldest private universities in South Korea. Its campus is situated in Gwangju metropolitan city, in southwestern South Korea. Around 33,000 students are enrolled. Academics Undergraduate courses are offered ...

from 2001 to 2018, and has served as a professor at

Seoul National University of Science and Technology Seoul National University of Science and Technology (abbreviated SeoulTech) is a national university located in Nowon-gu, Seoul, South Korea. Seoul National University of Science and Technology originated from Public Eoeudong Vocational Continu ...

since 2019.

Writing

Na Huideok's poetry is grounded in the force of life and growth as manifested in motherhood and plant life. Her first collection of poems, ''To the Roots'' (, 1991), and her second, ''The Words Stained the Leaves'' (, 1994), pierce the fog of hypocrisy and contradictions cast over daily life while maintaining a spirit of forgiveness and warmth. In order to become receptive to nature, Na Huideok believes it is necessary to “listen with her eyes and see with her ears.” Such effort is detailed in her third collection of poetry, ''It’s Not That Far From Here'' (, 1997), and her fourth, ''What Is Darkening'' (, 2001). Na Huideok juxtaposes “sound” and “darkness” to signal the process of “listening” with the eyes when “seeing” becomes useless as darkness falls.

Work

Works in translation

* ''What Is Darkening'' (2007) - translated by Choi Jongyoll * ''Scale and Stairs: Selected Poems'' (2009) - translated by

Christopher Merrill Christopher Merrill (born February 24, 1957) is an American poet, essayist, journalist and translator. Currently, he serves as director of the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa. He led the initiative that resulted in the s ...

and Kim Won-Chung * ''Wild Apple'' (2015) - translated by William Parker and Youngsil Ji

Works in Korean (partial)

Poetry

* ''To the Roots'' (, 1991) * ''The Words Stained the Leaves'' (, 1994) * ''It's Not That Far from Here'' (, 1997) * ''What Is Darkening'' (, 2001) * ''A Missing Palm'' (, 2004) * ''Wild Apple'' (, 2009) * ''Time for These Horses To Return'' (, 2014)The word 말 has multiple meanings, including but not limited to "word" and "horse." * ''To Her'' (, 2015)

Prose

* ''A Half-Bucket of Water'' (, 1999) * ''Where Does Purple Come From?'' (, 2003) * ''Remember Those Lights'' (, 2012) * ''A Plate of Poems'' (, 2012) * ''I'm Going To Get There on Foot Step by Step'' (, 2017)

Compilations

* ''Morning Song, Evening Poetry'' (, 2008) * ''My Representative Poem'' (, 2012) * ''Na Huideok's Glass Bottle Letter'' (, 2013)

Awards

Kim Su-yeong Kim Suyeong was a Korean poet. Life Kim Soo-young (1921–1968) was a Korean poet and translator whose poetry explored love and freedom as poetic and political ideals. Kim was born in Gwancheol-dong, Seoul on November 27, 1921. After gradua ...

Literature Prize (1998) * This Year's Young Artist Award (2001) * Contemporary Literature Prize (2003) *

Midang Literary Award Midang Literary Award (hangul: 미당문학상) is established in June 2001 by the JoongAng Ilbo ''The JoongAng'', formally known as ''JoongAng Ilbo'', is a South Korean daily newspaper published in Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the thr ...

(2014)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Na, Huideok 1966 births 20th-century South Korean women writers Living people South Korean women poets International Writing Program alumni Midang Literary Award winners 21st-century South Korean women writers