Yi Cheong-jun (, 9 August 1939 - 31 July 2008) was a prominent

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

. Throughout his four decade-long career, Yi wrote more than 100 short stories and 13 novels.

Life

Yi Cheong-jun was born in 1939. He graduated with a degree in

German literature German literature () comprises those literature, literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German parts of Switzerland and Belgium, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, South Tyrol in Italy a ...

from

Seoul National University Seoul National University (SNU; ) is a national public research university located in Seoul, South Korea. Founded in 1946, Seoul National University is largely considered the most prestigious university in South Korea; it is one of the three "S ...

. In 1965, he debuted with a short story titled ''Toewon'' (퇴원, lit. "Leaving the Hospital"). Two years later, he won a Dongin Literature Award for ''The Wounded'' (''Byeongsingwa Meojeori'', 병신과 머저리). He died from lung cancer at the age of 68 on July 31, 2008.

Work

Yi Cheong-jun is considered one of the foremost writers of the 4.19 Generation and his literary output since has been both steady in pace and considerable in volume, and his subject matter has been varied. ''The Wounded'' (Byeongsin gwa mejeori, 1966) probes the spiritual malaise of the post-war Korean youth; ''This Paradise of Yours'' (Dangsindeurui cheonguk, 1976) explores the dialectics of charity and will to power, with the leper colony of

Sorokdo Island Sorokdo () is an island in Goheung County, South Jeolla in South Korea. The word ''sorok'' means "small deer", which the island's coastline, viewed from above, is supposed to resemble. The island is approximately one kilometer away from the large ...

as the backdrop; and ''The Fire Worshipers'' (Bihwa milgyo, 1985) meditates on the meaning of human rituals conducted in a Godless society when no ultimate guarantee of the absolute can be given. Yi Cheong-jun's fiction encompasses a broad range of political, existential and metaphysical concerns. One of the recurrent themes in his fiction, however, has been the concern with language as a vehicle of truth. ''The Walls of Rumor'' (Somunui byeok, 1972) describes the ways in which freedom of speech was repressed in the ideologically charged atmosphere of Korean society in the era of national division. Stories contained in the collection ''In Search of Lost Words'' (Ireobeorin mareul chajaseo, 1981) continue the investigation of the effect of political violence on language. Because thought cannot be separated from the modes of its expression, distortions of language in a politically repressive society effect psychological damages as well. The tyranny of political and social systems as they become internalized in individual psyches becomes inextricably bound to questions of language in Yi Cheongjun's fiction. Another favorite theme is the role of art in life. Such early stories as ''The Falconer'' (Maejabi) and ''The Target'' (Gwanyeok) feature artisans dedicated to the perfection of their craft, often at the cost of conventional happiness. In later years Yi Cheongjun drew on forms of traditional folk art and the Korean spirit embodied in them as a source of inspiration. For example, the work ''Seopyeonje'' (1993) foregrounds the genre of pansori, a traditional Korean oral performance which features a singer of tales accompanied by a single drummer. Here, artistic expression becomes both a mode of reconciliation to life, in spite of its countless woes, and ultimately of its transcendence. Made into a blockbuster feature film, ''Seopyeonje'' also helped revive great popular interest in the art of

pansori ' () is a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer. The term ''pansori'' is derived from the Korean words ''pan'' (Hangul: 판) and ''sori'' (Hangul: 소리), the latter of which means "sound." However, ''pan ...

Works in translation

* ''The Snowy Road and Other Stories'' (단편소설선 <눈길>) * ''Your Paradise'' ( 당신들의 천국) * ''The Prophet and Other Stories'' (이청준 소설선 <예언자> 외) * ''Seopyeonje'' (서편제) * ''The Cruel City and Other Korean Short Stories'' (한국대표단편선(2)) * ''Two Stories from Korea: "The Wounded" and "The Abject"''

Works in Korean (partial)

Many of his works have been adapted into movies or drama series by leading directors. Among them are: * '' Iodo'' directed by

Kim Ki-young Kim Ki-young (October 10, 1919According to official documents, Kim was born in 1919. However, Kim insisted he was actually born in 1922. – February 5, 1998) was a South Korean film director, known for his intensely psychosexual and melod ...

(1977). * ''

Seopyeonje ''Seopyeonje'' ( Hanja: 西便制) is a 1993 South Korean musical drama film directed by Im Kwon-taek, based on the novel of the same name by Yi Chong-jun. It tells the story of a family of traditional Korean pansori singers trying to make a livi ...

'' directed by

Im Kwon-taek Im Kwon-taek (born December 8, 1934) is one of South Korea's most renowned film directors. In an active and prolific career, his films have won many domestic and international film festival awards as well as considerable box-office success, and h ...

(1993), about a traditional

master who travels the country with his adopted son and daughter. * ''

Beyond the Years ''Beyond the Years'' () is a 2007 South Korean drama film. Celebrating director Im Kwon-taek's 100th film, it is based on the short fiction "The Wanderer of Seonhak-dong" by Lee Cheong-jun, and was presented at the 2007 Toronto International Fil ...

'' directed again by

(2007), was based on ''The Wanderer of Seonghak-dong'' * ''

Secret Sunshine ''Secret Sunshine'' () is a 2007 South Korean drama film directed by Lee Chang-dong. The screenplay based on the short fiction "The Story of a Bug" by Lee Cheong-jun that focuses on a woman as she wrestles with the questions of grief, madness an ...

'', directed by Lee Chang-dong (2007), was using the plot provided by the short story ''A Story of a Worm''. According to a critic, Kim Byeong-ik (김병익), Yi opened a new pace of Korean literature before the true modern literature of Korea was established in 1960s.

Awards

Dong-in Literary Award The Dong-in Literary Award ( ko, 동인문학상) is a South Korean literary award named after novelist Kim Dong-in, established in order to praise the literary achievement of The Republic of Korea. In commemoration of the Korean modern literatu ...

for ''The Wounded'' (1967) *

Yi Sang Literary Award The Yi Sang Literary Award (이상문학상) is a South Korean literary award. It is one of South Korea's most prestigious literary awards, named after Yi Sang, an innovative writer in modern Korean literature. The Yi Sang Literary Award was estab ...

for ''The Cruel City'' (1978) * Korean Literature Prize for ''The Fire Worshipers'' (1985) * Isan Literature Prize for ''The Gate of Liberty'' (1990) *

Ho-am Prize in the Arts The Ho-Am Prize was established in 1990 by Lee Kun-hee, Kun-Hee Lee, the Chairman of Samsung, with a vision to create a new corporate culture that continues the noble spirit of public service espoused by the late Chairman Byung-chull Lee, founder ...

(2007)

References

External links

Lee Cheong-jun
on PeopleForever.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Yi, Cheong-jun Yi Sang Literary Award South Korean novelists Seoul National University alumni 1939 births 2008 deaths Deaths from lung cancer in South Korea Recipients of the Ho-Am Prize in the Arts