Trajectories of Modernity in Korean Literature
- Module Code:
- Year of study:
- Year 3 of 4 or Year 4 of 4
- Taught in:
- Term 2
This module examines thematic and theoretical conceptions that characterise 'modernity', through a syllabus which considers issues surrounding representation, identity, landscape and cultural memory in Korean literature. It aims to provide students with the skills to read, analyse and understand diverse forms of modern Korean literary works against the socio-historical context of the time in which they were produced, as well as present day academic contexts.
Trajectories of Modernity in Korean Literature
Each class session consists of a seminar and a lecture. Each week, students are assigned a set of primary texts (literary works), secondary sources (literary history and criticism), and questions to consider and discuss in class. Students will develop analytical and presentation skills through the seminars, knowledge of modern Korean literary culture through the lectures, and critical writing and research methods through the coursework essays.
This module, together with ‘Literary Traditions and Culture of Korea’, is designed to complement other content modules to provide BA Korean students with a well-rounded understanding of Korea and Korean culture. They also offer students with training in writing, research and critical skills. While the course is designed primarily for BA Korean students, it is also offered as a non-language open option module to students in their pre-final or final year of other BA degrees. No prior knowledge of Korean language or literature is required, as all texts studied on the course are in English translation.
Objectives and learning outcomes of the module
At the end of the module, a student should be able to:
- demonstrate an understanding of the forms and themes of modern Korean literature with respect to socio-historical context and cultural developments;
- demonstrate skills in textual and literary analysis and research;
- identify and compare different scholarly approaches to the study of modern Korean literature;
- assess critically the materials and themes explored in the course.
This module will be taught over 10 weeks with a 1 hour lecture and 1 hour seminar per week.
Method of assessment
A 1,500-2,000 word essay (textual analysis or reaction paper) due on day 5 (Friday), week 5 of the term in which the course is taught (40%); A 3,000-3,500 word essay (research paper), due on day 1 (Monday), week 1 of the following term (50%); A 10-20 minute oral presentation (in groups of 2-4 - 5 minutes per person in each group) on the final topic, with a hand-out summarising the main points (10%)
Modern Korean Literary Works in English Translation:
- Chung, Chong-wha. Classical Korean Literature: An Anthology. London: Kegan Paul International, 1989 (Yi Injik’s “Tears of Blood,” pp. 159-221).
- Ch’ae Mansik. Peace Under Heaven: A Modern Korean Novel. Trans. Chun Kyung-ja. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe, 1993.
- Ch’oe In-hun. A Grey Man. Trans. Chun Kyung-Ja. Arch Cape, Oregon: Pace International Research, c. 1988.
- Ch’oe, Yŏngho, P. H. Lee, and Wm. T. de Bary, eds. Sources of Korean Tradition: Volume Two. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000.
- Chung, Chong-wha. Modern Korean Literature: An Anthology 1908-65. London: Kegan Paul International, 1995.
- Fulton, Bruce, and Youngmin Kwon, eds. Modern Korean Fiction: An Anthology. New York: Columbia University Press, 2005.
- --- and Ju-Chan, trans. Wayfarer: New Fiction by Korean Women. Seattle: Women in Translation, 1997.
- ---. Words of Farewell: Stories by Korean Women Writers. Seattle: The Seal Press, 1989.
Hwang Sŏk-yŏng. The Guest. Trans. Kyung-Ja Chun and Maya West. New York: Seven Stories Press, 2005.
- Korean National Commission for UNESCO. Modern Korean Short Stories Series (Volumes 1-10). Seoul: The Si-sa-yŏng-ŏ-sa Publishers, 1983.
- Lee, Ann Sung-hi. Mujŏng: Yi Kwang-su and Modern Korean Literature. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University East Asia Program, 2005.
- Lee, Peter H. Flowers of Fire: Twentieth-Century Korean Stories. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1986.
- ---. Modern Korean Literature: An Anthology. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1990.
- Pak Wansŏ. My Very Last Possession and Other Stories. Trans. Chun Kyung-ja et al. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe, 1999.
- ---. Three Days in that Autumn. Seoul: Jimoondang Publishing Company, 2001.
- Pihl, Marshall R. et al., trans. Land of Exile: Contemporary Korean Fiction. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe, 1993.
- Sŏ Chŏngju. Midang Sŏ Chŏngju: The Early Lyrics 1941-1960. Trans. Brother Anthony of Taizé. London: Forest Books, 1993.
- Suh, Ji-moon, trans. The Golden Pheonix: Seven Contemporary Korean Short Stories. Boulder and London: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1998.
- ---. The Rainy Spell and Other Korean Short Stories. London: Onyx Press, 1983.
- Yang Gui-ja. Rust. Trans. Ahn Jung-hyo and Steven D. Capener. Seoul: Jimooondang Publishing Company, 2002.
- ---. Swamp. Seoul: Jimoondang Publishing Company, 2002.
- Yi Munyŏl. Hail to the Emperor. Trans. Sol Sun-bong. Seoul: Si-sa-yong-o-sa, 1986.
- ---. Our Twisted Hero. Trans. Kevin O’Rourke. New York: Hyperion East, 2001.
- ---. The Poet. Trans. Chung Chong-wha and Brother Anthony of Taizé. London: Harvill Press, 2001.
Korean Literary History and Criticism:
- Belson, Mark J. “Hyŏn Chin-gŏn’s Philosophy of Wine.” Korean Journal 14:5 (1974): 34-43.
- Choi Won-shik. “Rethinking Korean Literary Modernity.” In Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed., pp. 29-57.
- ---. “Seoul, Tokyo, New York: Modern Korean Literature Seen through Yi Sang’s ‘Lost Flowers’.” Korea Journal 39:4 (1999): 118-43.
- Hwang Jong-yon. “The Emergence of Aesthetic Ideology in Modern Korean Literary Criticism: An Essay on Yi Gwangsu.” In Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed., pp. 59-84.
- Im Hŏn-yŏng. “The Korean Novel in the Eighties.” Korea Journal 26:7 (1986): 4-21.
- Kim Byong-ik. “The Korean War in Fiction.” In Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed., pp. 305-17.
- Kim Chong-un. “Postwar Korean Society and the Short Story: The Case of Son Ch’angsŏp.” Korea Journal 26:4 (1986): 23-31.
- Kim Hŭnggyu. Understanding Korean Literature. Trans. Robert J. Fouser. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe, 1997.
- Kim T’ae-Gil. “A Study of Values as Presented in Contemporary Korean Novels.” Korea Journal 21:5 (1981): 4-20.
- Kim Uchang. “Extravagance and Authenticity: Romantic Love and the Self in Early Modern Korean Literature.” In Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed., pp. 3-27.
- ---. “The Situation of the Writers Under Japanese Colonialism.” Korea Journal 16:5 (1976): 4-15.
- Kim Yoon-shik. “The Korean Novel in the Age of Industrialization.” In Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed., pp. 319-27.
- ---. Understanding Modern Korean Literature. Trans. Jang Gyung-ryul. Seoul: Jipmoondang Publishing Co., 1998.
- Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed. Korean Literature: Its Classical Heritage and Modern Breakthroughs. Seoul and Elizabeth, N.J.: Hollym, 2003.
- Ku Chung-So. “The Development of Critical Literature in the 80s.” Korea Journal 26:7 (1986): 35-51.
- Kwon Young-min. “Contemporary Literature as Division Literature.” Korea Journal 27:7 (1987): 34-40.
- Lee, Grant S. “A Philosophical Appraisal of Yi Kwang-su: Man and Writer.” Korea Journal 17:1 (1977): 40-56.
- Lee, Ann Sung-hi. “The Early Writings of Yi Gwang-su.” Korea Journal 42:2 (2002): 241-78.
- Lee Peter H., ed. A History of Korean Literature. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
- Lee, Younghee. Ideology, Culture, and Han. Seoul: Jimoondang Publishing Company, 2002.
- McCann, David. Form and Freedom in Korean Poetry. Leiden and New York: Brill, 1988.
- Mostow, Joshua S., et al., eds. The Columbia Companion to Modern East Asian Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 2003. (Part IV Korea, pp. 617-742)
- O’Rourke, Kevin. “The Korean Short Story of the 1920s and Naturalism.” Korea Journal 17:3 (1977): 48-63.
- ---. “Literature after the Korean War.” In Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed., pp. 291-304.
- Oh Saeng-Keun. “Seoul and ‘Seoulites’ as Portrayed in Literature.” In Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed., pp. 347-64.
- Pihl, Marshall R. “The Nation, the People, and a Small Ball: Literary Nationalism and Literary Populism in Contemporary Korea.” In Korean National Commission for UNESCO, ed., pp. 329-45.
- Sin Tong-uk. “Hyŏn Chin-gŏn and His Literature.” Korea Journal 16:5 (1976): 16-27.
- West, Philip and Suh Ji-moon, eds. Remembering the “Forgotten War”: The Korean War Through Literature and Art. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe, 2001.
- Yu, Beongcheon. Han Yong-un and Yi Kwang-su: Two Pioneers of Modern Korean Literature. Detroit: Wayne State University, 1992.
Related Readings: Korean History, Culture and Reference Guides
- Eckert, Carter J., et al. Korea Old and New: A History. Seoul: Published for the Korea Institute, Harvard University by Ilchokak; Cambridge, Mass.: Distributed by Harvard University Press, 1990.
- Kang, Hildi. Under the Black Umbrella: Voices from Colonial Korea, 1910-1945. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 2001.
- Pang Kie-Chung and Michael D. Shin, eds. Landlords, Peasants, and Intellectuals in Modern Korea. Ithaca and London: Cornell East Asia Series, No. 128, Cornell University Press, 2005.
- Schmid, Andre. Korea Between Empires, 1895-1919. New York: Columbia University Press, 2002.
- Song, Ki Joong, comp. Glossary of Korean Culture. Seoul: Chimundang, 2001.
- Bennet, Tony. Outside Literature. London: Routledge, 1990.
- Cuddon, J. A. The Penguin Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory. London: Penguin Books, 1998.
- Ferguson, Suzanne C. “Defining the Short Story: Impressionism and Form.” In Charles E. May, ed. The New Short Story Theories. Athens, OH: Ohio University Press, 1994, pp. 218-30.
- Eagleton, Terry. Criticism and Ideology. London: Verso, 1986.
- ---. Literary Theory: An Introduction. Minneapolis, Minn.: University of Minnesota Press, 1996.
- Fish, Stanley. Is There a Text in this Class?: The Authority of Interpretive Communities. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1990.
- Hockx, Michel and Ivo Smits, eds. Reading East Asian Writing: The Limits of Literary Theory. London: Routledge Curzon, 2003.
- Prendergast, Christopher, ed. Debating World Literature. London: Verso, 2004.