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| Sohn Hae-il, vice president of the Korean branch of PEN International and director of the Korean Writers' Association of Korea, gives an introductory speech at a PEN International forum at Hamchoon Hall in Daehangno, Seoul, Nov. 30. / Courtesy of PEN International. |
By Yun Suh-young
PEN International, a literary organization aiming to globalize Korean literature overseas, held a Globalization of Korean Literature Forum for the first time in Seoul, Nov. 30.
The organization also published the book "World PEN Friends Together," which is an anthology of collected poems and writings of the co-representatives of the forum. The six representatives of the forum were the poets and writers Sohn Hae-il, Kim Yong-jae, Lim Byeong-ho, Oh Kyung-ja, Chung Yong-won and Jeon Kyung-ae who selected their representative works to be published in the PEN book. The book contains poems, children's poems, essays and fiction.
"I hope this can be a chance to enhance the recognition of PEN Korea and Korean literature," said Sohn Hae-il, vice president of the Korean branch of PEN International and director of the Korean Writers' Association of Korea, in an introductory message at the forum.
"Literature is food for the soul and a mirror of the world. It has a cathartic effect on our hearts. Korean literature is struggling to be appreciated overseas due to a lack of administrative support and translations. We will continue to hold forums and publish second and third books onwards to accelerate the globalization of Korean literature."
The World PEN Friends Together book has an English translation for each piece.
The Korean Writers' Association of Korea currently has 13,000 registered members and has produced over 350 types of literary magazines and through it many writers have risen to recognition. PEN International's Korean branch has around 3,400 members registered.
Sohn lamented over the lack of interest and effort in proliferating Korean literature overseas.
"It is important to publish magazines such as Korean Literature Today, which is published as a collaborative effort between the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI Korea) under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Korean Writers' Association of Korea and PEN International," said Sohn.
"We need a sustainable effort and investment to introduce Korean literature overseas. It's a pity that Korea doesn't have a Nobel Literature Prize winner."
Sohn suggested that literary associations host international symposiums in various cities across the world other than Seoul to help global citizens understand Korean literature.
"We need to gain foreigners' interest. It's part of cultural diplomacy. We also need to train and foster talented translators," he said.
"In order to resonate with world citizens, excellent Korean literature must be selected which carries universal themes. They need to be translated into over five languages including Swedish. What must also be improved is the distribution system. We must not bury the effort that has been put into translation by failing to effectively distribute them to overseas organizations and book markets."
Sohn graduated from Seoul National University and from the department of Korean Literature at the Graduate School of Hongik University. He received a Ph.D. in Literature at Hongik University in 1991. As a poet, Sohn debuted with monthly magazine Simunhak in 1978. He has published several anthologies and critical essays. He was president of the Simunhak magazine and president of Hongik Literary Society.
In September, PEN International held the second International Congress on Writers Writing in Korean in Gyeongju.
