Draft:Kim Jeong-han

Kim Jeong-han (Korean: 김정한, Hanja: 金廷漢; October 20, 1908 – November 28, 1996) was a South Korean novelist. His pen name was Yosan (Korean: 요산, Hanja: 樂山).

Early Life

Kim Jeong-han was born as the eldest of seven siblings and the first grandson in a family of the Gimhae Kim clan in Namsan-ri, Buk-myeon, Dongnae-bu, Gyeongsangnam-do (now Namsan-dong, Geumjeong-gu, Busan Metropolitan City). His ancestral home is Cheongdo, North Gyeongsang Province. He is a descendant of Kim Dae-yu, a member of the Samjokdang and a nephew of Kim Il-son, who was implicated and exiled to Honam during the Muo Sahwa (a political purge). After being released following the Jungjong coup, Kim Jeong-han's ancestors settled in this area.

Academic and Teaching Career

From a young age, Kim Jeong-han studied classical Chinese at a private school established by his great-grandfather. In 1919, at the age of twelve, he enrolled in Myeongjeong School located within the precincts of Beomeosa Temple, which is the predecessor of today's Cheongryong Elementary School and Geumjeong Middle School. He initially attended Jungang High School before transferring to Dongnae High School, graduating in 1928. He became a teacher at Daehyeon Elementary School in Ulsan but, dissatisfied with the ethnic discrimination by the Japanese, planned to organize a Korean Teachers' Union. However, he was arrested by the Japanese police. This incident led him to quit teaching and move to Japan.

In 1930, Kim Jeong-han enrolled in the Department of Liberal Arts at Waseda University's First Senior High School, Japan. In 1931, he participated in editing "Hakjiguang (학지광, 學之光)," a publication by the association of Korean students studying abroad. He contributed a short story titled "Relief Work (구제사업, 救濟事業)" to the "Korean Poetry and Literature Society (조선시단)," but only the title of his work was published, as the content was entirely censored and deleted.

During the summer vacation of 1932, upon returning to Korea, Kim Jeong-han was imprisoned due to his involvement in the Yangsan Peasants' Rebellion. Consequently, he discontinued his studies and, the following year, dedicated himself to peasant literature while working as a teacher at Namhae Elementary School.

Literary Career

Kim Jeong-han made his debut in the literary world in 1936 when his short story "Sahachon" (Temple Village, 사하촌, 寺下村) won a New Year's literary competition organized by the Chosun Ilbo newspaper. From then on, he published several notable works, including "Oksimi" (옥심이, 1936), "Hangjin-gi" (The Record of Resistance, 항진기, 抗進記, 1938), "Such a Husband" (그러한 남편, 1938), and "Crossroads" (기로, 岐路, 1938), which led to him being labeled as a 'writer of interest for inciting the masses'. He continued to publish short stories like "Moonlight" (월광한, 1940), "Nak-il-hong" (낙일홍, 1940), "Chusan-dang and the People Around" (추산당과 곁사람들, 1940), and "An Old Lullaby" (묵은 자장가, 1941). Later, he took over the operation of the Dong-A Ilbo's Dongnae branch but was arrested by the police for violating the Public Security Preservation Laws. As the oppression from the Japanese government intensified, he eventually ceased writing.

After Liberation

After the liberation from Japanese colonial rule in 1945, Kim Jeong-han worked as a teacher at Busan Middle School. Starting from 1949, he served as a professor at Busan National University. Following the coup d'état on May 16, he stepped down from his position at Busan National University and joined the Busan Daily Newspaper as a permanent editorial committee member, writing editorials and columns. In 1965, he was reinstated as a professor at Busan National University.

Return to the Literary Scene

It was not until the late 1960s that Kim Jeong-han broke his long silence and returned to the literary scene. In 1966, he gained significant attention with the publication of "The Story of the Sandbank" (모래톱 이야기) a novella vividly depicting the lives and hardships of poor fishing village residents along the Nakdong River. Over the next five years, he wrote novels exposing the grim reality of rural villages under Japanese colonial rule and their subsequent oppression, featuring naive and ignorant country folks from the Nakdong River area as his protagonists.

In 1967, Kim Jeong-han served as the chairman of the Korean Writers' Association and the Busan branch of the Federation of Artistic and Cultural Organizations of Korea. In 1969, he was awarded the 6th Korea Literature Prize for his novella "Surado" (Path of Asura, 수라도, 修羅道). "Surado" realistically depicts the family history of the Heo Jin-sa household and the tribulations of the Korean people from the end of the Joseon Dynasty to the period immediately following liberation through the life of a woman. The work is considered one of the author's problem works, distinctly highlighting the spirit of resistance among the nameless masses.

Following his achievements, Kim Jeong-han published collections of short stories, "Nak-il-hong"(낙일홍) and "Human Pottery"(인간단지, 1971). He retired upon reaching the mandatory retirement age from his professorship at Busan National University in 1974 and served as the chairman of the Free Practice Writers' Association (the predecessor to the Association of National Literature Writers). Later, in 1987, he became the inaugural chairman of the National Literature Society.

Legacy

In June 2003, with support from the Busan Metropolitan City, junior writers and public figures restored Kim Jeong-han's birthplace. The traditional Korean house, with its gable and hip roof and a straight-line structure, sits with the backdrop of Geumjeongsan, a prominent mountain in Busan, and overlooks the distant Oryundae. This restoration effort not only commemorated his literary legacy but also preserved a cultural site, offering future generations a glimpse into the environment that shaped one of Korea's revered literary figures.

Awards

Kim Jeong-han was honored with several prestigious awards throughout his career, underscoring his significant contributions to Korean literature and culture. He received the Korea Literature Prize, the Republic of Korea Cultural Arts Award, the Silver Crown Order of Cultural Merit in 1976, and the Simsan Award in the literature category in 1994. These accolades reflect his esteemed position in the Korean literary world and his enduring influence on Korean culture and arts.

References

This document includes content based on the Global World Encyclopedia, which was distributed by Daum Communications (now Kakao) under the GFDL (GNU Free Documentation License) or CC-SA (Creative Commons Share-Alike) license.

김정한 (소설가) Category:Academic staff of Pusan National University Category:South Korean essayists Category:South Korean expatriates in Japan Category:South Korean novelists Category:1996 deaths Category:1908 births