Han Malsook

Han Malsook
Hangeul	한말숙
Hanja	韓 末 淑
Revised Romanization	Han Mal-suk
McCune- Reischauer	Han Malsuk
See also : Korean name

Han Malsook (born December 27, 1931 in Seoul ) is a South Korean writer .

Life

Han Malsook was born in Seoul on December 27, 1931. She studied linguistics at Seoul National University .

She made her debut as a writer in 1956 with the publications of the short stories The Season in Starlight ( 별빛 속의 계절 ) and Abyss of a Myth ( 신화 의 단애 ).

She is particularly proud of her novel Over All Walls ( 아름다운 영가 ), which has been translated into several languages. The novel deals with spirituality, dreams, death and shamanism and tells the story of a Korean housewife and her relationships with other people, including her ex-husband and his wife. With impulsive pictures, an original writing style and a keen perception, the author depicts the multifaceted emotional life of alienated people, especially the psychology of women in the post-war period. Her work Abgrund eines Mythos ( 신화 의 단애 ) uses an existentialist perspective to depict the broken psyche of a woman who rejects the thought of the future and conventional social rules and thus leads a temporary existence that is characterized by enjoyment and comfort. The author makes self-abandonment and a nihilistic approach to life the main topic and thus refers to the existentialist discussion towards the end of the 1950s.

Han Malsook also deals in A Promise with God ( 신과 einstellung 약속 ) with a selfless, nihilistic approach to life. This is about a woman who negotiates the life of her daughter with God, but who, after her daughter has recovered, finds that she cannot do justice to the required faith in God. For women, the daughter is and remains the object of her devotion and not God. The author also deals with a wide range of different topics in her works. Thus, The Old Woman and the Cat ( 노파 와 handelt ) is about a woman who is abandoned by her family and shows the nature of alienation. White path ( 하얀 도정 ) describes the problems young people face with hypocritical and corrupt parents.

Han Malsook served on various committees, including the Korean UNESCO Committee. She has also given lectures at the Seoul National University Conservatory.

The writer is married to the famous Kayagŭm player Hwang P'yŏnggi .

Work

Korean

• 어떤 죽음 One Death (1957)
• 노파 와 고양이 The old woman and the cat (1958)
• 장마 rainy season (1959)
• 검은 장미 Black Rose (1959)
• 하얀 도정 White Path (1961)
• 흔적 Tracks (1963)
• 신과 의 약속 A Promise to God (1968)
• 모색 시대 The time to try (1980)
• 아름다운 영가 Over All Walls (1981)
• 행복 Happiness (1999) ISBN 9788974743611
• 사랑할 때 와 헤어질 때 When we love and when we part (2008) ISBN 9788987749211

Translations into German

• Across all walls ( 아름다운 영가 ), EOS-Verlag, St. Ottilien 2005, ISBN 3830671458

Awards

• 1964: 현대 문학 신인상 ( literature for young authors )
• 1968: 한국 일보 문학상 ( Hankook Ilbo Literature Prize )
• 1999: 문화 훈장 보관장 ( Order of Culture in Bronze )

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Korean Literature Authors Name Authority Database: 한말숙 ( Memento of the original from October 6, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed on February 24, 2014 (English) 
2. ↑ ^{a b} Author Database of the LTI Korea: Han Mahlsook ( Memento of the original from June 7, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed on February 24, 2014 (English) 
3. ↑ ^{a b} The Korea Herald : "Getting stories out into the world" , accessed on February 24, 2014 (English)
4. ↑ Naver 인물 검색: 한말숙 , accessed February 24, 2014 (Korean)
5. ↑ Naver 지식 백과: 한말숙 , accessed February 24, 2014 (Korean)

Note: This article places the family name before the person's first name. This is the usual order in Korean. Han is the family name here, Malsook is the first name.