Review:
Jessica Likens
On Friday, October 23, “Exchanging Words: A Bilingual Reading of Contemporary Korean Fiction” was held, co-sponsored by the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures at the University of California, Irvine, the International Communications Foundation in Korea, and the Academy of Korean Studies. The reading featured the works of Korean authors Cho Ky?ng-nan (Jo Kyung-Ran) and P’y?n Hye-y?ng (Pyun Hye-Young). Dr. Bruce Fulton from the University of British Columbia (UBC) and student translator Cindy Chen were present to do the English language readings.
Dr. Serk Bae Suh from UC Irvine began by thanking the sponsors as well as the authors and translators. He then introduced Dr. Chungmoo Choi who proceeded to introduce the authors and their work in greater detail, describing both of them in the context of the larger trends associated with female writers in Korea and arguing that both Cho and P’y?n address some of the relevant contemporary “ontological questions” behind technology and globalization. She further summarized Cho’s writing by talking about the appearance of the “lonely woman” in her work, comparing Cho’s characters to solitary figures in the films of Kim Ki-t?k (Ki-duk Kim) and finding similarities between the symbols found throughout the works of both that illustrate the need of their characters to reconnect: fishing hooks and arrows for Kim, knitting needles for Cho. Dr. Choi then addressed P’y?n’s work, characterizing her stories as presenting an “endless karma of hopelessness”.
Following the introductions given by the faculty, Cho proceeded to introduce herself, both in Korean and in English. She then read a section of her “Looking for the Elephant” (“K‘okkiri r?l ch‘ajas?”) in a calm and pleasant voice. Specifically, the section she read was about the narrator’s recollection of getting a Polaroid camera from someone whose absence is now keenly felt in her life. Once she had finished reading, Dr. Fulton expressed gratitude to UCI and the various sponsors for arranging for this bilingual reading to take place for the third year in a row. He also mentioned that he hopes that events such as this one connect “contemporary, cutting-edge fiction writers” to the historical oral traditional in Korea, thus “echoing thousands of years of Korean literary tradition.”
Dr. Fulton also described the way in which he first encountered authors such as Cho and P’y?n through a brief anecdote. He explained how when he first came across the journal Munhak Tongne, he was surprised to see pictures of authors in which they were actually smiling. Mentally contrasting these portraits to the stuffy-looking, serious photos he had primarily seen of Korean authors, he found the journal’s format and content refreshing. He continued to praise the journal, indicating the way in which he felt like it was a part of changes which took place in the 1990s which created a “new sensibility” in Korean literature. At this point, Dr. Kyung Hyun Kim reminded Dr. Fulton that UCI is fortunate enough to have the editor in chief of Munhak Tongne, Dr. S? Y?ng-ch‘ae, as a visiting scholar this quarter. Dr. Fulton acknowledged he was aware of this, and greeted Dr. S?.
Following a brief explanation of UBC’s literary translation program, Dr. Fulton proceeded to animatedly read from Cho’s “My Purple Sofa” (“Na?i chajuppit sop‘a”), with a twinkle in his eye and an amused smile on his lips at times as he read lines which were clearly in the voice of a young female, such as, “I was like, oh my god, this is so made for me” (in reference to a coat).
Following Dr. Fulton’s reading, Cindy Chen proceeded to read a portion of her perceptive translation of “Mallow Gardens” (Aoi kad?n), declaring that due to her “affinity for the dark and grotesque” she is currently “translating Ms. P’y?n’s stories exclusively.” In a slightly more timid voice than that of her teacher, Dr. Fulton, Ms. Chen proceeded to read from her excellent translation which featured such clever word choices as “crimson” for ppalgan, leading the reader to think of blood which would fit with the story’s gory tone, and “the woman” for k?ny? which conveys a strange unfamiliarity with the character who is actually the mother as well as distinguishes her from the sister, where the more common English translation “she” would lead to ambiguity.
After Ms. Chen finished her reading, P’y?n began to softly and swiftly recite the same section of “Mallow Gardens” in Korean, which focuses on fear and human reactions to a pandemic disease. This last reading was followed by a question and answer session which allowed students and faculty to ask the authors more about both metaphors or the meaning of content of their stories as well as about their personal experiences with writing and translation, which the authors answered genially. In particular, Cho expressed how hard it is to find a good translator, commenting that she believed finding a good match to be the second hardest task after writing itself, while P’y?n said that she believed that the trick was good communication, adding that Cindy had asked her a lot of questions while translating her stories. They also expressed their feelings about writing for Korean audiences versus the global community. P’y?n indicated that this reading series was her first experience with audiences outside of Korea, and so she had never thought about writing for a non-Korean speaking audience. Cho, on the other hand, said that she does not want to be confined by her nationality, and wants her work to speak to a broader audience.
---------------------------
The Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures Presents:
EXCHANGING WORDS:
A Bilingual Reading of Contemporary Korean Fiction
From the works of Korean authors Cho Kyŏng-nan and P’yŏn Hye-yŏng
English versions read by Bruce Fulton and Cindy Chen, translators
Cho Kyŏng-nan (Jo Kyung-Ran) is the author of several novels including Time for Baking Bread (1996), We’ve Met Before (2001), and Tongue (2007). Her works, microscopically examining alienation in modern life, have garnered both popular and critical acclaim.
Pyŏn Hye-yŏng (Pyun Hye-Young), winner of the prestigious Hanguk Ilbo Prize in 2007, is the author of the story collections Mallow Gardens (2005) and To the Kennels (2007). Infused with grotesque imagery, her stories depict an apocalyptic world.
3:00-5:00 P.M., Friday, Oct. 23, 1070 Humanities Gateway
The event is free and open to the public
The Authors’ Works in Translation Will Be Available for Purchase and Signing
With additional sponsorship by:
UCI Center for Asian Studies
The Academy of Korean Studies
The International Communications Foundation
UCI International Center for Writing and TranslationExchanging Words Flier |