Heo Su-gyeong (; 1964 – 3 October 2018)
[독일서 눈 감은 허수경 시인…향년 54세(종합2보)](_blank)
was a South Korean poet.
Life
Heo Su-gyeong was born in 1964 in
Jinju
Jinju (; ) is a city in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. It was the location of the first (1592) and second (1593) Sieges of Jinju by Japanese forces during the Imjin War. The Republic of Korea Air Force Education and Training Comman ...
, South Korea. She majored in Korean literature in
Gyeongsang National University.
Heo made her literary debut at the age of twenty-three in 1987 at the magazine ' with her poetry, and published her first volume of poetry ''There's Not A Fodder Like Sorrow'' (). In 1992, She published her second volume of poetry ''Alone To A Distant House'' (). After she published these two volumes of poetry and became a star of the korean poetry scene, She left
Korea
Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...
abruptly to Germany.
While in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, she pursued a doctorate degree in Ancient Near East archaeology in the Department of Ancient Oriental Studies at
University of Münster
The University of Münster (, until 2023 , WWU) is a public research university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.
With more than 43,000 students and over 120 fields of study in 15 departments, it is Germany's ...
. In 2003 she married
Reinhard Dittmann, a german archaeologist of the Near East.
Work
The Digital library of Korean literature comments on her work that "She infuses her poetry with the lyricism and the images taken from traditional Korean folktales and songs, thereby creating a uniquely Korean modern poetry free of western modernist influence. It can be said that distancing herself from her native tongue by living in a foreign environment is in itself the poet's attempt to bring herself closer to the essence of the Korean language". In Heo's poems, life is broken into pieces, filled with agony, incoherent, and loveless. Literary critic Lee Kwang ho noted the difference in the style of her post german migration work and her previous works saying while her pre germany works can be characterized as "a love poem combined with the rhythm and sensibilities of the
South Gyeongsang Province
South Gyeongsang Province (, ) is a province in the southeast of South Korea. The provincial capital is at Changwon. It is adjacent to the major metropolitan center and port of Busan. The UNESCO World Heritage Site Haeinsa, a Buddhist temple tha ...
and the loneliness and sadness that she faced as a woman", her work while in germany showed "her musings of lengthy periods that reflects her archaeological background".
Works in Korean (partial)
* There's Not A Fodder Like Sorrow (Seulpeummanhan georeumi oedi iteurya, 1988)
* Alone To A Distant House (Honja ganeun meon jip, 1992)
* Though My Soul is Old (Nae yeonghoneun orae doieoteuna, 2001).
Death
The poet died of terminal stomach cancer on October 3, 2018. The burial was held in a tree burial (Baumbestattung) fashion.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heo, Su-gyeong
1964 births
2018 deaths
South Korean women poets
Gyeongsang National University alumni