Pak Dujin (, 10 March 1916 – 16 September 1998) was a
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republi ...
n poet. A voluminous writer of nature poetry, Pak Dujin is chiefly notable for the way he turned his subjects into symbols of the newly emerging national situation of Korea in the second half of the 20th century.
Life
Pak Dujin was born in
Anseong
Anseong () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, south of Seoul. Its geographical location is .
Anseong promotes itself as "The City of Masters". It is known for producing brassware and arts and crafts. From late spring to fall, Anseong h ...
, 40 miles from
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...
in modern-day South Korea, an area to which he often refers nostalgically in his poetry. His family was too poor to give him any formal education, but two early poems of his appeared in the publication ''Munjang'' (''Literary Composition'') in 1939. After Korea's liberation from Imperial Japanese rule, Pak created the Korean Young Writers' Association alongside
Kim Dongni
Kim Dongni (, also sometimes Gim Dongli) was a Korean writer."김동리" in the Korean Author’s Database at LTI Korea: http://klti.or.kr/ke_04_03_011.do#
Life
Kim Dongni, born Kim SijongGreat Novelist Kim Dong-ni Represents Korean Modern ...
, Cho Yeonhyeon, and Seo Jeongju. At that time he shared a first collection of poetry with fellow poets
Park Mok-wol
Pak Mok-wol (, 6 January 1916 – 24 March 1978) was an influential Korean poet and academic.
Personal life
He was born Pak Yeongjong on January 6, 1916, in Moryang Village, Seo-myeon, Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, in present-day South ...
and
Cho Chi-hun
Jo Jihun (December 3, 1920 – May 17, 1968) was a Korean poet, critic, and activist.”Cho Jihun" LTI Korea Datasheet available at LTI Korea Library or online at:
Life
Jo Jihun was born on December 3, 1920, in Yeongyang, Gyeongsangbuk-do, d ...
. This was the
Blue Deer Anthology (''Cheongnokjip'', 1946), which was followed by individual collections of his own, ''Hae'' (''The Sun'', 1949), ''Odo'' (''A Prayer at Noon'', 1953) and several more, distinguished by their treatment of nature.
Pak worked in a managerial position until 1945, then in publishing, and later as a professor in various universities. Among the awards given his poetry were the Asian Free Literature Prize (1956), Seoul City Cultural Award (1962), Samil Culture Award (1970), Korean Academy of Art Prize (1976) and the Inchon Prize (1988).
Work
Of Pak Dujin's contribution to