Yun Heunggil (born 14 December 1942) is a South Korean novelist known for his treatment of conflicts between the individual and society. He received his degree in

Korean literature Korean literature is the body of literature produced by Koreans, mostly in the Korean language and sometimes in Classical Chinese. For much of Korea's 1,500 years of literary history, it was written in Hanja. It is commonly divided into classi ...

from

Wonkwang University Wonkwang University () is a university located in Iksan, South Korea. Founded as Youilhakrim () in 1946, it is one of the few academies affiliated with Won Buddhism. Yuilhakrim was succeeded by Wonkwang Junior College () on 5 November 1951, and ...

in 1973. In 1977 he won the Korean Literature Writers Award.

Life

Yun Heunggil was born 14 December 1942 in

Jeongeup Jeongeup (; ), is a city in North Jeolla Province, South Korea. The city limits include Naejang-san National Park, a popular destination particularly in autumn due to its foliage. Jeongeup is on the Honam Expressway and Honam Line, with the ...

Jeollanam-do South Jeolla Province (), formerly South Chŏlla Province, also known as Jeonnam (), is a province in the Honam region, South Korea, and the southernmost province in mainland Korea. South Jeolla borders the provinces of North Jeolla to the nor ...

in Korea. He graduated from Jeonju Teachers School and Wonkwang University. Originally a schoolteacher, he has made a living as a writer since 1976, while also teaching at the university level.

Work

Yun's career can be divided into three phases. In the first phase, with often partly autobiographical works written during the early 1970s, Yun uses a young male narrator to depict a gloomy existence in which the family is threatened by internal or external troubles. Works of these periods include '' The Rainy Spell'' and ''The Lamb''. In a later phase, his novels shifted focus to depict life under the authoritarian Park Chunghee regime, in which the primary tensions are between personal conscience and material well-being, which was proposed by Park Chunghee. In 1977, he entered into the third stage with the publication of ''The Man Who Was Left as Nine Pairs of Shoes'', in which the characters actively resist the forces oppressing them. Yun currently works as a professor of

creative writing Creative writing is any writing that goes beyond the boundaries of normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of literature, typically identified by an emphasis on craft and technique, such as narrative structure, character ...

Hanseo University Hanseo University () is a private university located in Seosan and Taean, South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borde ...

Seosan Seosan (; ) is a city in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea, with a population of roughly 175,000 according to the 2017 census. Located at the northwestern end of South Chungcheong Province, it is bounded by Dangjin, Naepo New Town, Yesan- ...

Works in translation

* ''The Rainy Spell and other Korean Stories'' (중단편 소설선 <장마>) - a Collection * "The Rainy Spell" (Jimoondang Edition) * "The Man Who Was Left as Nine Pairs of Shoes" in Land of Exile Contemporary Korean Fiction * "The Man Who Was Left as Nine Pairs of Shoes" (Bilingual edition) Asia Press * "The House of Twilight" (1989) London: Readers International ()

Works in Korean (partial)

Short story collections * ''The House of Twilight'' (1976) * ''The Man Who Was Left as Nine Pairs of Shoes'' (1977) * ''The Rainy Spell'' (1980), * ''A Dreamer’s Fortress'' (1987) * ''Heaven or Angel?'' (2003) Novels * ''Sea of Revelation'' (1978) * ''Armband'' (1983) * ''Mother'' (1990) Linked Short Story Collection * ''Way to Soradan'' (2003).

Awards

* 4th Korean Literature Writer Award for "The Man Who Was Left as Nine Pairs of Shoes" in 1977 * 5th Hankook Ilbo Literary Award (previously called the Korean Creative Literature Award) for the novella ''A Dreamer’s Fortress'' in 1983 * 28th (1983)

Contemporary Literature (Hyundae Munhak) Award The company Contemporary Literature (“Hyundae Munhak” in Korean language, Korean), founded in South Korea in 1954, is one of the leading publishing companies in the literary field and has been publishing the nation's most prestigious monthly l ...

for ''Armband'' * 6th Twenty-first Century Literature Award for ''Forest Fire'' in 2000 * 12th Daesan Literary Award for the linked collection ''The Way to Soradan'' in 2004.

References

External links

Review of The Man Who Was Left as Nine Pairs of Shoes
at KTLIT {{DEFAULTSORT:Yun, Heunggil South Korean novelists People from Jeongeup People from North Jeolla Province 1942 births Living people