Haun Saussy and Emanuel Pastreich on Korean Translated Literature

An interesting transcript of an interview with Haun Saussy (Professor of Comparative Literature at the University of Chicago) which took places at the Asia Institute Seminar at the conclusion of  December 2011. This is from Emanuel Pastreich‘s blog Korea: Circles and Squares, which became immediately lovable to me when I read Pastreich’s About page which…

Ko Un Countdown and Realtime Video

For people super-interested in the Nobel Prize for Literature, it will be announced tonight at 8:30 pm Seoul time. Watch the countdown clock here if you are super-bored or, if you are really a fan there will be a live broadcast of the announcement here at KTLIT

Ko Un in the Chatter for the Nobel Prize in Literature

Which would make Korea fairly happy. ^^ Pre-award touts had Ko Un at about 9-1, but his name seems to be coming up more frequently.  Here is a money quote from the article: Literature expert Maria Schottenius at Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, who correctly predicted last year’s winner Herta Mueller of Germany, said she believes…

A 30-Volume Poem?

Buried in an otherwise uninspiring article in the Korea Times is this gem: Among others, poet Ko Un’s “Maninbo” (Ten Thousand Lives) has been completed 23 years after he started writing the popular historical poem in 1986. It will be published early next year over 30 volumes. He started the monumental poem during his imprisonment with…