Hwang Tong-gyu

In this Korean name, the family name is Hwang.

Hwang Donggyu
Born	(1938-04-09) April 9, 1938 Seoul, Chōsen (now South Korea)
Occupation	Professor, writer
Language	Korean
Nationality	South Korean
Citizenship	South Korean
Alma mater	Seoul National University

Hwang Donggyu (Korean: 황동규; born April 9, 1938) is a South Korean poet, academic and critic.

Korean name
Hangul	황동규
Hanja	黃東奎
Revised Romanization	Hwang Donggyu
McCune–Reischauer	Hwang Tongkyu

Life

Hwang Donggyu was born in Seoul. He received a degree in English literature from Seoul National University, where he also completed his graduate studies. His literary career started with the publication of works such as "October" (Si-wol) and "A Letter of Delight" (Jeulgeo-un pyeonji) in the journal Contemporary Literature (Hyundae Munhak). Hwang Donggyu is currently a professor of English literature at Seoul National University and has received several Korean literary prizes.

Work

The early poetry of Hwang Donggyu illustrates a sense of longing and anticipation through the portrayal of melancholic interior landscapes, as seen in "October" (Si-wol) and "A Letter of Delight" (Jeulgeo-un pyeonji). "Elegy" (Biga) is written in the language of a wanderer or outcast in order to illustrate the conflict between the 'Ego' and reality. His works "The Song of Peace" (Taepyeongga), "Snow Falling on the Three Southern Provinces" (Samname naelinun nun) and "Yeolha-ilgi" exemplify the use of irony in the poet's narrative voice.

Hwang Donggyu's diction and general poetic aesthetic evolved continuously throughout his literary career. Oftentimes, the poet strips images to their bare, essential core and employs a terse and unalloyed prose style. This poetic transformation suggests the poet's attempt to revolutionize the traditional prosody into a conventional, realistic form. While the poet meditates upon death by describing a will to tame it in "Wind Burial" (Pungjang), his poetic language is more flexible in "The Intolerable Lightness of Being" (Gyeondil su eobs-i gabyeo-un jonjaedeul).

Works in translation

• Wind Burial (풍장)
• Die Horen. Zeitschrift für Literatur, Kunst und Kritik (독일문예지 誌 -한국문학 특집호)
• Windbestattung (풍장)
• Posada de nubes y otros poemas (황동규 시선 <몰운대행>)

Works in Korean (Partial)

• A Shiny Day (Eotteon gae-in nal),
• A Falling Snow in Samnam (Samname naelineun nun)
• Yeolha-ilgi
• I Want to Paint When I See the Rock (Naneun bakwileul bomyeon gulligo sip-eojinda)
• A Journey to Morundae (Morundae haeng)
• Wind burial (Pungjang)

Awards

• Korean Literature Award (1980)
• Isan Literature Prize (1991)
• Midang Literary Award (2002)
• Manhae Prize (2006)
• Ho-am Prize in the Arts (2016)