Aauthor Han Kang was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for his “profound poetic prose” on Oct. 10, according to a report in the Royal Swedish Academy newspaper.
Kang’s work focuses on “historical trauma,” colonial violence, and the “weakness” of humanity, the school continued. The South Korean writer is known for works like this Vegetarian –which won the International Booker prize in 2016—White Paper, Human Actions, again Greek Studies. The literary prize is awarded for the author’s complete work, not a specific text. Like all Nobel Prize winners, Kang won 11m krona ($1.1 million) for the prize.
“I am surprised and honored,” Kang told the Nobel Museum on the phone after hearing about the award. So I can say that I grew up with Korean books, which I feel very close to. So I hope this news is good for the readers of Korean literature and my friends, the writers.” He went on to say that he will celebrate “quietly” by drinking tea with his son.
Kang is the first South Korean and the first Asian woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature.
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“Han Kang writes profound prose, with soft and brutal instruments,” said Anna-Karin Palm, a co-nominated member of the Nobel Committee for Literature, in an interview with the Nobel Prize Museum after the announcement. “There is a continuity in themes, which is surprising, but at the same time, a great difference in style that makes every book a new aspect or a new expression of these central themes.”
Kang, 53, has been a writer for more than 30 years, but Vegetarian— first published in 2007 — was his first novel translated into English in 2015, and received widespread acclaim and attention. He has won awards including the Manhae literary prize and the Kim Yujung Literary Prize for his other work.
Kang was born in Gwangju in 1970, although he grew up in Suyuri and currently lives in Seoul. He studied Korean literature at Yonsei University. His first published works were five poems in 1993, and he made his fiction debut the following year with a short story. Vegetarian, the book that boosted her global profile, talks about a woman who chooses to stop eating meat after having violent dreams about the slaughter of animals. It explores themes of isolation, social harmony and violence.
The only other South Korean to receive a Nobel Prize is the country’s former President Kim Dae-jung, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 for his efforts to restore democracy in South Korea and his “sunshine policy” toward North Korea.
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