Modern Korean Fiction

Lately I have been reading an anthology of Korean fiction, and a few writers that I particularly enjoy include Pak Wanso, Cho Kwangyong, Kim Sungok, and Cho Chongnae. These writers had given me a new perspective and understanding into modern-day Korea.

Cho wrote about Kapitan Ri (Doctor Ri), or Yi Inguk, an ultimate survivor who collaborated with the Japanese, the Russians, and eventually the Americans. I seriously think one has to admire with genuine admiration the ingenuity and intelligence of Yi. His defence of his "collaboration" was, I thought, particularly realistic and relevant.

"What do they expect of a person, anyway? There's no other way out for the people of a colony. They had no place for you, no matter what your talent. Who didn't cater to the Japs at one time or another? Only a fool rejects the proffered cake. None of us is clean."

Equally unforgettable, I thought, was the main character Chon Mansok as depicted in Cho Chongnae's Land of Exile. A victim of the War and the subsequent division of the country, his tale is heart-wrenching yet mirrors the country's devastating modern-day development.

Oppressed and often hungry since young, Chon became a communist and took revenge on his oppressors. But with the various rapid changes in politics, his life witnessed similar fluctuations. Cho's life is best summed up In the words of a secondary character in the story:

"I think it's the times that are at fault - the times," and "neither you and I had done anything wrong - except for being born with the wrong blood in our veins"