Category: Arts & Culture

 

The saga of King Sukjong, Queen Inhyeon, and Concubine Jang Hui-bin is one of the most famous episodes in the 500-year-long history of Joseon dynasty. Filled with palace intrigues and passionate love affairs, the story of the 19th king of Joseon, his virtuous queen, and one of the most infamous women in the history of Joseon dominates the popular culture and imagination even today. But what was the real story behind the legend?

Professor Minsoo Kang, who recently published a translation of Record of the Virtue of Queen Inhyeon, Lady Min, speaks about the importance of this story, the historical myth that has built around the characters, and its place in modern Korean society.

 

 

The King, the Virtuous Queen, and His Wicked Consort

Thursday, March 11, 2021 | 6 PM (EST)

The Korea Society
350 Madison Avenue, 24th Floor
New York, NY 10017

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

Minsoo Kang is an associate professor in European history, with specialities in the cultural and intellectual history of France, England, and Germany in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries at the University of Missouri–St. Louis. In addition to articles in numerous journals, he is the author of Sublime Dreams of Living Machines: The Automaton in the European Imagination (Harvard University Press), The Story of Hong Gildong (Penguin Classics), and Invincible and Righteous Outlaw: The Korean Hero Hong Gildong in Literature, History, and Culture (University of Hawaii Press). His translation of Record of the Virtue of Queen Inhyeon, Lady Min appeared in Azalea: Journal of Korean Literature and Culture.

 

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The Magical Language of Others is a powerful and aching memoir, a tale of deep bonds to family, place, and language.

After living in America for over a decade, Eun Ji Koh’s parents return to South Korea for work, leaving fifteen-year-old Eun Ji and her brother behind in California. Overnight, Eun Ji finds herself abandoned and adrift in a world made strange by her mother’s absence. Her mother writes letters, in Korean, over the years seeking forgiveness and love―letters Eun Ji cannot fully understand until she finds them years later hidden in a box.

In this incandescent memoir, E. J. Koh fearlessly grapples with forgiveness, reconciliation, legacy, and intergenerational trauma. Join us for an in-depth conversation with E. J. Koh about her memoir, poetry, and translation.

“Koh’s book is a tremendous gift. We’re so fortunate to have this literary reckoning from a tremendously talented writer. The Magical Language of Others is a wonder.”
—The San Francisco Chronicle

“A haunting, gorgeous narrative…lushly told. Brilliant.”
—The Star Tribune

 

Due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), this program will be conducted virtually. This live session will be provided free of charge at the specified date and time. A limited number of viewing links will be provided to the people who sign up through the form below. Those unable to view the live session will have the opportunity to watch the recorded video or listen to the podcast soon after.

To order The Magical Language of Others, please visit:
 https://tinhouse.com/book/the-magical-language-of-others/

 

The Magical Language of Others with E.J. Koh

Wednesday, January 13, 2021 | 6 PM (EST)

The Korea Society
350 Madison Avenue, 24th Floor
New York, NY 10017

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

E. J. Koh is the author of the memoir The Magical Language of Others and the poetry collection A Lesser Love. She is the winner of the Pleiades Press Editors Prize, and her poems, translations, and stories have appeared in Boston Review, Los Angeles Review of Books, and World Literature Today, among others. She earned her MFA in Literary Translation and Creative Writing from Columbia University, and is completing the PhD program at the University of Washington in Seattle. She is a recipient of The MacDowell Colony and Kundiman fellowships.

 

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One Left is a provocative, extensively researched novel constructed from the testimonies of dozens of “comfort women.” Kim Soom tells the story of a woman who was kidnapped at the age of thirteen while gathering snails for her starving family. The horrors of her life as a sex slave follow her back to Korea, where she lives in isolation gripped by the fear that her past will be discovered. Yet, when she learns that the last known comfort woman is dying, she decides to tell her there will still be “one left” after her passing, and embarks on a painful journey.

The first Korean novel devoted to the subject of comfort women, One Left rekindled conversations about the violent legacies of Japanese colonialism when it was published in Korea in 2016. It is also the first novel of Kim to be translated into English.

In this episode of video series Author Talks, Kim Soom discusses her career and award-winning novels.

“[An] exceptional novel [that] captures the agonizing legacy of a dark chapter from the recent past.”―Booklist

“It may seem cliché to state that a novel is necessary. But this one really is.”―Asian Review of Books

 

To order One Left, please visit:
 https://uwapress.uw.edu/book/9780295747668/one-left/

 

Author Talks: Kim Soom

Premieres: Thursday, January 7, 2021

The Korea Society
350 Madison Avenue, 24th Floor
New York, NY 10017

About the Author:

Kim Soom has published thirteen novels and six short story collections. She has received the Yi Sang Literary Award, Hyundae Literary Award, Daesan Literary Award, Heo Gyun Literary Award, and the Tong-In Literature Prize. One Left is her first novel translated into English.

 

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