Jeong Ji-yong (original) (raw)

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Korean poet and translator (1902–1950)

Cheong Chi-yong
Jeong Ji-yong statue at Jingyong Literary MuseumJeong Ji-yong statue at Jingyong Literary Museum
Born (1902-06-20)June 20, 1902Hagye-ri, Okcheon County, Chungcheong Province, Korean Empire
Died c. 1950(1950-00-00) (aged 47–48)Pyongyang, North Korea
Language Korean
Nationality South Korean
Alma mater Doshisha University
Korean name
Hangul 정지용
Hanja 鄭芝溶
Revised Romanization Jeong Jiyong
McCune–Reischauer Chŏng Chiyong

Jeong Ji-yong, often romanized in literature as Cheong Chi-yong (Korean: 정지용; 20 June 1902 – c. 1950), was a Korean poet and translator of English poetry[1] who "opened a new horizon of poetic possibilities through chiselled expression, tempered sentiments, and precise visual imagery" according to the scholar of Korean poetry, Brother Anthony.[2]

Cheong Chi-yong was born in Hagye-ri, Okcheon, Chungcheongbuk-do, on June 20, 1902.[a] He attended Whimoon High School and graduated from Japan's Doshisha University with a major in English Literature.[3] While studying at Whimoon High School, he published the literary magazine Bulletin (Yoram) with contemporaries like Park Palyang. In 1926, he began to concentrate exclusively on composing poetry, and his piece "Cafe France”(Kape peurangseu) was published in Hakjo magazine. Later in life, Jung was active as an associate of Pak Yong-chol's Poetry (Simunhak) magazine and taught at Whimoon High School. After Liberation, he taught at Ewha Womans University, edited the Kyunghyang Daily News, and was a member of the Central Executive Committee of the Korean Writers Federation (Joseon Munhakga dongmaeng). In 1950, at the onset of the Korean War, he was detained by the Government Preservation Department and then transferred to Pyongyang Prison, where he is believed to have died.[4]

Cheong Chi-yong is considered among the most important poets to emerge from the modernist movement in Korea, he has been described as "the first modern Korean poet."[5] In 2007, he was listed by the Korean Poets' Association among the ten most important modern Korean poets.[6] His poetry can be divided into three stages. The first stage, which took place around 1925 to 1933, is characterized by the poet’s sensual imagist work, which often focused on the sea.[5] Beginning with his 1933 poem Phoenix (Bulsajo) and ending in 1935, the poet composed religious poetry influenced by his Catholic faith; this second period served as a transition period between his early sensous poetry and his later more traditional poetry. After his "Ongnyu Village" (Ongnyudong) and "Guseong Village" (Guseongdong) in 1941, his poetry evinced the predominance of Eastern thinking in its aesthetic. After his 1934 poems "A Different Heaven" (Dareun haneul) and "Yet Another Sun" (Tto hanaui dareun taeyang), Jung discarded the religious tendency of his earlier work. After nearly four years of absence from writing, he arrived at a mentality that sought to overcome the pains of reality, as seen in "Ongnyu Village", "Mountain Peak" (Bong), and "Guseong Village".[4]

Works in translation

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Works in Korean (partial)

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Poetry

Prose

On 17 June 2019, on Jeong Ji-yong’s 117th birthday, he was honored with a Google Doodle.[7]

Notes

  1. ^ Some sources indicate that he might have born on 15 May or 20 June 1902.

Citations

  1. ^ Source-attribution|"Cheong Chi-yong" LTI Korea Datasheet available at LTI Korea Library or online at: http://klti.or.kr/ke_04_03_011.do# Archived 2013-09-21 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "20th-century Korean Poetry". Archived from the original on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2008-05-17.
  3. ^ "[정재정의 독사만필(讀史漫筆)] 정지용, 윤동주, 도시샤대학 ①". Hankook Ilbo. 2018-04-25. Archived from the original on 2018-10-17. Retrieved 2018-10-17.
  4. ^ a b Source-attribution|"Seo Jeongju" LTI Korea Datasheet available at LTI Korea Library or online at: http://klti.or.kr/ke_04_03_011.do# Archived 2013-09-21 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ a b Lee, Kyung-ho (1996). "Chong Ji-Yong". Who's Who in Korean Literature. Seoul: Hollym. pp. 86–7. ISBN 1-56591-066-4.
  6. ^ Chung, Ah-young (October 15, 2007). "Top Ten Korean Modern Poets Selected". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  7. ^ "Jeong Ji-yong's 117th Birthday". Google. 2019-06-17. Archived from the original on 2019-06-17. Retrieved 2019-06-17.