Han Kang wins Nobel Prize in Literature for 'intense poetic prose' confronting human frailty CNN
The 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to Han Kang, a South Korean writer, for his “intense poetic prose that confronts historical trauma and reveals the fragility of human life.”
Han, 53, began her career with a group of poems in a South Korean magazine before making her prose debut in 1995 with a collection of short stories.
He later began writing long prose, notably “The Vegetarian”, one of his first books to be translated into English. The novel, which won the Man Booker International Prize in 2016, charts a young woman's efforts to live a more “plant-like” existence after suffering horrific nightmares about human cruelty.
Han is the first South Korean writer to win the literary prize, and only the 18th woman out of 117 awarded since 1901. The award, announced in Sweden on Thursday, carries a cash prize of 11 million Swedish kroner ($1 million).
In a statement posted on Facebook Thursday, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol described Han's win as “a major achievement in the history of Korean literature” and a “national occasion.” He added: “Han has turned the painful scars of our modern history into great literature.”
Much of Hahn's work raises this question, voiced by a character in his 2019 novel “Europa,” whose protagonist is haunted by nightmares: “What would you do with your life if you were able to live as you wished?”
Although many of Hahn's protagonists are women, his prose works are often narrated from a male perspective.
“Before my wife became a vegetarian, I always thought her absolutely extraordinary in every way,” begins his novel “The Vegetarian.” “However, if there was no particular attraction, or no particular drawback, and so there was no reason for the two of us not to marry.”
Originally written and published in Korean, “The Vegetarian” was translated by Deborah Smith, who was then 28 years old. Smith, by his own admission, was “monolingual until the age of 21” and chose to pursue only Korean due to the lack of an English-Korean translator.
The Swedish Academy praised Hahn's work for its “unique awareness of the connection between body and soul, the living and the dead”. Through his “poetic and experimental style,” the academy said, Han “became an innovator in contemporary prose.”
Anna-Karin Palm, a member of the Nobel Committee for Literature, said readers unfamiliar with Han's work should start with “Human Acts,” a 2014 novel that reflects on the 1980 Gwangju uprising, when more than 100 civilians were killed during pro-democracy protests. Led by students in a South Korean city.
“Human Acts” shows how “the living and the dead are always intertwined and how these kinds of traumas stay in a population for generations,” Palm said at Thursday's announcement.
But Hahn's “intense, lyrical” writing almost serves as a solace in the face of this historical violence, Pam added. “His very gentle, precise prose becomes itself an antidote to the almost brutal clamor of power,” he said.
Following the announcement, Han's novels topped the South Korean bestseller list. As of Friday morning, his books occupied the top 10 spots on popular online retailer Yes24's chart for Korean titles. The bookseller told CNN by phone that three of them — “Human Acts,” “The Vegetarian” and “I Don't Bid Farewell” — sold a combined 70,000 units in the 14 hours following the news.
At the Seoul flagship of bookstore chain Kyobo Book Center, shoppers cheered Han's win. “I'm so proud of her,” high school teacher Choi Ji-hye told CNN, adding that she was “shocked” to hear the news.
Meanwhile, for engineering student Kim Ji-hyeon, the announcement sparked a new interest in the author's work. “This is the first time I've heard of her, but… I was really surprised that a Korean female author won the award, so I came here to look for her book.”
Elsewhere, several high-profile figures paid tribute to the novelist on social media, including musicians RM and V, members of K-pop group BTS. “I read 'Human Acts' in the Army,” he later wrote on Instagram Stories. “Congratulations!”
Before the announcement, Ellen Mattson, another member of the committee, explained how the judging panel selects each year's literary prize.
“We start with a very long list of about 220 names,” Mattson said. “Then we have to navigate through this huge mass of names — and that's where we need the help of experts from different parts of the world.”
Eventually, the committee arrived at a collection of “about 20 names” which were then narrowed down to a shortlist of five authors. “This is where the real work begins,” Mattson said.
Each committee member then had to “read everything by these five authors” as they proceeded to bring home a single winner.
Announcing the award, Mats Malm, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, said Han was “having a normal day” and had “finished dinner with his son” when he called to congratulate him.
“He wasn't really ready for it, but we started talking about preparing for December,” he said. In 1896, the Nobel Prize ceremony was held in Stockholm on 10 December, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death.