Choi In-hun

Choi In-hun
Born	April 13, 1936 (1936-04-13) (age 75)
Occupation	Novelist
Nationality	South Korea
Period	1936-present

This is a Korean name; the family name is Choi.

Choi In-hun (born 1936) (Hangul: 최인훈) is a South Korean writer.

Life

Choi, In-hun was born on April 13, 1936 in Hoeryong City, North Hamgyong Province, which is now in North Korea. When the Korean War broke out in 1950, he took refuge with his family to South Korea aboard a U.S. Navy landing ship.^[1] He was admitted to the college of Law at Seoul National University in 1952.^[2] He did not finish his academic work, instead he joined the army without completing the final semester of his college studies. He had served as an English interpreter and TI&E (troop information & education) officer for seven years until he was discharged in 1963.^[1] From 1977-2001 he served as a Professor of creative writing at Seoul Institute of the Arts.^[2]

Work

While still in the military, Choi made his literary debut. Most of his work centers on individuals suffering from the from ideological conflicts centering around Korean national separation.^[1] He is both prolific and controversial. Perhaps his most famous work is The Square, which was published in 1960 and immediately became successful.^[3]

The Square was published hard on the heels of the Student Revolution on April 19 of 1960. This revolution overthrew President Syngman Lee and Choi was one of the first novelists to publish in that era. Consequently it is regarded as having kicked off the beginning of a new era in Korean modern literature.^[1]

His awards have been numerous: The Dongin Literary Award (1966); The Best The Playwright Prize of the Hankook Theater and Film Awards (1977); The Meritorious Prize in the Arts Category of the JoongAng Cultural Awards (1978); The Seoul Theater Critics Group Award (1979); The Isan Literary Award (1994); and The Distinguished Alumnus Award of Seoul National University's College of Law (2004).^[2]

Works in English

A Grey Man Si Sa Yong O Sa Pub (1988)
''The Square Spindlewood (Sep 1985)
House of Idols Jimoondang Publishing Company (Feb 2003)

Works in Korean (Partial)

Novels
"Reflections on a Mask"
"The Square" (1960)
"A Dream of Nine Clouds" (1962)
"A Grey Man" (1963)
"Journey to the West" (1966)
"The Sound of Laughter" (1967)
"One Day in the Life of Novelist Kubo" (1969)
"Typhoon" (1973)
"The Keyword" (1994)
Plays
"Where Shall We Meet Again?" (1970)
"Shoo-oo Shoo Once Upon A Time" (1976)
Essays
"Meditation on the Road" (1989)

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} http://www.drama21c.net/text/3plays/novelist.htm
2. ^ ^{a b c} http://www.koreafocus.or.kr/design2/layout/content_print.asp?group_id=102301
3. ^ Minmusa, p 38

External links

• Interview with Choi at Korea Journal
• Review of House of Idols at KTLIT

Persondata
Name	Choi, In-hun
Alternative names
Short description	Novelist
Date of birth	April 13, 1936
Place of birth	Hoeryong City, North Hamgyong, South Korea
Date of death
Place of death