The Descendants of Cain

Hwang Sun-won began his literary career as a student poet while studying English at Japan's prestigious Waseda University. By his graduation in 1939, Hwang already had two published poetry collections to his credit---the lyrical Madly Singing (1934) and the modernist Curio (1936). But in occupied Korea, where the Japanese administration was systematically eliminating open use of the Korean language, his early work was unpublished, a silent apprenticeship.

By the time Hwang regained his public voice, following Korea's liberation from Japan on August 15, 1945, he had fully embarked upon his second stage of artistic development. He had become adept in the short story form, a medium he continued to explore until establishing himself as a novelist in the 1960s.

In the 15 early stories written during World War II and released in Wild Geese (1951), already in evidence is the artful balance of humanism and craftsmanship that defines Hwang Sun-won's masterful style---a style reflected in more than 100 short stories, 5 novels, and several volumes of poetry since 1930. Hwang Sun-won is Korea's most consistently productive writer and also the most widely translated. During the 1980's alone, nearly 1,500 pages of translation appeared.

Hwang Sun-won has been recognized with many prizes and awards, beginning with the Freedom Literary Prize in 1955. Other honors include the National Academy of Arts Award (1961), Order of the Camellia for Civil Merit (1970), and Republic of Korea Literary Award (1983). In addition to being a professor at Kyung Hee University (1955--80), he has served as chairman of the Korean Writers Association and the Korean Novelists Association, president of the National Academy of Arts, and a member of the Advisory Council on State Affairs.

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