Reception of Olga Tokarczuk’s Work in South Korea

Abstract

In the past five years (2018–2022), six books by Olga Tokarczuk have been translated into Korean: Primeval
and Other Times, Flights, House of Day, House of Night, Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead, Czuły narrator [The Tender Narrator] and Zgubiona dusza [The Lost Soul]. South Korean readers most prefer the novels: Flights, Primeval and Other Times and Zgubiona Dusza [The Lost Soul]. This article deals with the reception of Tokarczuk’s work in South Korea, the reaction of the Korean media after the publication of a particular work, reviews written by literary critics and Korean writers, and the aspect of publishing strategies undertaken by South Korean publishing houses. An important factor in the popularity of Tokarczuk’s works in South Korea is the subject matter, which refers to new and interesting problems for the Korean audience – e.g. the nomadic nature of man, the attempt to take a new look at the world around us, myth as a universal model of human destiny, the blending of realism and fantasy, rational description and magic. All this fills in the blanks in Korean literature and culture. Tokarczuk also encourages the reader to engage in self-reflection, to see the world, to cross boundaries. By emphasising that everything in the world is closely interconnected like a constellation, she reminds us that we are never alone. These elements have an impact on Koreans, who eagerly read Tokarczuk’s books.