Kim Jun Tae (, born 1948) is a South Korean poet. His poetry generally unfolds in hometowns and rural villages and is an ode to the vitality of nature and the revolutionary power of the people. He became famous for his poem, "Aa gwangjuyeo, urinaraui sipjagayeo" (아아 광주여, 우리나라의 십자가여 Gwangju, Cross of Our Nation) which testified to the horrors of the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement.The May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement is a civic movement that began on May 1980 in the city of Gwangju, South Korea. Resisting the militaristic authoritarian regime, the citizens of Gwangju demanded the establishment of a democratic government and the resignation of the military regime among other demands. The military regime responded swiftly and harshly in order to suppress the citizens, creating many innocent casualties. Films such as A Petal (1996), May 18 (2007), and A Taxi Driver (2017) are all based on the real-life events of the May 18 Democratic Uprising. In 2011, documents and records related to the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement were officially recorded in the UNESCO "Memory of the World" Register. See the Wikipedia page on the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement for more information: Gwangju Uprising It was published on the front page of the daily regional newspaper and was later translated into both English and Japanese.The poem itself was translated into Japanese and published in a general-interest magazine in Japan and translated into Chinese and published in Taiwan in 1980 and became known throughout the world through the foreign press. However, the poetry collection the poem belonged to was translated and published much later. David McCann, a former professor at Harvard College and previous director of the Korean Studies Research Center, translated the poem into English under the title Gwangju, Cross of Our Nation (2014). In 2018, Kim Jeong-hun translated Kim Jun Tae's poetry into Japanese and published them under the title of <光州へ行く道> and garnered much interest in Japan as well."Poet Kim Jun Tae's Poem Receives Favorable Reviews in Numerous Journals." Jeonnam Ilbo, May 2019. https://jnilbo.com/2019/05/16/2019051616183342432/ "Kim Jun Tae's Poem on the Horrors of May 18 'Ah, ah! Gwangju…' Published in English." Yonhap News, 17 December 2014. https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20141217068200054 He is the deputy director of the National Literature Authors Association and the director of the May 18 Memorial Foundation.
Life Kim Jun Tae was born in 1948 in Haenam County, South Jeolla Province, South Korea. In 1968, he entered the College of Education at Chosun University and, in 1969, he won the Jeonnam Ilbo and Jeonnam Daily News New Writer's Contest (전남일보‧전남매일 신춘문예). In November of the same year, he published "Sijageul geureoke hamyeon doena" (시작(詩作)을 그렇게 하면 되나 Is That How We Compose Poems?), "Amerika" (아메리카 America), and five other poems in the professional poetry magazine Siin Cho Tae-il, editor-in-chief of Siin magazine at the time, read "Chamkkaereul teolmyeonseo" and assumed that its author had years of experience and was a veteran poet. When he discovered that Kim Jun Tae wrote the poem as a freshman in college, he was extremely surprised. See the Mudeungsan Online Museum's "literature" page that discusses Kim Jun Tae's "Aa gwangjuyeo." http://www.mudeung.org/sub.html?pid=20&code=287 and became known in literary circles.
After he graduated from college, he became a high school teacher in 1980—the same year the Gwangju Democratization Movement broke out. He wrote the poem "Aa gwangjuyeo, urinaraui sipjagayeo" on the subject of the horrors of the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement and it was published on the front page of the June 2nd issue of the Jeonnam Daily News.According to the poet's recollections, he finished 230 lines of the poem in 50 minutes. A large portion of the poem was removed due to censorship and only 30 lines of the original poem was published. Moreover, a portion of the original title was also erased due to censorship. The censored title, when it was published, was "Aa gwangjuyeo" (아아 광주여 Ah, ah, Gwangju!). The poem's form before and after censorship can be found online."Interview: Kim Jun Tae, Chairman of the May 18 Foundation." Haenam Shinmun, 9 May 2011. http://www.hnews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=25853"Censored Newspapers." Yonhap News Visual News. https://www.yna.co.kr/view/PYH20150512050600054 After its publication, "Aa gwangjuyeo, urinaraui sipjagayeo" was translated into English, Chinese, Japanese, and other languages. Kim Jun Tae was soon arrested and tortured in prison after the publication of this poem, finally released after one month. However, he was unable to keep his job as a teacher. After he was fired from his teaching job, he started to work at Jeonnam Daily News—the same newspaper that originally published his poem. He continued to write poetry even with his regular job at the newspaper and published poetry collections such as the 1981 Naneun haneunimeul boatda (나는 하느님을 보았다 I Saw God) and the 1984 Gukbapgwa himang (국밥과 희망 Rice Soup and Hope). His 1989 poetry collection, Oworeseo tongillo (오월에서 통일로 From May Towards Reunification), in which he places his poetry alongside panhwa—prints and engravings that were popular and effective mediums for spreading propaganda at the time—particularly demonstrates Kim's literary intentions and tenets . He also traveled throughout Europe, the United States, China, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia during this time period, simultaneously giving lectures on literature while traveling.See the book introduction page for Kim Jun Tae siin segyemunhagui geojangeul mannada on the Yes24 Bookstore's website. http://www.yes24.com/Product/goods/1937342 In 1983, he received the Gwangju Literature Award () and in 1985, he received the Hyeonsan Literary Award ().
Even after the removal of the military dictatorship and the establishment of a democratic government in the 1990s, Kim continued to write prolifically. He continued to publish original poetry collections such as the 1991 Tongireul kkumkkuneun seulpeun saekjuga (통일을 꿈꾸는 슬픈 색주가 The Sad Barmaid That Dreams of Reunification), the 1994 Kkochi ije jisanggwa haneureul (꽃이, 이제 지상과 하늘을 The Flowers Now in the Ground and the Sky), and the 1999 Jipyeongseone seoseo (지평선에 서서 Standing on the Horizon). During this time period, Kim Jun Tae expanded his literary activities to encompass broader areas. With the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement as a central motif, he wrote the story for a pansori in 1922, titled "Mudeungjinhongok" (무등진혼곡 Matchless Requiem). He also participated in numerous performances that commemorated the May 18 Movement, such as writing the screenplay for a 1999 opera, "Mudeungdungdung" (무등둥둥 Matchless Drum Beats). He made his official debut as a novelist with the publication of his novella "Oreupeuseuneun jukji anatda" (오르페우스는 죽지 않았다 Orpheus Did Not Die) in the literary journal Munye Joongang. He also won the Inaugural Illustrious Poet Award () in 1999. He was active for a long time in the Korean Writers Association,The organization first began under the name of the "Council of Authors for the Practice of Freedom" (). When Kim Jun Tae was active in the organization, it was known as the "Association of Authors of National Literature" (). In 2007, it was renamed as the "Writers Association of Korea." The inaugural secretary was poet Ko Un. For more information, see the "Introduction to the Foundation" page on the Writers Association of Korea's website. http://www.hanjak.or.kr/2012/idx.html?Qy=introduce1 a group established by progressive writers, and was its deputy director for a period of time. In 2003, he was the vice chairman of the Korean Literature and Peace Forum and from 2011 to 2013, he was the chairman of the May 18 Memorial Foundation.Founded with the objective of carrying on the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement, the May 18 Memorial Foundation was established in 1994 with the support of citizens. The first chairman of the foundation was Jo Bi-o, a Catholic priest. The foundation actively supports numerous motions, including pursuing investigations and punishments of those responsible for the May 18 massacres and advocating for legislation for the victims and their families. For more detailed information, see the May 18 Memorial Foundation's website: http://www.518.org/sub.php?PID=0603
Writing
Love for Farms and Farmers Kim Jun Tae's 1969 poem, "Chamkkaereul teolmyeonseo" (참깨를 털면서 Brushing Off Sesame Seeds) is the work that made him recognized as a poet and became widely known as one of his most representative works. In this poem, Kim Jun Tae surrenders himself to the providence of nature and focuses on the realities of workers. While tracing the daily life of a farming village as they farm and harvest the fruits of their labor, Kim extols the vitality of nature for making everything possible. Yet equally important is that this poem does not merely praise life in farming villages, but also goes on to criticize the inhumanity of city life. The narrator of "Chamkkaereul teolmyeonseo," after having lived in the city for nearly ten years, brushes off sesame seeds and feels "a pleasure that is difficult to experience in the realm of worldly affairs." This is because the sight of sesame seeds, continuously raining down as they are being brushed off and separated from the chaff, is an experience diametrically opposed to hectic and cramped city life. Yet the poem's narrator, thinking that "How many things exist like the sesame plant where, struck anywhere, sesame seeds will pour out," soon strikes the sesame plant too roughly and receives a scolding from a grandmother. This is because when one is brushing off sesame seeds from the sesame plant itself, one has to be careful to "make sure none of the seeds are lost." Even in the smallest of seeds there is life—something that farmers never forget during their harvests."[100 of Your Favorite Poems – No. 92] 'Chamkkaereul teolmyeonseo.'" Chosun Ilbo, 24 April 2008. http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2008/04/24/2008042401809.html In this manner, Kim Jun Tae's poetry is constructed upon a foundation of love for farmers and farming villages.
Critique of Society Through Poetry