Creative Women of Korea: The Fifteenth Through the Twentieth Centuries

by Young-Key Kim-Renaud (Editor)

This book introduces important contributions in the humanities by a select group of traditional and modern Korean women, from the 15th through the 20th centuries. The literary and artistic works of these women are considered Korean classics, and the featured artists and writers range from a queen, to a courtesan, to a Buddhist nun, to unknown women of Korea. Although women's works were generally meant only to circulate among women, these creative expressions have caught the attention of literary and artistic connoisseurs. By bringing them to light, the book seeks to demonstrate how Korean women have tried to give their lives meaning over the ages through their very diverse, yet common artistic responses to the details and drama of everyday life in Confucian Korea. The stories of these women and their work give us glimpses of their personal views on culture, aesthetics, history, society, politics, morality, and more.

Genres: Asian Literature

280 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2003

About the author

Dr. Young-Key Kim-Renaud is Chair of the East Asian Languages and Literatures Department, Professor of Korean language and Culture and International Affairs, and a faculty member of the Linguistics Program at The George Washington University in Washington, DC. She is the initiator and a co-convener of the annual Hahn Moo-Sook Colloquium in the Korean Humanities series at GW. Before joining GW, Dr. Kim-Renaud served as Assistant Program Director for Linguistics at the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). In 1986-87, she taught at Harvard University as a visiting lecturer. She is past President of the International Circle of Korean Linguistics (ICKL) and has been the Editor-in-Chief of its journal, Korean Linguistics, since 2002.

Dr. Kim-Renaud has received major research awards and grants, including three Fulbright awards, twice for Korea and once for Jordan. She has won individual research grants from the Korea Foundation, the Korea Research Foundation, the American Council of Learned Societies and the Social Science Research Council, the Academy of Korean Studies, and the ROK Arts and Culture Foundation. She has received program and institutional grants for GW from the Korea Foundation, the Korea Research Foundation, as well as the ROK Ministries of Education, of Information, and of Culture. She has also won support for GW's Korean program from the Consortium of Universities of the Washington, DC, Metropolitan Area.

(from https://elliott.gwu.edu/kim-renaud)

Reviews

[Lee Evie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about the creativity of women throughout Korean history, but focuses on mainly women from the Joseon dynasty. I really enjoyed this book, and the women, insight, history and creative pursuits described in it were fascinating to learn about. I thought that it was quite accessible too, for someone like me, who is just an average amateur history buff and not at all an academic.

The book features chapters on a writer/teacher who was a queen, a princess who wrote a memoir detailing one of the most tragic filicide executions in Korean history, gisaeng entertainer who became almost mythically famous for her beautiful emotional poetry, and many, many others.

I loved reading the essays in this book! Definitely worth your time if the subject appeals to you!