On the first Korean Nobel literature laureate and literary work in Southeast Asian languages

 

October 16

South Korea and Myanmar personages’ achievements: a brief juxtaposition

For the very first time in its 100-year-plus history, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to Han Kang, a South Korean (female) author.

 

Sincere congratulations to the fresh Nobel literature laureate Ms/Dr Han Kang and the (South) Korean nation for this achievement.

 

Cardinals, Popes and ‘tipped Nobel literature laureates’

When a new conclave is held in recent decades to elect a new Pope of the Catholic Church, there are ‘tips’ or predictions as to who could become the new Pope. Oftentimes, those who were considered by various sources to become the new Pope, at the end of the conclave, (merely) came out as a ‘cardinal’. Hence the saying ‘those who go into the Papal conclave as a Pope come out as a cardinal’.

 

The election of a new Pope occurs, on average, once in a few decades. However, the Nobel literary prize announcement is a yearly occurrence. For the past few decades, each year, pundits or even ‘bookies’ have predicted or offered ‘bets’ as to who might be the Nobel literature laureate. And most of the pundits’ predictions were wrong most of the time. They are wrong again in 2024.

 

The New York Times literary Editor stated that they have prepared for 2024 profiles of up to forty (40) literati ready to insert in the newspaper if any of the 40 were to be the Nobel Literature laureate for 2024. And Hang Kang was not on the list. Hence, revising the Cardinal-Pope-Cardinal analogy above, one could write: ‘Those who are tipped to be Nobel literature laureates came out as writers, poets, dramatists, and novelists, among others – albeit famous ones – (without the Nobel)’.

 

Translation of The Vegetarian into Burmese

After the Nobel Literature Prize was announced from a few Facebook posts yours truly have learned that Han Kangs’ The Vegetarian was translated into Myanmar a few years ago. I am not sure whether the translation was done directly from the Korean Language or from its English translation. It may (or may not) be that the translator is arguably proficient or at least familiar with both languages, referring to both the Korean original and the English translation. However, at least one of Han Kang’s novels has been translated into at least one Southeast language (Myanmar), and Hans Kang’s literary output has likely been translated into other Southeast Asian languages as well.

 

Southeast Asian languages and lack of Nobel literature prizes for those who wrote in those languages

The Nobel website states that Han Kang’s work has been translated into English, French, German, and Swedish. One wonders whether any member of the Nobel (Literature) Committee can read her works in the original Korean. Till 2023, only those who wrote in Mandarin and Japanese, which are East Asian languages, have been awarded the Nobel Literature Prizes. Korean can be designated, like Mandarin and Japanese, as an East Asian language. Nobel literary history has been made with the award going for the first time to a literati who wrote in Korean.

 

There have been no Nobel laureates in literature who predominantly write in Myanmar, Cambodian (Khmer), Malay, Indonesian, Tagalog, Laotian, Thai and Vietnamese, which are mainly the languages of Southeast Asia. Has any of the works written in those languages been even ‘long-listed’ (not quite short-listed) for the Nobel Literature Prize throughout the decades? I suppose it depends on the existence, availability and adequacy of translations into the European languages. Due to the excellence of her work, quite a few novels of Han Kang have been translated into at least four European languages, but this writer does not know which significant works of, say, prominent authors who mainly wrote in the Southeast Asian languages would be available for review by the past and future Swedish Nobel (literature) Academy.

 

It might be said that how could these language barriers be overcome? In the ‘case’ of Han Kang, the translations into European languages may well have captured the themes of Han Kang’s literary flair and helped the committee overcome the language barrier. In the words of the Nobel Literature Committee, Han Kang’s ‘intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life’ must have come through both in the original and in translations to European languages. Accordingly, the committee took note of it, was impressed by it and decided to honour the author.

 

One wishes that there would be excellent or at the least adequate translations of a few of the works of major writers who mainly write in a few of the Southeast Asian languages for the purpose of review by the Swedish Nobel Literary Committee.