North and South Korean Issues in 20th-Century Literature

Korean literature has its roots in the past. First of all, it is related to Confucian ideology and, secondly, it is connected to the division of Korea into North and South. The result is that writers are also divided in this way. The history of both countries is marked by turbulent changes, which have shaped their national psyche. The Japanese occupation and the Korean War, which tore the nation apart, surely bore a great influence on its literature. Moreover, the democratic uprisings of the 1980s also had a vast influence on modern Korean writers. This article will introduce the most important modern Korean writers whose works reflect the turbulence of the 20th-century.