Kim Namjo (1927-) is a Korean poet.
1. Life
Kim Namjo was born on September 25, 1927, in Daegu, South Korea. She attended a girls' school in Kyushu, Japan, and graduated from Seoul National University's college of education in 1951 with a degree in Korean language education. Kim made her official literary debut in 1950 while still in college, publishing the poems "Seongsu" (성수 Constellations) and "Jansang" (잔상 Afterimage) in Yeonhap Sinmun. Her first collection of poetry, Moksum (목숨 Life), was published in 1953. Kim taught at Masan High School and Ewha Girls' High School. She became a professor at Sookmyung Women's University in 1954 and is now a Professor Emerita there. Kim served as chairperson of Society of Korean Poets and is currently a member of the Korean Academy of Arts.
2. Writing
Kim Namjo's poetry features dynamic use of sensual language and vibrant imagery to portray the subtlety of human emotions. Kim's work follows in the tradition of Moh Youn Sook and Noh Cheonmyeong. Kim's main theme is love, not simply the love shared by a man and woman, but also the love shared between a human and the "Absolute Being."
The poems in her first poetry collection, Moksum, offer both an affirmation of humanity and a passion for the vitality of life. These poems also present a harmonious balance between Catholic piety and an ardent human voice. The poems in Kim's second collection, Naadeuui Hyangyu (나아드의 향유 Ointment of Nard), and third collection place an increasingly heightened emphasis on religious faith, focusing much attention on the exploration of Christian humanism and ethics. Her later poems discard passion for restraint and perseverance as part of an ongoing religious self-examination. In the collection Gyeoul Bada (겨울바다 Winter Sea), the poet describes a world in which human emotions have attained absolute purity.
