Bang-sil (born 1984), better known by her pen name Apple Kim (Hangul 김사과), is a South Korean writer. She made her literary debut in 2005 when her short story “02” won the Changbi Prize for New Figures in Literature. She published a short story collection of the same name and five novels by 2013. She published the travelogue Seoltangui mat (설탕의 맛 Taste of Sugar) in 2014 and the essay collection Yeong ihaui naldeul (0 이하의 날들 Days Below Zero) in 2016.
1. Life
Apple Kim(Bang-sil) was born in 1984 in Seoul, South Korea. She attended Incheon Foreign Language High School and studied creative writing at Korea National University of Arts. She quit high school in 2000 and started university in 2005. The years in between were a dark period of her life, during which she wrote bitter blog posts about the world, but she claims the experience helped her become a better writer.
Starting with her debut short story “02,” Kim’s works have been noted for their exploration of indiscriminate violence and murder. One critic has described her short story collection 02 as “a violent revival of ‘rage capital.’” In 2007, she received a grant from Art Council Korea and wrote while traveling abroad in cities like Prague and New York. Kim has penned many short stories and novels from 2008 to 2013, including her first novel Mina (미나 Mina) (2008). However, she has not written any novels since 2014. Her essay collection Yeong ihaui naldeul (0 이하의 날들 Days Below Zero) came out in 2016.
2. Writing
The most prominent theme in Apple Kim’s works is random violence and murder. Her protagonists are usually students or youths whose fears, anxieties, and bruised egos from living in a hyper-competitive society culminate in a violent outburst. Kim’s first novel Mina (미나 Mina) is an explicit portrayal of several teenagers acting on their violent impulses. Her latest novel Cheongugeseo (천국에서 From Heaven) expands her literary scope from individual impulses to a complex cultural phenomenon.
Most critics agree that Kim’s works, which depict crimes that are not retaliatory but arbitrary in nature, reveal the symptoms of a pathological Korean society. But opinion is divided on Kim’s treatment of violence in her works. Some critics praise the defiant attitude her works show in refusing to submit to violence, while others argue that indiscriminate rage does nothing to solve social problems.
Reference
문학동네 홈페이지, 2017.5.8.에 확인.http://www.munhak.com/books/book_view.asp?page=1&SearchType=0&SearchText=%EA%B9%80%EC%82%AC%EA%B3%BC&pidx=1&bookidx=7804
인천광역시 남구 향토문화전자대전, 2017.5.8.에 확인http://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=2624507&cid=51927&categoryId=53653
<인터뷰> 첫 장편소설 '미나' 낸 김사과, 연합뉴스, 2017.5.8.에 확인.http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=103&oid=001&aid=0001886304
창비 홈페이지, 2017.5.8.에 확인.http://www.changbi.com/books/8831?board_id=6836
한국현대문학대사전, 2017.5.8.에 확인http://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=2075577&cid=41708&categoryId=41737
권희철, 「인간쓰레기들을 위한 메시아주의」, 『당신의 얼굴이 되어라』, 문학동네, 2013.
류보선, 「한국소설의 새로운 발명품들」, 『한국문학의 유령들』, 문학동네, 2012.
