Youn Dae-Nyeong (born 1962) is a South Korean writer.
1. Life
Youn Dae-Nyeong was born in 1962 in Yesan, South Chungcheong Province. He graduated from Dankook University with a degree in French literature. Youn's first short story, "Won" (원 Circle), was published in the Daejeon Ilbo in 1988. In 1990, his short story "Eomeoniui sup" (어머니의 숲 Mother's Forest) won the Monthly Literature & Thought's New Writer Award, completing his literary debut. He worked in publishing and PR before the publication of his first short story collection, Euno naksi tongsin (은어낚시통신 Silverfishing Memorandum), in 1994, after which he began writing full time.
Youn is the recipient of many awards including the Today's Young Artist Award (1994), the Yi Sang Literary Award (1996), the Hyundae Munhak Literary Award (1998), and the Lee Hyoseok Literary Award (2003). His major works include the short story collections Namjjok gyedaneul bora (남쪽 계단을 보라 Behold the Southern Stairs), Maneun byeoldeuri han goseuro heulleogatda (많은 별들이 한 곳으로 흘러갔다 Many Stars Drifted to One Place), Nuga goyangireul jugyeonna (누가 고양이를 죽였나 Who Killed the Cat); novels Yennal yeonghwareul boreo gatda (옛날 영화를 보러 갔다 I Went to See an Old Movie), Horangineun wae badaro ganna (호랑이는 왜 바다로 갔나 Why Did the Tiger Go to the Sea?), Pierodeurui jip (피에로들의 집 House of Clowns), and various collections of essays.
2. Writing
Youn Dae-Nyeong's first collection of short stories, Euno naksi tongsin, containing such works as "1993 nyeon 1 wol 9 il miaritongsin" (January 9, 1993. 미아리 통신 Dispatch from Miari, January 9, 1993), and "Soneun yeogwan euro deuleo onda gakkeum" (소는 여관으로 들어온다 가끔 Once in a While, a Cow Visits a Motel), instantly established his reputation as a writer who captures the ethos and sensibilities of Korean people during the 1990s.
The protagonists of Youn’s fiction tend to be men in their early thirties spiritually set adrift in a world of hyper-materialism. Unable to extinguish this feeling of life’s essential emptiness, they seek to recover authenticity of existence in moments of mystical or dreamlike encounters. Quite often, [this] is opened up through the mediating figure of an unfamiliar woman...providing his characters with opportunities not only to stray from the everyday reality of the present, but also to return to a deeper, more basic level of existence.[1]
Youn’s interest, however, lies less in presenting this mystical realm in its own right than
using it to hint at the deep fragmentation of his characters in the present world. A keen observer
of the details that make up the “nineties’ lifestyle,” Youn captures both the neon-light surface of
the urban terrain and the melancholy loneliness that crouches underneath in the short story
"Euno naksi tongsin." The protagonist, a freelance photographer in his thirties, lives alone in an apartment, shops in convenience stores, and enjoys listening to Billie Holiday while drinking cans of beer and having occasional “dry” sex with women who do not stay. [1]
In matters of style, Youn Dae-Nyeong is known for his aestheticism; his prose often contains poetic language studded with splendid metaphors and careful juxtapositions of striking images. At the same time, Youn also employs the fast-paced, staccato language of advertisements, reflecting in form some of his thematic concerns regarding the modern life of speed and spectacles. Further evidence of his postmodern tendencies is his hybrid approach in narrative technique. Youn draws on such varied modes of storytelling as the mystery novel and the ancient myth to heighten the reader’s engagement with the plot even when he is dealing with somewhat conceptual subject matter. [1]
Reference
[1] Yi, Nam-Ho, et al. Twentieth Century Korean Literature. Eastbridge Books, An Imprint Of Camphor Press, 2005. p.83-84.
