Pak Jeong-de (born 1965) is a South Korean poet.
1. Life
Pak Jeong-de was born in 1965 in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province. He studied Korean literature at Korea University and made his literary debut in 1990 publishing six poems including "Chotburui mihak" (촛불의 미학 The Flame of a Candle) in the monthly Literature and Thought. He has authored ten poetry collections including Danpyeondeul (단편들 Fragments), Amureu gita (아무르 기타 Amur Guitar), Bullanseo goaui jido (불란서 고아의 지도 Map of a French Orphan), and most recently Raheu dwi peurukong deu neju malhajamyeon nunsongiui yesul (라흐 뒤 프루콩 드 네주 말하자면 눈송이의 예술 L'art du flocon de neige, or Art of the Snowflake). Pak is a member of the artists' collective Sugar-free Cigarette Club and the International Poetry Radical Barbarian Band. He is the recipient of the Kim Dal-jin Literary Award and the Sowol Poetry Prize.
2. Writing
Pak's work has been described as using "idiosyncratic language to express the gloomy existential reality hidden behind the age of consumer capitalism." Pak has consistently explored similar subject matter from his unique perspective in all his poetry. This persistence results from a sense of unresolved problems or issues in the poet’s mind which he must pursue continually. Absurdities in life, frightful experiences and situations that defy logic and empathy—these things have compelled the poet to dream of a distant, alternative realm where possibilities of endless love still exist. The poet’s attachment to his romantic ideals is in part a product of his youthful years spent in the atmosphere of political oppression and violent struggle for social reforms in the 1980s which undermined individual desires and romantic dreams. Although the poet in real life is politically active and socially responsible—he is a member of the National Union of Korean Teachers and has served as editor of its monthly newsletter, Magnolia Report—the narrator of his poetry remains a romantic figure who sings to the accompaniment of a guitar, galloping across a green meadow on a horse, in search of a grandiose dream of love.
