Paik Gahuim

Paik Gahuim[1] (백가흠; born July 26, 1974) is a modern South Korean writer known for his disturbing stories.[2]

This is a Korean name; the family name is Paik.
Paik Gahuim, 2014
Born (1974-07-26) July 26, 1974
LanguageKorean
NationalitySouth Korean
Korean name
Hangul
Revised RomanizationBaek Gaheum
McCune–ReischauerPaek Kahŭm

Life

Paik Gahuim was born July 26, 1974 in Iksan, Jeollanam-do, South Korea.[3] Baek Ga-heum debuted in 2001 when his short story “Flounder” was the winning entry in the Seoul Shinmun’s spring literary contest.[4]

Work

Paik's work often makes readers feel uncomfortable, as in the case of his debut story which begins with a detailed description of filleting a flounder and then progresses to a portrayal of the narrator having intercourse with a girl from a hostess bar while imagining the inside of his mother’s womb. “When the Pear Blossoms Fade” describes the shocking abuse of children and the handicapped. In “Welcome, Baby” a young child watches a middle-aged couple have intercourse from inside a motel room closet, an infant without eyes or ears is abandoned, and a man tries to hang himself from a fan. In “Here Comes Cricket,” an aged mother who is beaten by her own son plans to end both their lives through joint suicide and “Dress Shoes” features a father who kills his entire family and then takes his own life. Although these ruthless stories fill readers with much discomfort, they are not too far-fetched, for the newspapers, television, and the Internet are full of stories like these.[5] Baek Ga-heum's “The Tomb of a Ship” describes blood-curdling crime in a small port town. The return of a photo criminal past the statute of limitations to his hometown results in vengeful violence and murder, a subversion of dichotomy between good and evil.[6]

Paik's characters tend to the neglected and marginalized—those who are both socially and economically on the bottom rung of society: prostitutes, itinerant manual laborers, sailors running from the law, the mentally and physically handicapped, the elderly homeless living in condemned buildings, and women who are physically and sexually abused. A great number of these characters suffer from speech disorders or lack the mental capacity to recognize the gravity of the situation; the few who do realize their dire circumstances are without the proper education to articulate themselves.[7]

Works in Korean (partial)
  • Flounder (2001)
  • When the Pear Blossoms Fade
  • Welcome, Baby
  • Here Comes Cricket
  • The Tomb of a Ship
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References
  1. "Korean Writers of the LTI Korea Library". LTI Korea. Retrieved 2015. Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  2. "백가흠" biographical PDF available at LTI Korea Library or online at: http://klti.or.kr/ke_04_03_011.do# Archived 2013-09-21 at the Wayback Machine
  3. "Naver Search". naver.com. Naver. Retrieved 8 November 2013.
  4. "Baek Ga-heum" LTI Korea Datasheet available at LTI Korea Library or online at: http://klti.or.kr/ke_04_03_011.do# Archived 2013-09-21 at the Wayback Machine
  5. "Baek Ga-heum" LTI Korea Datasheet available at LTI Korea Library or online at: http://klti.or.kr/ke_04_03_011.do# Archived 2013-09-21 at the Wayback Machine
  6. . Korea Focus. 2010-08-30. Missing or empty |title= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help)
  7. "Baek Ga-heum" LTI Korea Datasheet available at LTI Korea Library or online at: http://klti.or.kr/ke_04_03_011.do# Archived 2013-09-21 at the Wayback Machine
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