Kim Sowol, a Beloved Poet of Korea

Kim Sowol was born in an affluent family running a mining business but was raised by his grandfather and lived with his uncle Kim Eung-yeol and his uncle’s wife, Gye Hee-young. His father was assaulted by Japanese people and became mentally ill when Sowol was three years old. The young child became interested in literature thanks to his aunt Gye Hee-young who repeatedly told him Korean traditional stories.

After graduating from Namsan Primary School, in 1915, at the age of fourteen, Kim Sowol entered Osan Middle School which was established by the independent activist Lee Seung-hoon, with the goal of arousing national consciousness. It was here where he met Jo Man-sik and Kim Eok, who played critical roles in his life.

The picture is the only photograph of Kim Sowol left today and it is assumed to have been taken when he was in Osan Middle School, at around 17 years of age.

At Osan Middle School, Kim Sowol met Jo Man-sik (1883-1950), the then President of the school, an independent activist and a campaigner who organized the Korean Production Movement, an economic independence movement for Koreans. Jo had a great influence on him in developing and expanding the perspective of his works to the people and country. Kim also composed a poem titled J.M.S, an abbreviation for Jo Man-sik, in which his thoughts about Jo Man-sik are plainly illustrated:

J.M.S lived in Osan,
Thinking of you this spring morning a decade later.
…
You cared for nothing else, but showed only your passion for the nation.
…
“J.M.S (Extract)”, Kim Sowol

Also, Kim Sowol met his teacher Kim Eok (1896-unknown), whose pen name was Kim Ahn-seo, while he attended Osan Middle School. Recognizing Kim Sowol’s talent while teaching at Osan Middle School, Kim Eok provided generous support to him to become a poet by encouraging him and introducing him to literary circles. Thanks to Kim Eok’s support, Kim Sowol published his poems in the literary magazine Changjo Issue 5 at the age of eighteen, making his literary debut.

Kim Sowol was most active as a poet in 1922, in which he was transferred to Pai Chai Hakdang. He published his poems “Golden Grass” and “O Mother, O Sister” in the January 1922 issue of the literary magazine Gaebyeok. His most representative and widely known poem “Azaleas” was also published in the July 1922 issue thereof, while he attended Pai Chai Hakdang. He released about 50 poems in 1922 only, and it seems that he was also engaged with Na Do-Hyang (a graduate of Pai Chai Hakdang of 1918), a novelist, at around this time.

Kim Sowol led an active student life at Pai Chai Hakdang, particularly as a member of the literature club of the Pai Chai Student Youth Association. Established in 1903, the Pai Chai Student Youth Association was comprised of a total of six clubs including religious, social, literature, athletic, music and discussion clubs, and among which the literature club was in charge of editing the school magazine.

As a member of the literature club, Kim Sowol released an array of poems and writings in the school magazine Pai Chai. This school magazine of Pai Chai Higher Common School published by the Pai Chai Student Youth Association had students’ literature works, editorials, school news and a status report, showing the perception of reality and a sense of social calling of the students at that time. Seven poems of Kim were published in Pai Chai Issue 2, including "Snow Falls", "A Little Cuckoo" and "Silken Mist". At this time, Kim composed many poems about the nature while translating works of western literature.

Silken Mist

The unforgetable memory comes back again
When the silken mist spreads over the snow.
It was then we met and then we wept.
It was then that the torment was more than we could bear.

When the silken mist spreads over the snow,
Life is not to live alone.
It was then a lass sought death for herself
When the snow began to melt.

When the silken mist spreads over the snow,
The larks begin to soar in the sky.
It is then the spirit is gay
With the fragrance of the field, the sea, and the sky.

The unforgetable memory comes back
When the silken mist spreads over the snow.
It was then we first made love.
It was then we parted with hearts in two.

- Pai Chai Issue 2

Kim Sowol graduated from Pai Chai College with honors, ranking 4th among 44 graduates in March 1923.

To date, Kim Sowol’s sole collection of poetry “Azaleas” has been published in more than 600 editions, and the accumulated number of books sold is estimated to total six million, showing that his poems are still widely read.

The literary value of Kim Sowol’s works has been recognized not only in Korea but also across the world. His poems have been translated into 13 languages and read in many countries including the U.S., Russia, France, China, and Japan.

Kim Sowol’s poems have also been recreated into songs and movies.

Many of his works such as “O Mother, O Sister”, “Azaleas”, “Someday Long After”, “Flowers on the Mountain”, “Invocation”, “Can’t Forget”, etc. have been recreated into pop songs and sung extensively. In particular, his poem “Parents” has been recreated as a song (lyricist: Seo Young-eun, Composer: Yoo Ju-yong) and released in 1969, which was later remade and sung by a number of famous Korean artists such as Yang Hee-eun, Kim Se-hwan, Lee Mi-ja, Silver Bell Sisters, Na Hoon-a, Moon Ju-ran, etc. and is still beloved by Koreans. Even today, many Koreans think of the song every Parents’ Day in May in Korea, and the lyrics thereof remind them of their parents.

The poem “By the Stream”, released in 1922, was first remade into a song composed by Lee Hee-mok and sung by Kim Jeong-hee in 1967. Then, the poem regained attention as it was remade and sung by Jeong Mi-jo in 1972. The song was constantly remade by many popular Korean artists such as Jeokwoo, Sim Soo-bong, Wax, IU, etc. and is considered to be one of the most beloved songs to Koreans.

Some of Kim Sowol’s poems such as “Flowers on the Mountain”, “Name that Never Answered”, “Wangsimni”, etc. have been remade into movies. Among them, the movie “O Mother, O Sister, Let us Live by the Stream” (released on December 18, 1968), which starred the most popular actors of the time, Shin Seong-il and Yoon Jeong-hee, was named after his poems. In the movie, the main characters loved each other but separated, met again, but eventually parted in tragedy.

"If you would go,
Tiring of me,
Nothing will I say...
Tread gently
On my azaleas
Where the path is decked..." - Azaleas

"I will be calling you till my death
Even if I be turned into a stone
My love!
My dear love!" - Invocation

"Oh, mother and sister,
Come live with me by the river.
In garden, glows of golden sands in glitter
Hums of reeds outside rear-gate.
Oh, mother and sister,
Come live with me by the river." - O Mother, O Sister

The above lines should be all familiar to Koreans and can easily be sung with a melody. Going beyond the era, Kim Sowol’s poems still represent the heart of Koreans and give comfort to them.