Her Pages, Her Power: Celebrating Contemporary Women’s Writing from South Korea

Hang Kang’s achievement marked a significant historic milestone and her win certainly stood out as a moment for excitement among us at the Centre for Korean Studies. She became the first South Korean, the first East Asian woman, and ultimately one of just 18 women to ever receive the prize since its inception in 1901.

For many in our community, that moment felt transformative. It prompted not only celebration, but also a moment for reflection – on the remarkable breadth of women’s writing from South Korea and the sheer amount of work now available to readers through the hard work of literary translators, particularly in recent years. Works such as The Vegetarian (채식주의자) and Kim Ji-young, Born 1982 (82년생 김지영) by Cho Nam-joo have already demonstrated the global resonance of Korean women’s voices. These landmark publications have travelled widely through translation, sparked international conversations, and contributed to a growing appetite for contemporary Korean literature. 

Yet beyond the big names and major prizes lies a vibrant and diverse literary landscape that deserves equal attention. While figures like Han Kang often come immediately to mind in discussions of influential contemporary writing (particularly among our own students), the richness of the field extends far beyond any single author. Novelists, short story writers, essayists, poets and playwrights across South Korea are shaping a literary scene that is diverse, experimental, politically engaged, formally innovative, and globally connected. Some of these writers may be less internationally recognised, but they are no less vital to the fabric of contemporary literature, and we sought to put together a project showcasing some of these writers. 

Our project soon became an exhibition, titled Her Pages, Her Power, one that would celebrate a plurality of different voices from the contemporary literary scene and attempt to highlight works and authors that our students may not have known previously. After much deliberation, the exhibition featured a total of 14 publications by 13 of the most dynamic women writing today:

A Magical Girl Retires (마법소녀 은퇴합니다) and Capitalists Must Starve (체공녀강주룡), both by Park Seolyeon, Miss Kim Knows by (우리가 쓴 것) Cho Nam-joo, The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre (뉴서울파크 젤리장수 대학살) by Cho Yeeun, Cursed Bunny (저주 토끼) by Chung Bora, The Good Son (종의 기원) by Jeong Yu-jeong, Lemon (레몬) by Kwon Yeo-sun, One Hundred Shadows (百의 그림자) by Hwang Jeongeun, The Disaster Tourist (밤의 여행자들) by Yun Ko-eun, The Trunk (트렁크) by Kim Ryeo-ryeong and Counterattacks at Thirty (서른의 반격) by Sohn Won-pyung. 

Each original Korean edition was carefully paired with its English translation, highlighting not only the creative work in Korea itself but also the vital role that translation plays in carrying these voices beyond national borders. On the display itself, all authors and translators have been commemorated alongside 28 volumes for our Korean collection. 

While initially a faculty and staff led exhibition, we eventually took the project down in a different direction, seeking an opportunity to also get likeminded students involved. The Centre for Korean Studies recruited ten students as assistant curators to join us. These reading enthusiasts and passionate lovers of literature joined us from a variety of programs and degree combinations within East Asian Studies and came to the project at different moments during their academic journey here at the University of Sheffield – from students at the beginning of their BAs, to one MA, and even one PhD researcher joining. They each immersed themselves in the selected works and as a group since September 2025, we have been meeting, reading, debating, and reflecting together on the novels and short story collections. Having students join in, experiencing these literary works first hand alongside us, gave way to a far more collaborative curatorial experience that was a lot of fun for all of us involved.
 

Their engagement culminated in input towards the artistic direction of the project and the lay out of the display. They also diligently took notes from the texts, since we wanted some thoughtful quotations that could be displayed alongside the books. Each quotation offered a personal response: sometimes analytical, sometimes emotive and always inviting. The quotes serves as both reflection and invitation, encouraging visitors to our Window on Korea space in Western Bank Library to explore different authors and new
publications beyond what they already had read from contemporary South Korea. On Wednesday 25 th February, together with the library, our Centre for Korean Studies hosted a kick-off event for the exhibition, which brought together staff, students, and members of the wider community for lunch, where we all got to celebrate the energy and diversity of contemporary Korean women’s writing, as well as the efforts of our student assistants themselves. Faculty, staff and students gave speeches about the project, the literary works we have looked at, and the significance of Korean literature’s popularity on the world stage today.

As interest in Korean literature continues to grow globally, Her Pages, Her Power reaffirmed the importance of looking beyond headline achievements to appreciate the diversity of voices shaping the present moment for contemporary Korean women’ writing. In doing so, it not only are we able to highlight a plethora of outstanding writers, but we are also able to foster the collaborative potential of our academic community – one that reads, questions, and celebrates literature together.

Dr. Owen Stampton
Centre for Korean Studies