KOREAN POETRY

Petra Hadžidaova
14 hours ago
2 min read

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INTRODUCTION

There may be a division between the North and South, but poetry and music tend to transcend even borders and pierce through darkness. Korean poetry has a rich history dating back to antiquity and is deeply involved with religion. Its major features are orality and performance.

BASIC HISTORY OF KOREAN POETRY

Orality and performance were significant features of vernacular poetry in ancient Korea. Many such performances in the religious life of the ancient Korean people are vividly recorded in Chinese dynastic histories. (1)

Some later Korean poetry followed the style of Tang lyric poetry, such as the shi poetry form. Notable Korean poetry began to flourish during the Goryeo period. It was rarely printed, though. The earliest collection is "Songs of the Ten Vows Samantabhara" by Kyun Yeo (균여, 均如), dating to 1075. (1)

Until the 20th century, much of Korean poetry was written in Hanja. (1)

DIFFERENT KOREAN POETRY FORMS

Korean poetry can be divided into:

Hyangga poetry. It refers to poetry that transcribed Korean sounds using Hanja and is characteristic of the literature of Unified Silla. The poems may consist of four, eight, or ten lines. The ten-line poems are the most developed, structured into three sections with four, four, and two lines, respectively.
Goryeo songs. In the Goryeo period, Hanja was mostly in use. Most were transmitted orally, and many survived into the Joseon period, when some of them were written down using Hangul. The poetic form is known as byeolgok. There is the short form called dallyeonche (단련체) and an extended one called yeonjanche (연잔). There is no clear form; the length is increased, and they usually cover themes from common life.
Sijo poetry emerged in the Koryŏ period, flourished during the Chosŏn dynasty, and is still written today. Among the most common themes are nature, nostalgia of the past, love interests, historical events, and moral instruction. Most were written and enjoyed by the educated yangban class, but some Kisaengs were allowed to partake in creating and reciting sijo. It has three lines averaging 14-16 syllables, for a total of 44-46: theme (3, 4,4,4); elaboration (3,4,4,4); counter-theme (3,5); and completion (4,3). Few follow this structure, though. Instead of syllabic count, it is more accurate to structure sijo with hemistichs or syntactic units.
Gasa is a form of verse with twinned feet of three or four syllables each. Some regard gasa as a form of essay. Common themes are nature, the virtues of gentlemen, or love between man and woman. It made its first appearance in the Goryeo period and was popular during the Joseon dynasty.
Modern poetry. There have been attempts to introduce imagist and modern methods. Also, lyrical poetry dominated from the 1970s onwards. Poetry is still quite popular in 21st-century Korea, both in terms of the number of works published and lay writing. (1)

CONCLUSION

Orality and performance were significant features of vernacular poetry in ancient Korea. From its religious origins, it eventually spread to all aspects of life, and poets began to write poems using themes such as nature, love, nostalgia, and historical events. There are five different forms worth mentioning: hyangga, goryeo, sijo, gasa, and modern poetry.