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| The book covers of "Conversations with Ko Un," left, and "Song of Nothingness" (literal translation) / Courtesy of Silcheon Munhak |
By Kwak Yeon-soo
Poet Ko Un recently published two new books, sparking a boycott movement in protest of his alleged past sexual misconduct.
Last month, publisher Silcheon Munhak released Ko's collection of 129 poems titled, "Song of Nothingness" (literal translation), and "Conversations with Ko Un," a compilation of conversations between him and Iranian philosopher Ramin Jahanbegloo, to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the poet's debut in 1958.
This marks the disgraced poet's return to the literary scene following multiple sexual misconduct allegations that were brought forth against him beginning in 2017.
Neither the publisher nor the poet made any mention of the allegations. The publishing house did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The release of Ko's books immediately led to a campaign to boycott the books online, with many urging others to give his books a miss.
"It's nothing but the greed of an old man to return to the literary scene without practicing self-reflection after committing sexual assault," culture critic Park Woo-sung tweeted.
"All of them ― the person who wrote the book, the company that published it and those who wrote comments of recommendation ― are the worst," an online user said in a comment left at the bottom of the description of "Conversations with Ko Un" on Yes24, an online book retailer.
Allegations of Ko's sexual assault arose after poet Choi Young-mi published a poem titled, "The Beast," in which the narrator describes an unconscionable assault by a famous but unnamed senior poet. Choi alleged Ko is a habitual sex offender.
After more women raised similar sexual assault allegations, his poems were removed from school textbooks and a library space established by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in Ko's name was closed down.
Ko filed a compensation suit against Choi and some others for "wrongfully" accusing him of sexual misconduct, but lost at a local court and an appellate court in 2019. He did not file an appeal to the Supreme Court.
The poet attracted a global readership after some of his works were translated into 14 languages. Since 2000, his name has continuously arisen as a candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature.
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