Magnificent beyond compare, those horns,
Yet they become the cause of death.
Kang Seo-Il
Poet Mr. Kang Seo-Il graduated from the Department of English Language and Literature at Dongguk University and completed his graduate studies in English Education at Korea University’s Graduate School of Education. He made his literary debut in 1991, publishing poetry in Jayu Munhak (Free Literature) and literary criticism in Munhakgwa Uisik (Literature and Consciousness). His poetry collections include Lonely Kalguksu, Remembering the Desert, A Dedication to Camus, The Cat as a Liquid, and Wormholes in the Universe, as well as A Week of Love, a selected collection of his poetry. His translated works include The God of Conversation, First Love: Picasso, and The Beatles Poetry Collection, among others. He has received numerous literary honors, including the Grand Prize of the Hanol Literary Award, the Jayu Munhak Award, the Korean Poetry Literature Award, and the Midang Poetry Heritage Award. He has served as Vice President of the Gangdong Writers’ Association, a Board Member of PEN Korea, and a Board Member of the Korean Association of Modern Poetry. He is also a member of the Korean Poets Association. In addition, he has served as a selection committee member for the quarterly literary journal Jayu Munhak, a standing poet of the Korean Poetry Recitation Association, and former Vice President of the Midang Poetry Heritage Association. He also previously held an adjunct professorship at Yeoju University.
Horns
Magnificent beyond compare, those horns,
Yet they become the cause of death.
One day, desperately pursued by a jackal,
Those horns catch on a tree branch.
Horns that outweigh their worth!
뿔
호화롭기 그지없는 뿔,
그러나 그 뿔 때문에 죽는다.
어느 날 승냥이에게 정신없이 쫓길 때
그 뿔, 나뭇가지에 걸려서.
머리보다 무거운 뿔!
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