Poetry is a kind of imagination, but not a literature of pure imaginative. It describes real observation and the experience of human being concerning the practical encounters
Lee Kuie-shien, Taiwan
Poetry is a kind of imagination, but I don’t think it is a literature of pure imaginative. My favorable poems are those describe the natural landscape from real observation and the text involves experience of human being concerning the practical encounters. So that when we read one poem, at one side we can appreciate the beauty in nature, another side, we may perceive the phenomena of the human world.
Take the poems created by poet Kang Byeong-Cheol for example, in the poem “Sounds of Bamboo Forest” the first stanza describes the practical circumstance when the wind blowing through the bamboo forest:
No matter how strong the wind blows,
The green forest never crumbles.
When the wind passes by,
The green forest stands tall and proud,
Inspiring admiration.
Then the situation is gradually turned from the nature into the human world, in second stanza, “The sounds of bamboo forest, / echo through the trees, / whispers of wisdom and peace, /carried on the gentle breeze.” There is a nice imagination of personification that “The sounds of bamboo forest, whispers of wisdom and peace.” Next stanza, “A symphony of rustling leaves, / Soft words win hard hearts, / a melody of harmony, / ringing in the bamboo forest glen.” Here, it appears the comparison between “soft words” and ”hard hearts”, just like the pluralism in society, and the different “soft” and ”hard” situation cause “a melody of harmony”. It is seen that “harmony” is formed in compromise rather than unification.
At last stanza, the phenomenon happened in the nature is projected to the relationships among the people, it initiates us how to find “peace” from the “wisdom” way by human being:
So let the forest speak to you,
Let its wisdom guide your way,
Listen to the sounds of bamboo,
And find peace in each passing day.
Another example can be seen from the poem “The Sharp Rocks by the Seashore”. It describe the natural phenomena that the sharp rocks by the seashore fights against the waves. In detail observation, it is found:
Softness can conquer strength,
And the pen is mightier than the sword.
The truth of the universe,
Sharp rocks turn into pebbles,
And sharp things change into round and soft things.
This becomes “the truth of the universe”, as a result, at last line of this poem “They live in harmony with the peaceful waves”, wherein “they” denotes “the pebbles”. Approaching to
”harmony” is the best goal of the poet directing to the destination of poetry creation.
I am fond of reading the poems created by poet Kang Byeong-Cheol, so that recommend herewith to the poetry-loving readers.
About the Poet
Korean author, poet, translator Kang Byeong-Cheol, who holds the Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science degree, was born in Jeju City, South Korea in 1964, and began his writing career in 1993. His first short story “Song of Shuba,” was published when he was twenty-nine years old.
In 2005, Kang published a collection of short stories and has since won five literature awards, publishing over eight books in total. He was a member of The Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of PEN International from 2009 to 2014. From 2018 to 2022, he served as Secretary General of the Jeju Unification Education Center. Prior to that, he was a Specially Appointed Professor at Jeju International University from 2016 to 2018, a Research Professor at Chungnam National University National Defense Institute from 2013 to 2016, a Senior Researcher at the Society of Ieodo Research from 2010 to 2017, and CEO of Online News Media Jejuin News from 2010 to 2013.
Kang also worked as an editorial writer for NewJejuIlbo, a newspaper in Jeju City, Korea. Currently, he holds the position of Research Executive at The Korean Institute for Peace and Cooperation.
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