Abstract

Korea's history has had a deeply influential and significant impact on its modern language, and concomitantly, on the country's modern poetry and prose. Despite the artistic and literary value, there is a substantial lack of English translations available for Korean works. The continued rapid development of Korean and its considerably different grammar and syntax often pose difficulties for English translators. Korean poetry, specifically, follows a form unfamiliar to English readers which makes interpretation for translation challenging. This thesis hopes to provide context for the lack of scholarly translations of Korean poetry by discussing the historical and linguistic context of the Korean language, the impact of nationalism on its development, and how the language's grammar and syntax reinforce the ambiguity of translation. At the end of the thesis, translations are provided for various poems to advance the number of works in the academic community and make Korean poetry more accessible to English readers.

Thesis Completion

2023

Semester

Spring

Thesis Chair/Advisor

Joo, KyungMee

Degree

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

College

College of Arts and Humanities

Department

Modern Languages and Literatures

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Release Date

5-15-2023

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