Chang Wang-rok

Chang Wang-rok (29 February 1924 – 17 July 1994) was a South Korean literary scholar, professor, novelist, a founding figure in translation, and critique of English literature.

Also known by his art name Woobo (우보; 又步), his works contributed to the introduction of American literature in South Korean academy.

His oeuvre includes more than 60 translations of canonical literary texts, such as The Good Earth by Pearl Buck, Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner, and Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, and bridged the pathway between modern American novelists and Korean readers.

Chang was born on February 29, 1924, in Yonggang-dong, Pyeongannam-do as the third son of the family.

He learned Hanhak (漢學) as a child, which influenced his later translations of Pearl S. Buck's works.

He received secondary education in Pyongyang Jae-II Middle School (평양제2중학교).

In 1943, Chang entered Keijō Imperial University (경성제국대학) as a humanities major and enrolled in its English literature degree program.

After Korea's independence, he continued his study and completed the course at Seoul National University in 1948.

He proceeded to earn his master's degree from the same university in 1950, becoming the first person in Korea to write a master's thesis on English literature.

After graduating, Chang worked as a manager in the Translation and Interpretation department of the Far East Air Force (United States) (미극동공군) for three years.

He returned to school when he was hired as a lecturer at Seoul National University in 1953.

During this period, he was also recruited as a teacher by Ewha Women's High School.

He became an assistant professor in the education department at Seoul National University in 1955, but soon left school temporarily to study in the United States.

In 1958, he received an MA in literature from the University of Iowa.

Upon return, Chang continued his career as a professor while pursuing further studies.

In February 1974, he received a Ph.D. in literature from Seoul National University and began teaching papers and courses in literature.

He served as the vice president, and the president, of the English Language and Literature Association of Korea (한국영어영문학회) in 1975 and 1977.

He was also the founder and president of the Hawthorne Association of Korea (한국호손학회), which would later be the American Fiction Association of Korea (미국소설학회).

Chang also attempted to institute Henry James Society of Korea (한국헨리제임스학회) with Yoon Kihan in the 1980s.

In 1984, Compilation of Articles Dedicated to Chang Wang-rok (우보장왕록박사회갑기념논문집) was published, a monumental piece consisting of 1,297 pages and 80 articles on English literature, to commemorate his career.

Yoon contacted Leon Edel, an authority on Henry James, at the University of Hawaii, Manoa in May 1984 and requested his assistance in the foundation of a Korean association concerning Henry James.

However, Edel refused due to his advanced age, and Chang and Yoon's attempt could not be completed until a decade later.

Chang also wrote Migrating Birds on the Charles River (1984), a 360-page book comprising twelve short stories, three plays, and four essays in English.

Chang's landmark publications include classic texts such as Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell and The Moon and Sixpence by William Somerset Maugham.

However, he was most noted for his integral works on Pearl Buck.

Chang translated more than twenty novels by her, popularizing her works among a wider readership.

His works include Love and the Morning Calm, The Living Reed, The New Year, and The Good Earth.

Chang's translative attempts were an effort to depict accurate form of the cultural inheritance and history as well as bring out the texts' full meaning.

While Pearl Buck's works portray diverse and complex understanding of Korean history and culture, researched by the author herself, these elements were carefully crosschecked when Chang set to work on the translations.

His such attempts to fully interact with the text includes his attempt to translate the title "The Living Reed" to "갈대는 바람에 시달려도 (The English translation of this title is closest to "The Reed May Suffer from the Wind")", of which bears Korean connotations on the word reed and the content of the novel.

Chang also established a postcolonial approach toward modern English literature.

Chang believed that providing translated versions of foreign literature to South Korean readers was crucial in expanding the nation’s philosophical and theoretical knowledge.

After 35 years in Seoul National University, he retired in 1989.

After his retirement, he was invited to and joined Hanlim University as a professor emeritus in English literature.

He then established The Mark Twain Circle of Korea (한국마크트웨인학회) in 1989 with Cho Seounggyu and Park Yeop and became its first president.

In 1993, The Henry James Society of Korea was finally established to facilitate discussions concerning the author.

Chang actively interacted with American writers such as Pearl S. Buck, Henry Miller, and John Updike to discuss literary texts and provide advanced translations to audiences.

He provided a textual book for literary students by translating and introducing Literary History of the United States (미국문학사) by Robert Ernest Spiller and An Introduction to English Literature (영문학사) by John Mulgan and Dan Davin to South Korea.

Chang worked to promote the study of 19th-century American novelists, particularly Nathaniel Hawthorne, Mark Twain, and Henry James.

In addition to producing extensive publications on the topic, Chang pursued further to create grounds for academic discussions, organizing and attaining multiple roles in English literature associations.