KOREAN HERITAGE ESSAY CONTEST WINNERS
Group 2 - English, Grades 9-12
12 Group 2, 1st Place
The Shower (소나기)
By: Sun Won Hwang (황순원)
Kyung (Kevin) Kim
Stuyvesant High School, 11th Grade
Teacher: Ms. Jennifer Lee
Principal: Mr. Stanley Teitel
Author’s Statement:
The Korean classic The Shower is a short story that is read by the majority of
elementary school students in Korea. It is a story that presents the “innocent” love
between two young characters. The two characters have unique personalities that make
this story very interesting for readers of all ages. Young children are fascinated by this
story because of its interesting plot and the adults enjoy this story because it reminds
them of their childhood. This story was so popular among the Korean people that they
made a movie that was based on this story, My Sassy Girl.
The Shower has two unique characters: a boy and a girl that have distinct
personalities. In this story, the boy is very timid and reluctant to speak. On the
contrary, the girl is very outspoken. She is the one that initiates the relationship
with the boy.
In the beginning of this story, the boy saw the girl in the middle of the
stepping stones of a stream everyday. She intimidated him, and he was reluctant
to ask her to excuse herself so that he can pass. This made him increasingly
annoyed of having to wait for her to move on her own. Nonetheless, when she
stopped playing in the stream, the boy felt that something was missing in his
heart. As the story progressed, his adoration for the little girl strengthened and
he began to appreciate everything about the girl. For instance, when the boy saw
the girl smile for the first time, he was beguiled by her dimples.
13 In 2001, a movie was produced that depicted a more urban version of The
Shower. This movie included two young adults, a shy man, and a sassy lady.
Analogous to The Shower, the male actor in this movie did not find the tough
female attractive in the beginning. However, the two characters were infatuated
by one another as they spent more time together. The movie also included many
experiences that the two characters go through and showed the development of
the characters’ relationship. As the couple experienced more adventures, they
were drawn to each other and eventually dated each other and lived happily ever
after.
Although the plot and characters in the story and the movie share many
similarities, there is a difference. The Shower ended when the little girl dies.
This allowed the readers to use their vivid imaginations to picture what will
happen to the boy after the story ended. However, in My Sassy Girl, the director
ended the movie with the two young adults overjoyed about meeting each other
again. Everything was presented in the ending of the movie. Therefore, the
movie lacked the suspense at the end which made it a little boring.
Although I believe that My Sassy Girl, was a funny and interesting movie,
My Sassy Girl did not seem to have conveyed the characters correctly. The
personalities of the characters were presented very well. Unfortunately, it lacked
the “cuteness” of the characters from The Shower. The two characters in The
Shower captivated the readers’ attention because they were naïve and were
“pure-minded”. It showed how even young children acted with their instincts to
express their love for one another. But, by using older characters in the movie,
the movie failed to convey the innocence of the characters.
The Shower was and still is one of the most famous stories in Korea. As a
matter of fact, it can even be considered a classic in Korea. This simple, but
meaningful book is suitable for all ages. As an individual reads this story, he/she
will have a completely different interpretation of it every time he/she reads it
because different things will stand out in the story depending on the age of the
reader.
14 Group 2, 2nd Place
Understanding Diverse Cultures through Literature
Young-Zhun Lee (이영준) Bayside High School, 11th Grade
Teacher: Ms. Alice C. Hartley
Principal: Ms. Judith S. Tarlo
Author’s Statement
Perhaps the most effective way to understand diverse cultures is through literature. Through
the words in the books, the reader can travel through time and space and experience a different world. Moon-Yeol Lee's "Our Twisted Hero" and Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird" are
excellent examples for perceiving how the two cultures overcame their period of conflict in their
own unique ways. Additionally, Moon-Yeol Lee and Harper Lee's appropriate selection of the setting and characters enhances the significance of the plot. The importance of virtues and standing
firm for one's belief are lessons these books teach us to this day.
When one reads novels, it is very easy to generalize that most stories teach
us similar moral values. However, when we look at each novel closely, we will
realize how unique each and every story is. Although Our Twisted Hero, a
Korean novella by Moon-Yeol Lee, and To Kill a Mocking Bird, an American
novel by Harper Lee both seem to share similarities, they also show their
uniqueness underneath these seeming similarities.
The book Our Twisted Hero takes place in a rural area in Korea on April
19 , 1960. This was an important day for the Koreans because it was when
President Syng Man Rhee was in his 12th year of administration by cheating in
the presidential election. Outraged, the students in Korea went on a
demonstration and overthrew the government. Just as it happened in real life, the
book exploits and vilifies the lying and deceiving nature of a dictatorial
government behind closed doors.
th
15 Byung-Tae Han, the protagonist in Our Twisted Hero symbolizes
democracy. He is a very diligent boy who lived in the capital city Seoul until his
father was fired from his vocation. Byung-Tae had to leave his fame, glory, and
honor behind to start from rock bottom. Suk-Dae, who is the antagonist, as well
as the leader of Byung-Tae’s new class, seeks opportunities to be looked upon as
a savior and tries to induce Byung-Tae into his world. After a long-lasting battle,
Byung-Tae reluctantly succumbs to Suk-Dae’s orders.
The author uses the first-person point of view for the main character
Byung-Tae to add verisimilitude for the readers and makes us feel the emotions
Byung-Tae experiences throughout the book. As the story progresses, the
author’s use of irony gets the reader off guard as Byung-Tae is not what the
readers thought to be, but rather as a heretic.
A year passes by and a new 6th grade teacher with democratic principles
from Seoul replaces the incompetent and insensitive old teacher. The new
teacher immediately recognizes the brainwashed class and tries to root out SukDae’s control of the class. When the whole class except Byung-Tae begins to
confess Suk-Dae’s wrongdoing, everyone looks at Byung-Tae as a quisling.
The book To Kill a Mockingbird deals with the discriminations against
African-Americans in Maycomb, Alabama, during the 1930s. As in the book
Our Twisted Hero, Harper Lee also uses various techniques to dramatize many
problems. When he uses the first-person point of view of Scout, the readers feel
that they are a part of the Finch family. Throughout the book, the readers learn
to overcome the ways of prejudice just the way Scout does.
Atticus Finch, who is the father of Scout, is an epitome of the word
“unbiased.” He proves this by showing compassion towards a black man named
Tom Robinson by defending him in a rape trial. The setting of the story, a small
town in segregated South, makes Atticus’ decision especially heroic. Even
though Atticus knew that it was almost impossible to win the case since all
jurors were white and prejudiced, he still followed his moral principles.
The message behind every book is like a fingerprint. While fingerprints
more or less look alike at first glance, upon closer examination, there are
differences that completely set them apart. Both authors have unique abilities to
use diverse literary elements to deliver their message on how to deal with the
16 corruptness of the world. In Our Twisted Hero, Moon-Yeol Lee illustrates the
chaos of his era through the deceptive nature of dictatorship. In his To Kill a
Mockingbird, Harper Lee tells the readers that segregation and racism were
major issues in America at that time. After reading both stories, I realize that
even though these two literatures have similar virtuousness, the use of these
authors’ different stylistic approach makes each book unique and one of its
kinds.
17 Group 2, 3rd Place
Difficulties = Part of Lives
Wen Tsao
Bayside High School, 9th Grade
Teacher: Ms. Alice C. Hartley
Principal: Ms. Judith S. Tarlo
Author’s Statement
My essay is based on a Korean short novel called “Ill-Fated father and
son” written by Hah Keun-Chan. From the experiences of the characters in this
short novel, I see how cruel a war is. Wars have no meaning. Modern people
should solve problems in a modern way. I hope that from now on people can live
peacefully without the interruption of the gun fire.
Suffering difficulties is a universal condition. All the people around the
world have to overcome many difficulties to make their lives better. A Korean
short novel Ill-Fated Father and Son written by Hah Keun-Chan illustrates the
story of a father who does not give up his life despite the fact that he is different
from other people. The novel also illustrates how this father and his wounded
son will survive by helping each other even though they lost a part of their body
during the war.
Mr. Pak Man-do was forced to fight for Japan during World War II. Now
his only son Chin-su who fought in the Korean War is coming back home. It is
very lucky for Chin-su to come back alive. Many parents are worried about their
sons. They are afraid that their sons may get killed by the relentless gun fire.
Man-do is one of the sufferers from the war. He lost one of his arms during the
war. Now his son Chin-su is facing the same difficulty that Man-do has been
facing. Chin-su comes back alive, but he comes back without one of his legs.
18 Man-do is very shocked when he discovers what has happened to his son.
He did not expect the same kind of a tragedy to happen to his son. Chin-su is
worried about his future life. He thinks that he cannot live without a leg. His
father then tells him “Until they die, everyone struggles to live.” Even though
Chin-su has lost his leg, he realizes that he could still work with his two hands.
The same is true for Man-do. He lost his arm, but he could use his legs to walk
and run. Man-do tells his son that the two of them could live by helping each
other. Man-do could take care of the heavy work outside while Chin-su does the
indoor work. As they walk, they find out Chin-su would have trouble crossing
the narrow log bridge. The father tells his son to get on his back. The two of
them would help each other for the rest of their lives just as how they work to
cross the log bridge.
From reading this novel, I see the difficulties that a soldier has to face in his
life. Every person who lives on earth will face difficulties sooner or later. Some
of them fail, and some of them overcome their difficulties. Like the main
characters in the novel, I have had my own difficulties to face. I lived in Taiwan
for almost twelve years before I came to the United States. I felt very
uncomfortable with the change in my environment my first year in the United
States. I lived with my family happily in my country, but all of a sudden I had to
live in a new place without my family. My mother was the only person that was
familiar in my first year. I think the soldiers who have fought in a war probably
had to overcome the same kind of difficulties as mine. The language was
another difficulty that I had to face during my first school year in the United
States. I could vaguely understand what the others were talking about, and I
could not communicate with other people in English. This is what many new
immigrants have to face when they live in other countries. I once felt very sad
and did not want to go to school, but I perfectly knew that study was the only
way that I could overcome this difficulty. Now, my English has gotten better
than before, and I am glad that I could overcome those difficulties that I faced. I
am certain that the characters in the novel overcame many difficulties while they
were in the war, and they will probably have to face some more. The more
difficulties that a person overcomes, the more successful that person will be in
the future. Chinese always say that the best way to face the difficulty is to accept
it and overcome it like eating nutritious food; the more you eat, the stronger you
will be.
19 Another thing that I have learned from this story is that how wars can ruin
people’s lives. The two main characters in the novel lost parts of their bodies
during the war and it has ruined their lives. Many wars had broken out
throughout our history. Even in modern days, wars still break out in our society.
Many soldiers are forced to fight in a war without even knowing if they can ever
come back home alive. In the story, how Man-do worried about his son
illustrates what most parents will do when they know their children will soon be
back from the war.
Also, I have learned that people learn from their mistakes or their ancestors’
mistakes throughout the history. However, the war is the only mistake that
people still have not learned from. The wars have killed so many innocent
people. So many people’s lives have been ruined by wars. In the story, Chin-su
lost his leg in the war. His father once said to himself, “How pitiful for this
young body to be disfigured! Chin-su, you have met a sad lot in this misguided
world. Damn it! Your whole future is hopelessly doomed.” From Man-do’s
thought, we can see how a father worries about his son whose life was ruined by
the relentless gun fire in the war.
I think violence is not the way to show power, and it is not the way to
punish people. I have never experienced a war in my life, so I cannot even
imagine how I would live through a war. From the movies and novels that I have
seen and read before, I know that it must be very hard for those people who
suffered in the war to live through it. If there had been no war between two
countries, maybe Man-do and Chin-su’s fate would not have been as tragic as
they were in the novel. I believe people can live better if there is no war in this
world.
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