2016 Booker Prize Co-Winner Deborah Smith’s Contribution to Yonhap News Agency
“Recognition at an entirely different level… delighted as a reader”
“Over 50 translators have translated Han Kang’s works, thanks to whom global empathy is achieved”
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporters Jae-ha Hwang and Myeong-eon Oh said, “It is hopeful that author Han Kang becomes the first Asian woman to receive this award in the 121-year history of the Nobel Prize for Literature, as it suggests the literary world is progressing towards an era where fairness prevails and personal identity doesn’t hinder recognition.”
British translator Deborah Smith, in a contribution sent to Yonhap News Agency on the 12th, said, “The historical tendency of the Nobel Prize for Literature to be awarded mostly to white males shows how Eurocentrism and sexism have been rampant for so long,” and expressed this sentiment.
Smith, who translated Han Kang’s novel “The Vegetarian” into English, jointly won the prestigious Man Booker International Prize (now Booker Prize) with Han Kang in 2016, bringing worldwide recognition to Han Kang’s work as a key contributor.
In her contribution, she expressed, “As one of the countless readers worldwide who adore Han Kang’s work, I am genuinely joyful to see her outstanding work being acknowledged.”
She further added, “By being selected as a Nobel Prize laureate, Han Kang has achieved a level of acknowledgment entirely different from before. The Nobel Prize for Literature is distinct because it is awarded for a writer’s entire body of work and is not centered around the English-speaking world, which marks a significant difference from the Booker Prize.”
She noted, “Nobel Committee members are capable of reading works in several languages, incorporating evaluations from experts who write in many languages including Korean,” explaining that this means the committee can accurately assess Han Kang’s literary value.
Smith is a well-known translator with a significant connection to Han Kang. Having majored in English Literature at Cambridge University, she took an interest in Korean literature, which was not widely known in her country, studying Korean on her own since 2010.
She subsequently pursued a master’s and doctoral program in Korean Studies at SOAS University of London, becoming captivated by “The Vegetarian,” managing the translation, as well as liaising with publishers and handling promotions. Following “The Vegetarian,” she also translated Han Kang’s “Human Acts,” “The White Book,” and “Greek Lessons” into English.
Due to this, Smith has gained attention from domestic and international media following the Nobel Prize for Literature announcement, though she shares Han Kang-related news on social media, this is her first time publicly expressing her thoughts.
Smith continued, “For those of us who have watched Han Kang’s literary journey closely as readers, the Nobel Prize confirmation is an affirmation of what we already knew,” while introducing various expert praises on Han Kang’s works.
She mentioned, “When the English translation of ‘Human Acts’ was published in the UK in 2016, a respected poet wrote to me, calling it ‘an important book, monumental, a new kind of book dealing with political violence and its impact.'”
She further added, “A critic recently evaluated that ‘Han Kang’s literary contribution will resonate through multiple generations,’ and many would agree.”
Smith also emphasized that the English edition she translated is just one among many translated editions. This remark reflects her cautiousness about having her contributions overemphasized.
She explained, “English is not the world’s center,” mentioning that Han Kang’s latest work, ‘We Do Not Part,’ is already translated into Swedish, French, Norwegian, and Dutch. This likely played a decisive role in winning the Nobel Prize for Literature.
She also informed that “the English translation of this novel (‘We Do Not Part’) by Lee Yewon and Paige Morris is scheduled to be published next January.”
Smith further added, “There are over 50 translators of Han Kang’s works,” expressing her hope that these translators’ contributions are acknowledged without exaggeration.
She shared, “Translator Yoon Sun-mi proposed to the Argentine publishing house to translate ‘The Vegetarian’ into Spanish, and translator Rhea Jovenetti, who has lived in Korea for 30 years, translated ‘Greek Lessons’ and ‘We Do Not Part’ into Italian,” adding, “I have enjoyed reading about such processes in articles.”
She concluded by saying, “Thanks to the dedication and skills of many translators, Han Kang’s literary works have achieved global empathy. It would be joyous if our (translators’) contributions are acknowledged, but I hope their contributions are recognized accurately without exaggeration.”