Dennis Wuerthner

10.18399/acta.2025.28.2.007

The present translation was created collaboratively by students in the class CAS LK 460 Korean Translation (Fall 2023) under the guidance of Professor Dennis Wuerthner in the Department of World Languages and Literatures at Boston University. Over the course of the semester, each student was tasked with translating one part of the story and presenting their version of the relevant section in class. The student’s classmates peer-reviewed the translation, and the group then discussed and jointly refined each passage with input from the instructor. This translation thus represents both the students’ individual dedication and their collective achievement. The student translators were Olivia Hwang, Do Yeon Kim, Min Kyeung Kim, Michael Kwon, Hyungu Lee, Minseok Lee, Seok Won Lee, Geon Namgoong, William Nekoroski, Daniel Oh, Jumin Oh, Yunha Oh, Lois Rho, and Gisele Sanchez. In late November 2023, Kim Chunghyŏk, the author of the story, visited Boston University to take part in an intensive, highly creative workshop with the students, during which the final translation was discussed and revised. Following the workshop, Kim and the students participated in a public reading of the original Korean text and its English translation at Boston University. The workshop and public reading were made possible through the generous support of LTI Korea. Kim Chunghyŏk was born in Kimch’ǒn in 1971 and is widely regarded as one of South Korea’s most influential contemporary authors. Beyond his accomplishments as a writer of fiction, he is also a film critic, music columnist, essayist, podcast host, and cartoonist. He made his debut in 2000 with the story P’enggwin nyusŭ (Penguin news), and has since published a diverse body of highly acclaimed work, including novels such as Chombidǔl (Zombies) and Tangsin ǔi kǔrimja nǔn wǒryoil (Your shadow Monday), short-story collections such as Akkidǔlǔi tosǒgwan (Library of musical instruments) and 1F/1B (Between the first floor and the basement), as well as several collections of essays. Kim’s literary achievements have been recognized with major national honors, including the 2012 Yi Hyosǒk munhaksang (Yi Hyosŏk literary award) and the 2015 Tongin munhaksang (Tongin literary Award). Kim Chunghyŏk’s short-story C1+y = :[8]: is the opening tale of his 2012 collection 1F/ B1. The author has kindly given his permission for this translation to be published.