Evolution of Images of Korea in the Paratexts to Korean Literature in English Translation

Abstract

This research looks into the construction and evolution of national images of Korea presented in Korean literature in English translation in the second half of the 20th century. It categorizes the discourses present in peritexts of Korean literary works translated into English between 1951 and 2000 in relation to the agents producing them and the historical context. Results show a stable tendency to rely on Orientalist descriptions of the Republic of Korea and to avoid conflicting discourses in the wider historical and political context (i.e. relationship to Japan, China and DPR Korea), unrelated to the specific profile of the agents.