Yi Cheong-jun
South Korean writer (1939–2008)
Yi Cheong-jun (Korean: 이청준, 9 August 1939 - 31 July 2008) was a prominent South Korean novelist. Throughout his four decade-long career, Yi wrote more than 100 short stories and 13 novels.
Biography
Yi Cheong-jun was born on August 9, 1939 in Jangheung County, Zenranan-dō, Korea, Empire of Japan. He graduated with a degree in German literature from Seoul National University. In 1965, he debuted with a short story titled Toewon (퇴원, lit. "Leaving the Hospital"). Two years later, he won a Dongin Literature Award for The Wounded (Byeongsingwa Meojeori, 병신과 머저리). He died from lung cancer at the age of 68 on July 31, 2008.
Work
Yi Cheong-jun is considered one of the foremost writers of the 4.19 Generation and his literary output since has been both steady in pace and considerable in volume, and his subject matter has been varied. The Wounded (Byeongsin gwa mejeori, 1966) probes the spiritual malaise of the post-war Korean youth; This Paradise of Yours (Dangsindeurui cheonguk, 1976) explores the dialectics of charity and will to power, with the leper colony of Sorok Island as the backdrop; and The Fire Worshipers (Bihwa milgyo, 1985) meditates on the meaning of human rituals conducted in a Godless society when no ultimate guarantee of the absolute can be given.
The public source identifies “Yi Cheong-jun” as south Korean writer (1939–2008). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Cheong-jun, South and Korean.
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Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q31737. VIAF identifies the subject as 7437363. The Library of Congress control number is n81013263. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1939, 2008, 1965 and 1966.
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This entry incorporates text from “Yi Cheong-jun” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.