About 10 years after I became an adjunct professor at university, I hit a slump. I was skeptical about whether the lecture content was really useful to the students. I wasn't sure, so I took a survey.
โWhat do you most want to learn?โ
The answer, unexpectedly, was โwritingโ. Writing may sound unfamiliar at first glance for a professor who used to be an announcer, but what the students were really thirsty for was essay writing and essay writing for employment at a media company.
I felt like I had been hit with a hard punch. I ended up becoming a waiter who only presented the wrong menu even though there was a different menu that the customer wanted. That day, I read as many books I could about writing. I studied both translated and domestic works by underlining them. As dozens of lists piled up and memos and proof sheets increased, a direction was established.
The second half of the semester was filled with special lectures on writing. Almost without exception, this class was ranked first in class evaluations. The contents organized at that time are published on this page.
โ Words are thoughts, writing is actions
If words are thoughts, writing is action. It is quick and easy for the brain's language function to be implemented verbally. Regardless of the depth of thought, โimmediacyโ accompanies words. Writing, on the other hand, requires courage. It takes time to gather your thoughts, and then patience is required to hold on with your butt on the chair. They don't give you the Nobel Prize in Literature for being good at speaking. This is why writing is considered a measure of intelligence and human spirit.
This is not limited to the Korean-speaking world. When Professor Robin Ward of Harvard University asked 1,600 graduates, "What is the most important factor in your current job?", the first thing 90% of respondents ranked was writing.
This is why Harvard University still has the argumentative writing program 'Expos', which has been running for nearly 150 years since 1872, as a required course for freshmen. This means that everyone can speak the language well, but there is a difference between good and bad, but writing is an area that is difficult to reach without training.
โ Ouyangsuโs Three Things
Ouyangsu (ๆญ้ฝไฟฎ, 1007-1072), a writer from China's Song Dynasty, condensed the royal road to writing into three words. These are reading a lot, writing a lot, and selling a lot. This means reading a lot, writing a lot, and thinking a lot.
The original text was "Ganda (็ๅค), Juda (ๅๅค), Sangryangda (ๅ้ๅค)", and it has become a modern expression in accordance with the Korean word order. Ou Yang-su led a reform movement to create easy-to-understand and fluent prose using Han Yu's collection of works as a standard, and this trend produced writers such as So-sun, So-sik, So-cheol, Jeung-gong, and Wang An-seok.
In later generations, these eight people were collectively called the 'Eight Great Families of Tang and Song,' and 'The Eight Great Masters of Tang and Song,' compiled by Mo Gon of the Ming Dynasty, became a basic book for learning sentences. For reference, there is also a view that the original meaning of 'Dasangryang' was not 'think a lot' but 'correct a lot'.
Either way, the point is that it requires an attitude of revisiting the first draft rather than finishing it.
Even after a thousand years, no secret has been found that is more implicit and penetrating to the core. However, I think the interpretation should change depending on the times.
โ Extensive reading, does it have to be a book?
First, letโs look at extensive reading. To conclude, the subject does not necessarily have to be a book. I always emphasize this part to my students. Then, the atmosphere in the classroom becomes humid and faces become brighter.
Reading a stack of thick, blunt type from beginning to end is not at all pleasant. Why do you read books?
Most of them are to develop knowledge, culture, sensitivity, insight, and experience. If the purpose is, there is no reason why the object must be a book. There is a saying that โBook reading is done while sitting, while travel is reading while standing.โ
If the act of reading itself is a burden, it's time to find an alternative. Actively experience travel, art films, art museums, performance venues, and volunteer work.
Instead, write down and keep those feelings, impressions, and insights in mind, keeping in mind what would happen if you put them into writing. Even if it is not a book, it is recommended that you keep paper newspapers, professional journals, and magazines, which are โeveryday books,โ close at hand.
โ Prolific writing, the pleasure of printmaking
People usually shrink more when it comes to prolific writing, such as โtry to write a lot.โ I get so frustrated that I don't know how to write when I haven't read a lot of books. When faced with a blank monitor and a black keyboard, I feel dispirited. What to write and how to decide on a topic are extremely difficult. The boring act of writing is difficult to become familiar with without some kind of stimulation or motivation.
This is the modern prolific work I propose.
'Taste the moment when your writing is printed.'
If you are a student, use a relatively easy paper like the school newspaper or if you are an office worker, use it as a place of challenge. A good story is good, a life essay is good, and a work proposal is fine. The small emotional moment of encountering an article with one's name written on it, and the pleasure of reading the article written in Korean, is different from anything before.
Compliments from those around you are a unique reward. As you read and re-read the writing you wrote with confidence, you begin to see parts that are disappointing.
โI shouldnโt have written this part, there was better material hereโ.
Then, at some point, I find myself preparing for another piece of writing. Writing has the properties of an addiction that is good for the body, so once you get into it, you keep doing it.
There is no need to repeat the name Hosayupi Insa-yumyeong. Leaving a message with your name and face on it is the surest practice.
Kang Seong-gon, current KBS Korean Language Promotion Agency Steering Committee Member
โฒ Former KBS announcer โฒ Served as a member of the Government Media Joint Foreign Language Deliberation Committee โฒ Current member of the Language Special Committee of the Korea Communications Standards Commission โฒ Former adjunct professor at Konkuk University, Sookmyung Women's University, Chung-Ang University, and Hanyang University โฒ Current specially appointed professor at Gachon University
