1. Introduction
Kwon Pil (權韠, 1569 - 1612) was a poet and writer that was active from the reign of King Seonjo, the 14th King of Joseon, to that of King Gwanghaegun, the 15th King of Joseon. Together with his contemporary, the poet Yi Annul, they helped materialize the literary golden age of 16th century classical Chinese poetry.
2. Life
Kwon Pil was born on December 26, 1569, in Hyeonseok Village [Hyeonseokchon] located in Seoul, Mapo, Seogang. He was born into a prestigious family who, for generations, had become highly regarded for their writing abilities. However, Kwon Pil was never able to obtain a government position and lived a secluded life, leaving behind many poems that criticized contemporary social conditions.
Due to the turbulent political circumstances at the time, Kwon Pil was forced to give up taking the gwageo, or the civil service examination. In 1591, the Seoin, or Westerners faction, which included the Second State Councilor Jeong Cheol whom Kwon Pil highly respected, were falsely accused of plotting to murder one of the royal concubines, Lady Kim, favored by King Seonjo favored, and their child, the prince, causing them to be banished and removed from office. These kinds of incidents cultivated in Kwon Pil a deep disillusionment and anger towards politics. Shortly after these events, Kwon Pil gave up on taking the civil service examination and did not try and obtain a government position.
Kwon Pil’s memories of war, which he experienced at a young age, also greatly influenced his life. In 1592, when he was 24 years old, the Imjin War broke out with the first invasion by the Japanese. Though he sought refuge with his father, they were separated on the way and he ended up staying for some time at Ganghwa-do. In the summer of the following year, as soon as the Japanese army evacuated from Hanyang, the then-capital, he found his father and took him back to their old home in Mapo, Seoul. Afterwards, Kwon Pil spent his time wandering Ganghwa-do and Honam until he finally married Song Jemin’s daughter in Honam. The ravages and calamities of war raged on, and in August 1597, at the battle of Namwon Fortress (also known as the Siege of Namwon), Kwon Pil’s brother-in-law, Yun Jin, died, and his sister committed suicide. In September of the same year, he lost his other brother-in-law. After this, Kwon Pil and his wife went to his older sister’s home in Ganghwa-do and settled down there. His poetic talents were already widely known during his lifetime and on November 1601, on the recommendation of Yi Jeonggwi, he was chosen as the jesulgwan (製述官 official writer) that would receive envoys from Ming China. At this time, King Seonjo ordered Kwon Pil to bring him one of his poems and was deeply moved and highly praised him upon reading it. Afterwards, Kwon Pil became widely known throughout the country as one of the leading poets of his day.
Because of Kwon Pil’s steadfast spirit that refused to yield to authority, he endured much suffering. After King Kwanghaegun ascended to the throne, Kwon Pil liquidated his home in Ganghwado and returned to Hyeonseokchon in Seoul. However, his life in Seoul was riddled with hardships. For instance, he once encountered Yu Huibun, who was then enjoying great power as one of King Gwanghaegun’s maternal relatives, at a bar and publicly rebuked him. In another instance, Yi Icheom (李爾瞻), an influential man of the time, requested Kwon Pil’s association and friendship, but Kwon adamantly refused and thus showed his rebellious disposition. Later on, Im Sukyeong wrote a piece during the civil service examinations that criticized the tyranny of the Yu Clan, who were the maternal relatives of the King. Seeing this, King Gwanghaegun became furious and excluded Im from the list of candidates that successfully passed the exams. Furious upon hearing about this incident, Kwon Pil wrote “Gungnyusi” (宮柳詩 Poem of the Palace Willows) which satirized the Yu Clan. Afterwards, in February 1612, Kim Jikae was falsely accused of plotting treason, and while the government forces were searching through his home, they discovered a book that had Kwon Pil’s “Gungnyusi” written in it. This incident was used as a pretext to also implicate Kwon Pil in the conspiracy, and Kwon Pil was banished. However, because he had been greatly weakened by his severe physical punishment, he was unable to set out for his banishment right away, and stayed at a private home outside of Dongdaemun in Seoul. There, he drank makgeolli liquor to assuage his thirst, which exacerbated his wounds from being beaten and he abruptly died.[1]
3. Works
Kwon Pil left behind around 850 poems and 20 essays which were compiled into the Seokjujip (石洲集 The Collected Writings of “Seokju” Kwon Pil). He also wrote two separate works of fiction in classical Chinese, Jusaengjeon (周生傳 The Story of Jusaeng) and Wigyeongcheonjeon (韋敬天傳 The Story of Wi Gyeongcheon). Kwon Pil learned poetry from his father, Kwon Byeok. Kwon Pil emulated himself after the poetry of the poet Du Fu of Tang China, gradually coming to master a mature and refined poetic style. Undergoing the experience of war twice in his lifetime, he spent long periods of time living far from his home. Having undergone the ravages of war and political chaos, he wrote many poems that critically reported and satirized these conditions.[2] These poems, which sharply criticize reality, are usually manifested through a leisurely melody. In Contrast to the “Samdang siin” (三唐詩人 The Three Tang Poets), who wrote short poems of four lines, Kwon Pil mostly wrote long-length classical poems. While preserving the poetic traditions of renowned classical works, he also exquisitely harmonized them with his own lyricism as a poet and elevates the reader’s empathy. His long-form poems preserve an elongated sense of respiration without losing a sense of tension, and the lingering imagery of his poetry continuously resonates. His most well-known poems include “Gungnyusi” (宮柳詩 Poem of the Palace Willows), “Haengnonan” (行路難 The Difficulties of Living), and “Chungjuseok” (忠州石 XXX). Jusaengjeon and Wigyeongcheonjeon, two other works written by Kwon Pil, both take as their subject matter the love story of Ming Dynasty generals who were dispatched to Joseon during the Imjin Wars. He was greatly influenced by the Chinese chuanqi short stories, or the jeongi soseol, from Tang China. While at Ganghwa-do during the war, he actually met and associated with generals from Ming China that were stationed there. Jusaengjeon and Wigyeongcheonjon thus deeply reflect his experiences interacting with these officers during this time.[3]
4. Reception and Significance
In general, Kwon Pil has been referred to as a gifted poet that was born with innate poetic talent. Future generations have appraised the high level of completion and the sharp critical consciousness towards reality in Kwon’s poems as emulating the poetry of Du Fu, but they have also been compared to the poetry of the genius Tang poet Li Bai (李白) for their dynamic and natural spirit. Kwon Pil’s poetic style has also been contrasted with the steadfast and precise poetic style of Yi Annul who, along with Kwon Pil, were considered the two great poetry masters of their times.[4] The Three Tang Poets (Samdang siin), who were influenced by the folk poetry of Tang China and devoted themselves to standardizing the expression of romantic affection, have been criticized for what has been perceived as an excessive delicateness and weakness. In contrast, Kwon Pil has been highly regarded as one of the representatives of classical Chinese poetry during the mid-Joseon Dynasty for his skillful use of Tang poetry’s characteristics to nevertheless realistically describe political chaos and the horrors of war. Though Kwon Pil commented on contemporary events, he clearly held fast to his own opinions and was a leader of the literary world during his time.
5. Footnotes
[1] Jeong Min. “On ‘Seokju’ Kwon Pil.” In The Mongneung Literary Group and “Seokju” Kwon Pil. Taehaksa, 1999, 141-167.
[2] Mun Beomdu. Research on “Seokju” Kwon Pil’s Literature. Gukak jaryowon, 1996, 156-158.
[3] Jeong Min. “The Association and Exchanges Between the Literary Intelligentsia During the Imjin Period and Their Significance.” In The Mongneung Literary Group and “Seokju” Kwon Pil. Taehaksa, 1999, 102-123.
[4] Jeong Min. “A Comparative Study of Kwon Pil and Yi Annul.” In The Mongneung Literary Group and “Seokju” Kwon Pil. Taehaksa, 1999, 169-199.
[5] Jeong Min. “The Perspective and Poetic Consciousness of ‘Seokju.’” In The Mongneung Literary Group and “Seokju” Kwon Pil. Taehaksa, 1999, 247.
6. References
Gwanghaegun ilgi (光海君日記 The Daily Records of King Gwanghaegun)
Yeollyeosil gisul (燃藜室記述 Descriptions by “Yeollyeosil”)
Mun Beomdu. Research on “Seokju” Kwon Pil’s Literature. Gukak jaryowon, 1996.
Jeong Min. The Mongneung Literary Group and “Seokju” Kwon Pil. Taehaksa, 1999, 102-123.
Jeong Min. The Collected Writings of “Seokju” Kwon Pil. Taehaksa, 2009.
So Jaeyeong. “On ‘Seokju’ Kwon Pil.” Collected Essays from the Sungjeon University Humanities Research Center. Volume 6, 1976.
