On October 10, the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Korean writer Han Kang for works that "face historical trauma head-on, exposing the fragility of human life."
Her famous works include "The Vegetarian", "The White Book", "Human Acts" and "Greek Lessons".
However, Han Kang's success did not come overnight. Over the years, the Korean publishing industry has recorded many international achievements, in which Han Kang is a notable name.
In 2016, Han Kang's "The Vegetarian" won the International Book Award. Her book "I Do Not Bid Farewell" won the Prix Medicis (France's Medici Prize).
According to statistics on book copyright exports compiled by the Korea Publishing Industry Promotion Agency (KPIPA), copyright exports to Asian countries, especially China, have grown strongly in recent years.
With this prestigious award, Han Kang is the first Korean author and the 18th woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The first Nobel Prize in Literature marked a historic milestone for Korean literature in particular and Korean popular culture in general.
Previously, the Korean cultural industry witnessed many historic moments, such as "Parasite" becoming the first non-English film to win Best Picture in the 92-year history of the Oscars; "Gangnam Style" being the first video to reach 1 billion views on YouTube; BTS having the first non-English song to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100...
These are achievements that show the explosive growth of the Korean cultural industry over the past two decades.
According to experts from the Brussels School of Management (Europe), the Oscar for Best Picture paves the way for raising South Korea's soft power to a new level, going beyond a cultural trend for young people and making the country a cultural powerhouse.
In fact, the success of a work of art depends not only on the vision of the artists who make it, but also on the strategy behind it.
South Korea has recognized and appreciated the role of soft power in national comprehensive strength early on, building soft power with a long-term vision.
In 1999, the Basic Act on Promotion of Cultural Industries was passed and the predecessor of the Korea Creative Content Agency was established to promote and facilitate cultural industries.
In the early 2000s, Korea reaped its first sweet fruits when the Hallyu wave spread across Asia thanks to famous music groups and classic romantic movies.
By 2006, the South Korean government had embraced Hallyu as a national diplomatic tool. The explosion of K-pop and dramas helped South Korea successfully build its national brand, becoming an attractive tourist destination in Asia.
According to the Korea Times, South Korea's success in cultural exports is due to combining social media with streaming services, breaking down language barriers and cultural borders.
John Lie, a sociologist at UC Berkeley and author of a book on K-pop, said South Korea became oriented toward cultural exports after the 1997 Asian financial crisis, and deliberately designed everything to industrialize cultural industries.
Up to now, when it comes to "made in Korea" content, there are countless phenomena that have taken the world by storm such as Kpop, movies, cuisine, makeup and beauty, web comics, fashion, language, literature...
As Mr. Park Hyun, global director of the famous film studio Studio Dragon, commented: “Korea has always had ambitions for soft power, for having a voice in the world. After "Parasite", we think now is our era.”
