[Joseonggwan's Global Humanities Journey] Harry Potter, Kafka, and Yoon Dong-ju Who Might Have Never Met

England is a country of railways. The hub of the railway network, which spreads like capillaries, is London. Waterloo Station, Paddington Station, King's Cross Station, Liverpool Street Station... Among these, the station with the most young visitors is King's Cross Station. A significant number of visitors to King's Cross Station are in their 20s and 30s. They almost as if by agreement head to Platform 9 and 3/4. In 'Harry Potter,' Platform 9 and 3/4 is the exclusive entrance for students boarding the direct train to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The MZ generation, in other words, the Harry Potter generation, grew up reading the Harry Potter books and watching the movies during their childhood and youth. For them, the first hot spot of a London trip is King's Cross Station.

J.K. Rowling earned astronomical amounts of money from the royalties of the 'Harry Potter series' and film rights. It is widely known that Rowling completed the 'Harry Potter series' as a single mother receiving welfare benefits in Edinburgh, Scotland, after her divorce. Recently, Rowling appeared on the podcast 'JK Rowling's Witch Trial' and revealed chilling details about her first marriage.

Rowling married Jorge Arantes, a Portuguese man, in 1992. She was working while writing the 'Harry Potter manuscript' in her spare time.

"The marriage was very violent and controlling. Every time I came home, my husband searched my bag, and I didn't even have a key to the front door. I had to pretend as if I wouldn't leave. My husband hid the manuscript. The manuscript was a hostage my husband held to prevent me from leaving. I secretly took out a few pages every day without him noticing and brought them to work to copy. If I hadn't done this, I thought he would have burned all the manuscripts or used them as leverage."

Rowling also candidly spoke about the days she was assaulted.

"When I said I was going to leave, he became very violent and said he would prevent me from taking my daughter. I started a fight over this issue and paid the price. It ended with a violent scene of me lying on the street."

It sends chills down the spine. To think her first husband was such a man! What if he had burned the manuscript bundle in a fit of rage? Rowling barely saved the manuscript and published 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' in 1997 based on it. Should we just be grateful that her abusive first husband, who dragged his wife into the middle of the road and beat her, did not burn the manuscript?

Platform 9 and 3/4, the entrance to the platform where you board the Hogwarts Express in the novel series "Harry Potter."
Photo by Wikipedia

If It Were Not for Max Brod...

This year marks the 140th anniversary of the birth of Czech writer Franz Kafka (1883?1924). To commemorate the 140th anniversary, various translations are being released. Whenever Kafka is thought of, his friend Max Brod automatically comes to mind. Without Brod, could the Bohemian novelist Kafka have existed? The answer is no.

Kafka never earned money as a novelist during his lifetime. He did not rely on literature as a means of livelihood. Only about twenty or thirty people in Prague remembered him as a novelist. Kafka became famous only after his death.

Kafka was born with an introverted personality. Growing up under a domineering father added to his timidity. In 1902, Kafka met a decisive person in his life: Max Brod. Brod was already a notable figure in Prague in various fields such as poetry, novels, plays, and music. Brod was the complete opposite of Kafka in every way. He was extroverted and sociable. Kafka liked Brod, who had the strengths he lacked. Kafka stepped into a new world through Brod's window. He also met his lover Felice Bauer at Brod's house.

Max Brod memorial plaque installed on the wall opposite Franz Kafka's grave.
[Photo by Seonggwan Cho]

Kafka worked as an insurance company employee and wrote at night but did not believe in his own abilities. Brod was the one who recognized Kafka's literary talent after seeing his drafts. Brod continuously encouraged and urged Kafka to keep writing.

Kafka suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis. Knowing that his days were numbered due to worsening tuberculosis, he handed Brod a bundle of manuscripts as a will when Brod visited his hospital room.

"Please burn all these manuscripts."

Brod nodded, saying he would do so. However, Brod did not follow his friend's will and published the complete works. Kafka's representative works such as 'The Castle,' 'The Trial,' and 'America' were all published by Brod.

Brod went further and wrote a biography of Kafka. Brod's Kafka biography is the primary source for Kafka studies. All Kafka researchers first read Brod's biography to prepare themselves mentally to enter Kafka's profound world. Thanks to Brod, Kafka overcame a long period of obscurity and stood as a 20th-century writer. The space that concretely proves their relationship is Kafka's grave. On the wall opposite Kafka's grave is Max Brod's name.

If It Were Not for Jeong Byeong-wook...

Yun Dong-ju (left), a third-year student in the liberal arts department at Yeonhui College, and Jeong Byeong-wook, a first-year student. [Photo by Yun Dong-ju Memorial Association]

Yun Dong-ju (1917?1945) is the most beloved poet among Koreans. His 'Prologue' is a poem Koreans often recite. 'Prologue' is placed at the very front of his posthumous poetry collection 'Sky, Wind, Star, and Poem.'

'Prologue' was completed in November 1941 when he was a senior in the liberal arts department at Yeonhui College. The shining period of Yun Dong-ju's 27 years of life was his four years at Yeonhui College. During his time at Yeonhui, Yun wrote most of the poems we remember. The liberal arts student council magazine 'Munwoo' was published in June. Two poems, 'A New Road' and 'Self-Portrait in a Water Well,' were included in this magazine.

Before graduation, Yun Dong-ju made a plan. He decided to compile the poems he had written so far into a self-selected poetry collection. He chose 19 poems, including 'Prologue.' He planned to publish a limited edition of 77 copies and took steps to do so. However, this plan was not realized because he could not raise the 300 won publishing cost.

What to do now? After much thought, Yun decided to make handwritten copies of the poetry collection. He made three handwritten copies and gifted one each to Professor Lee Yang-ha and junior Jeong Byeong-wook from the liberal arts department.

After graduating from Yeonhui College, Yun Dong-ju changed his name to a Japanese-style name for studying abroad in Japan. The poem he wrote shortly after was 'Confession.' Five days later, he became Hiranuma Toju and crossed the Korea Strait. While enrolled in the English literature department at Doshisha University in Kyoto, Yun was arrested on July 14, 1943, along with his second cousin Song Mong-gyu in connection with the 'Korean Student Nationalist Group Incident.' He died in Fukuoka Prison on February 16, 1945.

The dormitory building where Yun Dong-ju stayed during his time at Yeonhui College of Music. It is currently operated as the Yonsei University Yun Dong-ju Memorial Hall.
[Photo by Seonggwan Cho]

The funeral was held in March 1945 at Yun Dong-ju's home in Yongjeong, Manchuria. On February 16, 1946, his father Yun Young-seok held a memorial service for his son's first anniversary. After the memorial, his father sent his second son Yun Il-ju to the liberated homeland. "Go to Seoul and find my son's friends from Yeonhui College and collect his belongings." Yun Il-ju was nineteen years old.

The first person Yun Il-ju met was his dormitory roommate Kang Cheo-jung. Kang, who was working as a reporter for Kyunghyang Newspaper, had kept the books, notebooks, graduation album, and a low desk that Yun Dong-ju had left behind when he went to study in Japan for over four years. Through Kang Cheo-jung, Yun Il-ju met junior Jeong Byeong-wook from the liberal arts department.

A miracle happened here. Jeong Byeong-wook had also been conscripted as a student soldier during the late Japanese colonial period and had entrusted the handwritten poetry collection he received as a gift from Yun Dong-ju to his mother in his hometown (Gwangyang, Jeollanam-do) for safekeeping. Jeong miraculously returned alive in the fall of 1945 after Japan's defeat. "Fortunately, after safely returning home, my mother proudly showed me Dong-ju's poetry manuscripts, which she had wrapped in layers of silk cloth and kept safe."

Yun Il-ju took the handwritten poetry collection 'Sky, Wind, Star, and Poem' to Kang Cheo-jung. As a result, Yun Dong-ju's poems were published in the Kyunghyang Newspaper on February 13, 1947. It was only two years after his death that Yun Dong-ju was finally born as a poet.

One year later, on January 30, 1948, a posthumous poetry collection was published by Jeongeumsa. This collection included 31 poems, adding 12 poems written during his study abroad in Japan.

If it were not for Yeonhui College junior Jeong Byeong-wook, Yun Dong-ju would have been a poet but never become one.

Writer and genius researcher Jo Seong-gwan

Operator of 'Genius Table,' former editor-in-chief of Weekly Chosun

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.