"Cho Kuk Accused of Stealing Student's Book Title"... Controversy Over Geum Tae-seop's Book Title Plagiarism

New Book by Jo Guk 'Dike's Tears'
"Jo Guk is the person who wrote the recommendation for Geum Tae-seop's 'Dike's Eye'"

There are allegations that the title of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk's new book imitates the title of former lawmaker Geum Tae-seop's book. This claim was sparked by Gwak Dae-jung, spokesperson for Geum's new party 'Saeroun Seontaek' (New Choice), who stated, "Former Minister Cho stole the title of Geum's book."

The new book by former Minister Cho, scheduled for release on the 30th, is titled 'Dikeui Nunmul' (Dike's Tears). It is an essay recounting his experiences over the past decade as a private individual, not as Minister of Justice, and its title is similar to Geum's 2008 law-related book 'Dikeui Nun' (Dike's Eye).

On the 22nd, Gwak posted on his social media, "There can be books with similar titles. But the person who wrote the recommendation for Geum Tae-seop's 'Dike's Eye' is none other than Cho Kuk," adding, "How should this be interpreted?"

The new book by former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, "Dike's Tears" (left), scheduled to be published on the 30th, and former lawmaker Geum Tae-seop's book "Dike's Eye," published in 2008.

Gwak pointed out, "While authors sometimes choose their book titles, publishers often decide, usually recommending several options. The final choice is the author's. Among so many possible titles, Professor Cho Kuk deliberately took the title of a book for which he even wrote the recommendation as his own book's title." Former Minister Cho was Geum's advisor when Geum was pursuing his doctoral studies at Seoul National University Law School.

Gwak continued, "I appeared as a model for a product, but then someone set up a company and made a very similar product to sell. In business, such a person is said to have 'no business ethics.' Well, what more can we expect from former Minister Cho?" he criticized.

He added, "The more you look, the more astonishing traits this person shows," concluding, "Dike might shed some tears."

Recommendation by former Minister Cho featured on the cover of former lawmaker Geum Tae-seop's book 'Dike's Eye'./Facebook capture

The book's publisher, Dasan Books, announced on social media, "The first essay by Cho Kuk, a law professor and former Minister of Justice who has returned to being a private individual, 'Dike's Tears,' will be published on August 28, 2023," previewing the release date. In the book, former Minister Cho wrote, "There is no longer a splendid and elegant path ahead of me. I face a gravel field and a muddy swamp."

He also wrote, "I wrote this book recalling the feelings of silently crying while watching videos and photos sent by friends, acquaintances, and comrades who attended the candlelight rallies in Seocho-dong in the fall of 2019 in my home study," and "If the current reality of being a defendant after serving as Minister of Justice is compared to the Joseon Dynasty, it is like a Minister of Punishments who was stripped of his position after the 'Hwanguk' and exiled."

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