Nobel Prize. Yeah, so nice to talk with you. And yeah, very nice to talk to you too. Please let me first express my congratulations. Thank you. Thank you so much. How are you feeling right now? I'm so surprised and I am honoured. How did you find out about the prize? Someone called me and he talked to me about this news. So of course I was surprised and I just finished a dinner with my son and in Korea it is just like eight o'clock in the evening. It's a very peaceful evening. I was really surprised. And you're in your home in Seoul? Yeah, I'm at home in Seoul. And what have you been doing today? Today? I didn't work today and I just read a bit and I took a walk. It was kind of a very easy day for me. So you said you're with your son. What was his reaction to this? My son was surprised as well. But we didn't have much time to talk about this. We were surprised and that's all. I imagine. What does it mean to you getting the Nobel Prize in literature? Yes, I'm honoured and I really appreciate your support, the support of the prize and I just appreciate it.

ノーベル賞。ああ、君と話せてとても嬉しいよ。ああ、君と話せてとても嬉しいよ。まずはお祝いの言葉を述べさせてください。ありがとうございます。ありがとうございます。今のお気持ちはいかがですか？とても驚いていますし、光栄に思っています。受賞はどのようにして知りましたか？ある人から電話がかかってきて、このニュースについて話してくれました。もちろん驚きましたし、ちょうど息子との夕食を終えたところで、韓国ではちょうど夜の8時くらいなんです。とても平和な夜です。本当に驚きました。ソウルの自宅にいるんですか？ええ、ソウル

You're the first literature laureate from South Korea. How does that feel?

あなたは韓国初の文学賞受賞者です。どんなお気持ちですか？

Yes, I grew up with books. So since when I was a child, I grew up with books in Korean and translated as well. So I can say I grew up with Korean literature, which I feel very close. So

そう、私は本とともに育った。子供の頃から韓国語の本や翻訳された本と一緒に育ってきた。だから、韓国文学をとても身近に感じながら育ったんだ。だから

I hope this news is nice for Korean literature readers and my friends, writers and yeah.

このニュースが韓国文学の読者や私の友人、作家、そしてそうである人々にとって良いものであることを願っている。

You said you come from a literary background, you could say. What writers have been your most important sources of inspiration? For me, since when I was a child, writers, all the writers have been collective. They are searching meanings in life and sometimes they are lost and sometimes they are determined and all their efforts and all their strengths, they have been my inspiration. So it's very difficult for me to pick some names of inspiration. It's very difficult for me. So I read that the Swedish author Astrid Lindgren has been one source of inspiration for you. Yeah, when I was a child, I loved her book Lionheart Brothers. Yeah, I love that book. But I cannot say she's the only writer who inspired me in my childhood because when I read that book, Lionheart Brothers, I could relate it with my questions about humans or life and death and you know. Yeah, for someone just discovering your work, where would you suggest they start? Among my books, I think every writer likes his or her most recent book. So my most recent book is We Do Not Part or it's called I Do Not

あなたは文学的な背景を持っていると言いましたね。最も重要なインスピレーションの源となった作家は？私にとって、子供の頃から作家は、すべての作家が集合体でした。彼らは人生の意味を探し求め、時には迷い、時には決意を固め、その努力と長所すべてが私のインスピレーションとなってきた。だから、インスピレーションの源を選ぶのはとても難しい。とても難しいんだ。スウェーデンの作家、アストリッド・リンドグレーンは、あなたにとってインスピレーションの源のひとつだと聞きました。ええ、子供の頃、彼女の『ライオンハート・ブラザーズ』が

Part. So yeah, I hope this book could be a start and human acts is connected directly with this book

パート。そう、この本がきっかけになり、人間の行為がこの本と直接結びつくことを願っている。

We Do Not Part. And then The Right Book, which is a very personal book for me because it is quite autobiographical. And there is the vegetarian. But I feel the start could be We Do Not Part. For an international audience, maybe the vegetarian is most well known. What would you say that particular novel has meant for you?

私たちは別れない。それから『The Right Book』は、かなり自伝的な本なので、私にとってはとても個人的な本です。そしてベジタリアン。でも、スタートは『We Do Not Part』だと思う。海外の読者にとっては、『ベジタリアン』が一番有名かもしれませんね。その小説はあなたにとってどんな意味を持つと思いますか？

I wrote it for three years and those three years were kind of difficult years for me for some reasons. So I think I was struggling to find the images of this protagonist, people who are surrounding her and the image of trees and sunlight and everything was so vivid in those three years. Yeah, and I will let you go in a short while. I just, do you have any ideas on how you will celebrate this Nobel Prize?

私はこの作品を3年間書き続けましたが、その3年間は、ある理由から私にとって困難な年月でした。だから、この主人公のイメージ、彼女を取り巻く人々のイメージ、そして木々や日差しのイメージ、すべてを見つけるのに苦労したんだと思う。ええ、もう少ししたら解放しますよ。このノーベル賞をどのように祝うか、何か考えていますか？

After this phone call, I'd like to have tea with, I don't drink, so I'm going to have tea with my son and I will celebrate it quietly tonight.

この電話のあと、私はお酒が飲めないので、息子と一緒にお茶を飲みたいと思います。

Very nice. Yes. Many congratulations again.

とてもいいね。そうだね。本当におめでとう。

You're welcome.

どういたしまして。

Yeah. Thank you so much.

そうだね。本当にありがとう。

Thank you.

ありがとう。

Okay. Goodbye.

オーケー。さようなら。

Take care. Bye-bye.

お気をつけて。バイバイ。

We're available on Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and many, many more popular platforms.

私たちはAmazon Music、Apple Podcasts、Spotify、その他多くの人気プラットフォームで利用可能です。