申庚林

1935년 충북 충주에서 태어나 동국대 영문과를 졸업하고 1956년 『문학예술』에 「갈대」 등이 추천되어 작품활동을 시작했다. 첫 시집 『농무』이래 민중의 생활에 밀착한 현실인식과 빼어난 서정성, 친숙한 가락을 결합한 시세계로 한국시의 물줄기를 바꾸며 새 경지를 열었다. 70년대 이후 문단의 자유실천운동·민주화운동에 부단히 참여하여 당대적 현실 속에 살아숨쉬는 시편들로 탁월한 예술적 성취를 보여주었다. 시집으로 『농무』『새재』 『달 넘세』 『가난한 사랑노래』 『길』 『쓰러진 자의 꿈』 『어머니와 할머니의 실루엣』 『뿔』 『낙타』, 장시집 『남한강』, 산문집 『민요기행』1·2 『신경림의 시인을 찾아서』1·2 『바람의 풍경』 등이 있다. 만해문학상, 한국문학작가상, 이산문학상, 단재문학상, 대산문학상, 공초문학상, 만해시문학상 등을 수상했다. 현재 동국대 석좌교수로 있다.

Shin, Gyeong-lim is a realist poet best known for his depiction of rural devastation. He made his literary debut in the mid-1950s, but for many years thereafter, he worked as a teacher, farmer and peddler while traveling around the country. Obscured by the glitter of the rapidly developing cities are the impoverished countryside and the outskirts of the cities where suffering and despair, anger and resignation as well as the unconquerable will to life define the lives of the inhabitants. His firsthand experiences with these conditions of life he encountered during these travels informed his poetic world and became the source of much admired realism in Peasants’ Dance, which earned the poet his first critical acclaim. In his poetry, Shin often merges the form of travel writing with that of folk songs to create a unique style that conveys the “richness of life, the mystery of folklore, the heartbeat of people and the smell of earth and sweat.” Shin Kyeong-nim has been honored with the Manhae Literature Prize, Korean Literature Award, Isan Literary Award and Danjae Literature Prize.