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The 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to South Korean writer Han Kang, 53, known for her works including The Vegetarian, The White Book, Human Acts, and Greek Lessons. The Nobel committee recognized her for “her intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life.” With a distinctive awareness of the connections between body and soul, the living and the dead, Han has established herself as an innovator in contemporary prose through her poetic and experimental style.

This award marks a significant moment for Asian literature, as Han Kang is the first South Korean and the first Asian woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature. Only 18 women have been honored with this prize throughout its history, making Han’s win both historic and significant. English teacher Toshi Karan remarked, “Han Kang’s Nobel Prize win represents a major milestone for global and Asian literature. This recognition shines a light on diverse storytelling traditions, inspiring readers and writers worldwide. It transcends cultural boundaries, fostering greater understanding and appreciation of different perspectives, while promoting empathy across cultural divides.”

Born in Gwangju in 1970 and raised in Suyuri, Han currently resides in Seoul. She studied Korean literature at Yonsei University and has received various awards, including the Manhae Literary Prize and the Kim Yujung Literary Prize. Although she began her career as a poet in 1993, she has since focused primarily on novels and short stories. Han is best known for The Vegetarian, her first novel translated into English by Deborah Smith in 2015. Published in 2007, The Vegetarian tells the story of a woman who stops eating meat after experiencing violent dreams about animal slaughter, exploring themes of isolation, social conformity, and violence. It became the first Korean language novel to win the International Booker Prize for Fiction in 2016, garnering widespread acclaim.

Han’s novel Human Acts, released in January 2016 by Portobello Books, is strikingly immediate, chilling, and violent. Her third novel, The White Book, was shortlisted for the 2018 International Booker Prize. This autobiographical work centers on the loss of her older sister, who died shortly after birth. In 2021, Han published We Do Not Part, which follows a writer researching the 1948–49 Jeju uprising and its effects on her friend’s family. In 2023, her fourth novel, Greek Lessons, was translated into English by Deborah Smith and E Yaewon. The Atlantic described it as a book in which “words are both insufficient and too powerful to tame,” as it uses fantasy to explore life’s mysteries. A recurring theme in Han’s work is resistance against the patriarchal and misogynistic society in which she grew up, alongside a grappling with contemporary history and traumatic events, including the Gwangju massacre, which has often been suppressed in public memory.

Han Kang’s Nobel win highlights the crucial role of translators in elevating Asian literature on the global stage. Many of Asia’s Nobel laureates in literature have gained recognition thanks to the efforts of translators—often the authors themselves. Translators have enhanced the visibility of Asian and Korean literature, reminding global readers that a wealth of compelling stories exists beyond the Anglosphere, awaiting discovery. Kang’s achievement comes at a time when an increasing number of translated works by Korean writers are reaching international audiences, significantly impacting the literary prize landscape. A pivotal moment in this trend occurred in 2016 when Han shared the International Booker Prize with her translator, Deborah Smith, for the unflinchingly visceral The Vegetarian. In interviews, Han has expressed her fascination with the paradox of human nature—the capacity for both violence and beauty—and continually revisits what it means to be human. Through her narratives of unique women, she reveals truths about her community, her country, and the world at large, inhabited by both women and men.