The Importance of Language in Literature

 

 The languages we use are mostly divided into two types: one is language in everyday life, and the other is in literature. In literature, language is manipulated for the expression of people's culture and emotions. While language is the medium used to express people's culture, literature is the reflection of this culture.

 

 The language of literature is emotional. Artists strive to infuse their rich emotions into their creations, which are then purified and beautified through language, resulting in a work of art. Literature does not provide any immutable knowledge but leaves an everlasting impression. The language of literature is also concrete, as it expresses experiences and feelings about things in detail through language. Concrete expression here does not mean conveying the meaning of an object as a concept, but rather conveying an individual experience. However, it is impossible to understand things accurately through language. All sensations about objects are subjective, and it is not possible to describe them perfectly in language. However, literature challenges these limitations of language. Literature embodies personal emotions and creates images of objects through the symbolic properties of language and visual elements. The deep meaning of things can be revealed through the connotations of language meaning.

 

 Also, the language of literature is implicit. The language used to communicate in everyday life emphasizes the accurate transmission of meaning. Even in general academics, language focuses on the truth or falsity of facts based on dictionary meanings. This means that the referential function of language is emphasized. However, the language of literature is different. The language of literature is used in a way that stimulates the imagination of readers through the creativity of the writer. Not satisfied with dictionary meanings, we mobilize new language meanings. It utilizes the meaning implied in the language through figurative expressions, omissions, leaps, and symbols.

 

 On the one hand, this characteristic has the disadvantage that readers cannot understand the exact meaning unless they are fluent in the language of the original text. Most people who speak Korean as their native language have no choice but to understand the author's content through translation. Translations are created after an arduous struggle by various translators in each field. They must have gone through a period of agony unknown to us to properly convey the content of the original book while having trouble sleeping at night and translating against a deadline.

 

 A sentence appears that I have no way of knowing whether it is a word or not. Ahn Seon-jae, a British English literature scholar and professor at Dankook University, cited the translation status of many works coming to Korea as an example and said, “No matter how good the translation is, it cannot exactly reproduce the specific lifestyle or language of the people of that country or time.”

 

 However, research results show that the challenges in translating literature are gradually decreasing. UNESCO predicts that if the current situation continues, half of the current 7,000 languages will disappear by the end of the 21st century, or in the worst case, 90%. As languages to translate disappear, the difficulties also diminish. Nevertheless, since people's creativity stems from linguistic diversity, the creative works of ethnic minorities may gradually vanish if this trend persists. Professor Kwon Jaeil, professor emeritus at Seoul National University, mentioned two ways to preserve a disappearing language. The first is to revive these languages for direct use, and the second is to document them in writing, audio, and video. Among these methods, compiling dictionaries has been identified as a sustainable and crucial approach. Professor Kwon stated, compiling a dictionary is no easy task. This can only be achieved through the sustained interest and efforts of linguists, with financial and administrative backing from national or academic organizations. Support from various organizations will be vital, it is anticipated that our attention and efforts will be most crucial in the future.

 

 

By Staff Reporter Kim Soomin