KBS-TV adds subtitles for classic dramas

Your television set can be a useful, handy tool for understanding Korean culture. Starting Monday, the KBS-TV network will broadcast a series of TV dramas throughout June with English subtitles on its satellite channel, KBS World TV.
Although the programs won’t be able to be viewed in Korea unless you have a special satellite box, the shows will be aired in places such as the United States, Europe, Japan and others where KBS World TV broadcasts.
The featured dramas are from the network’s regular shows titled “Literature on TV Screen,” an adaptation of selected Korean classics as well as contemporary literature.
Producers say that they aim to introduce Korean literature to foreign viewers around the world as well as the younger generations of ethnic Koreans living overseas.
The quality of English subtitles will be supervised by expert Korean literature translators, the producers added. The No. 1 priority is for the dramas and adaptations to be true to the original literature.
Under the title, “Feature TV Dramas,” four works by acclaimed authors will be aired on high-definition broadcasts. “Sonagi” (A Sudden Shower) is a classic short story penned by the modern novelist Hwang Sun-won. This tragic love story of a teenage boy is a true beloved classic among Koreans.
Second up is “Naega Saratdeon Jip” (“The Hard Goodbye”) by Eun Hui-gyeong, a popular contemporary novelist. Starring the acclaimed actress Bae Jong-ok, the drama details a consuming yet fateful love between a single mother and a married, younger man.
The third TV drama to be featured is “Yeokma” (“Destiny’s Curse”) another classic drama penned by the much-respected modern novelist Kim Dong-ri. It’s the story of a young man and his family who make vain efforts to run away from their destiny.
The last one is “Oedeung” (“The Outdoor Lamp”), a tragic love story set during the turbulent modernization in Korea in the 1970s. It is written by the contemporary writer Park Beom-shin.

by Chun Su-jin