Classical Poetry
Classical Korean literature has its roots in traditional folk beliefs and folk tales of the Korean peninsula. There are four major traditional poetic forms: hyangga ("native songs"); pyolgok ("special songs"), or changga ("long poems"); sijo ("current melodies"); and kasa ("verses"). Other poetic forms that flourished briefly include the kyonggi-style, in the 14th and 15th centuries, and the akchang ("words for songs") in the 15th century. The most representative akchang is Yongbi och'on ka (1445–47; Songs of Flying Dragons), a cycle compiled in praise of the founding of the Yi dynasty. Korean poetry originally was meant to be sung, and its forms and styles reflect its melodic origins. The basis of its prosody is a line of alternating groups of three or four syllables, which is probably the most natural rhythm to the language.
One famous earliest poetry or lyric song was the Gonghuin (Konghu-in) by Yeo-ok during Gojoseon.
Read more about this topic: Korean Novels
Famous quotes containing the words classical and/or poetry:
“Culture is a sham if it is only a sort of Gothic front put on an iron building—like Tower Bridge—or a classical front put on a steel frame—like the Daily Telegraph building in Fleet Street. Culture, if it is to be a real thing and a holy thing, must be the product of what we actually do for a living—not something added, like sugar on a pill.”
—Eric Gill (1882–1940)
“I by no means rank poetry high in the scale of intelligence—this may look like affectation but it is my real opinion. It is the lava of the imagination whose eruption prevents an earthquake.”
—George Gordon Noel Byron (1788–1824)