Author Jo Jung-rae returns with love story, calls literature defense of humanity

Novelist Jo Jung-rae, best known for sweeping epics chronicling Korea’s modern history, has returned to romantic love in his new two-volume novel, “Seorikkot,” (frost flower in Korean). He said that literature must preserve human imagination and feeling in an age increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence (AI) and smartphones. At a press conference in Seoul, the 83-year-old author said his new work, which may be his final full-length novel, was the first work in his 56-year literary career with love at its center. “I wanted to write a sad love story,” Jo said. “But this is not a simple love story.” The novel marks a notable departure for Jo, whose landmark historical trilogy — “Taebaek Mountain Range” (1989), “Arirang” (1994) and “Hangang” (2001) — has long been regarded as one of Korean literature’s most ambitious attempts to narrate the country’s 20th century upheavals. The three sprawling novels, which trace colonial rule, national division, war, industrialization and ordinary lives caught in history, have sold more than 15 million copies, accord