“If there is a source to my poetry, I must say it is my background—the fact that I left my homeland long ago and have lived elsewhere ever since, a grand and inescapable fate lying beneath my poetry. Thus, it is inevitable that it is shaped by longing and loneliness, and I believe my poetry exists as a means to comfort myself in such circumstances.” (Lee, Byungryul and Mah Chonggi. “Teukbyeoldaedam – Nugunga Wiroreul Badatdamyeon Geugeoseun Jinsimeuro Sireul Sseugo Itgi Ttaemun” [“Special Interview: If Someone Was Comforted, It Is Because We Write Poetry in Earnest”]. Yeollinsihak [Open Poetics], vol. 13, no. 3. Sept. 2008)
1. Life
Mah Chonggi was born in Tokyo, Japan on January 17, 1939. His mother, Park Oeseon, was the first Korean female Western dancer and founded the Department of Dance at Ewha Womans University, and his father, Ma Hae-song, was a writer of children’s literature. During his first year of elementary school, he saw the fall of Japan and the liberation of Korea, and he returned to Seoul in 1946. He began writing children’s poems during his elementary school years and in his second year at middle school, won the first Hakwon Literary Award for his prose, showing early talent as a writer. However, he changed his career path away from the humanities in high school and entered Yonsei University’s College of Medicine in 1959. In 1960, he made his literary debut through Hyundae Munhak, under the recommendation of poet Park Tu-jin, and published his first poetry collection Joyonghan Gaeseon (A Quiet, Triumphant Return) in the same decade. He went on to pursue graduate studies in medicine at Seoul National University, and at the same time, he joined the poetry coterie, Sidan. During his time as an Air Force medical officer, he was detained by the Air Force Counterintelligence Unit on the grounds that he signed a petition opposing the treaty between Korea and Japan in 1965. This led to his relocation to the U.S. after completing his military service. After settling in Ohio, he worked as a doctor for over thirty years while consistently publishing poetry collections within Korean literary circles. In 2023, the General Alumni Association of Yonsei University College of Medicine established the Mah Chonggi Literary Award in his name.
2. Writing
Mah’s poetry portrays a philosophical introspection drawn from his experience of war in childhood, his work as a doctor, and his immigration to the United States and life as an outsider. He has stated that, rather than writing according to a distinct poetic theory, he writes to comfort himself in response to the sense of loss he has experienced. In his earlier collections, Joyonghan Gaeseon (A Quiet, Triumphant Return) and Du Beonjjae Gyeoul (Second Winter), he explores human life and death, drawing on his years of medical residency. “Jeongsingwa Byeongdong” (“Psychiatric Ward”), a poem highly regarded by Kim Suyeong, creates a world detached from the conventional flow of time. After his move to the U.S., his poetic world was greatly influenced by his experiences as a doctor, as well as by his diasporic and marginal consciousness, and he continued to produce poems in accessible language. In Moyeoseo Saneun Geosi Eodi Galdaedeul Ppunirya (Not Only Reeds Live in Groups), he exposes the problematic nature of the Korean political reality. Across Iseurui Nun (Eyes of Dew) and Saedeurui Kkumeseoneun Namu Naemsaega Nanda (Birds’ Dreams Carry the Scent of Trees), he reflects on grief and longing for family following the death of his younger brother in the U.S., while also recalling the violence he witnessed under a military dictatorship. Urineun Seoro Bureugo Inneun Geosilkka (Are We Calling to One Another?) consists of lyric poems shaped by his experiences of various spaces and Maheundu Gaeui Chorok (Forty-Two Greens) depicts the loss and death experienced in later life, along with the lament and hope that emerge from them. In Cheonsaui Tansik (The Angel’s Lament), he looks back on the beginning of his poetic journey, transforming the separation and loss he experienced into a quiet voice of consolation.
Reference
Poetry Collections and Selected Works
Joyonghan Gaeseon (A Quiet, Triumphant Return). Bumin Publishing, 1960
Du Beonjjae Gyeoul (Second Winter). Bumin Publishing, 1965
Byeongyeongui Kkot (A Peripheral Flower). Jisik-sanup Publishing Co. Ltd., 1976
An Boineun Sarangui Nara (Invisible Land of Love). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 1980
Moyeoseo Saneun Geosi Eodi Galdaedeul Ppunirya (Not Only Reeds Live in Groups). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 1986
Geu Nara Haneul Bit (The Hues of the Sky Above That Land). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 1991
Iseurui Nun (Eyes of Dew). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 1997
Majonggi Sijeonjip (Mah Chonggi’s Poetry Collection). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 1999
Saedeurui Kkumeseoneun Namu Naemsaega Nanda (Birds’ Dreams Carry the Scent of Trees). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 2002
Urineun Seoro Bureugo Inneun Geosilkka (Are We Calling to One Another?). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 2006
Haneurui Maensal (The One Who Keeps His Dreams). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 2010
Maheundu Gaeui Chorok (Forty-Two Greens). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 2015
Cheonsaui Tansik (The Angel’s Lament). Moonji Publishing co., Ltd., 2020
Pyeonggyunyul 1jip (Equal Temperament, vol. 1). Changusa, 1968 (multiple authors)
Pyeonggyunyul 2jip (Equal Temperament, vol. 2). Hyundae Munhak Publishing Co., Ltd., 1972 (multiple authors)
Essays
Byeol, Ajik Kkeunnaji Aneun Gippeum (Stars, a Joy Yet Unfinished). Munidang, 2003
Aju Sajeogin, Gin Mannam (A Very Private Long Encounter). Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2009
Dangsineul Bureumyeo Saratda (I’ve Lived Calling for You). Vichebook, 2010
Uri Eolmana Hamkke (For How Long, We). Dal, 2013
Saiui Georimankeum, Geuriun (Longing for, as Much as the Distance Between). Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2014
Areumdaun, Geu Sumeun Sumgyeol (That Beautiful, Hidden Breath). And(&), 2021
Reference
Lee, Byungryul and Mah Chonggi. “Teukbyeoldaedam – Nugunga Wiroreul Badatdamyeon Geugeoseun Jinsimeuro Sireul Sseugo Itgi Ttaemun” (“Special Interview: If Someone Was Comforted, It Is Because We Write Poetry in Earnest”). Yeollinsihak (Open Poetics), vol. 13, no. 3. Goyoachim, 2008.
Cha, Jin-Myeong, “Majonggi Siwa Momui Sihak” (“Mah Chonggi’s Poetry and the Poetics of the Body”). 2024. Chungnam National University, doctoral dissertation.
LTI Korea 
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