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Re: The Edge of the Sword: Book

From: POW-MIA InterNetwork

Date: October 13, 2003

"Translation Serves as Deep, Glowing Tribute to Bravery

By Jeffrey Miller
Feature Writer

While attending a reception at the British Embassy in Seoul in the spring of 1994, Kim Young-il was given a copy of Sir Anthony Farrar-Hockley's compelling account of the Korean War "The Edge of the Sword." Given to him personally by Farrar-Hockley, the book was to leave Kim with a lasting impression of one of the more fiercely fought battles of the Korean War and the heroic stand made by "The Glosters" in the hills overlooking the Imjin River.

"I started reading it that evening and it was spellbinding. I could not put the book down and stayed up all night reading it,"Kim said. "I've read many books on the Korean War, but none as moving and eloquently written as this one."

Nine years later, this gallant and heroic war story of soldiers from the 1st Battalion of the Gloucestershire Regiment that for four days in April 1951 held off three Chinese divisions whose objective was to invade Seoul, as well as Farrar-Hockley's account of his captivity, has recently been translated into Korean by Kim and published by the Association of Korean Journalists (AKJ).

"I wanted the young people of Korea to know about these sacrifices made by so many brave men who helped save the Republic of Korea from Communist occupation and bring the nation where it is today,"Kim said. "Although a full half-century has passed since the events recounted in this book, I hope the publication of this translation may educate or otherwise give pause for thought to many young Koreans, who, especially today, remain sadly ignorant or ill-informed of many of those sacrifices during the war."

Kim, the former CEO of the Kyongin Energy Co., an affiliate of Hanwha Group, and current president of Wooil Co. Ltd., spent six months working on the translation of Farrar-Hockley¡¯s book. Working only on weekends, he first wrote out the translation by longhand and then typed it out later.

"I think one of the hardest parts of translating it only on the weekends was that I had to go back over it again and again to make sure that I captured everything faithfully from what Farrar-Hockley had described in the original text," Kim said.

Another challenge he faced in translating the book was the military terminology and some of the British expressions.

"Those were kind of hard to figure out," said Kim, smiling.

However, he received a helping hand from the defense attache at the British Embassy. "Brigadier John King provided me with photographs and lists of terminology. That was a big help."

On the other hand, Kim didn¡¯t have any problems translating Farrar-Hockley's vivid descriptions of the battle or the months he spent in Communist POW camps.

"Farrar-Hockley remembered so many details and his descriptions were so detailed and vivid that it wasn't too difficult to capture the same feeling in Korean," Kim explained. "t was easy to translate them into the Korean text."

On a personal note, translating the book also was a catharsis of sorts for Kim whose elder brother, Captain Kim Yung-kwon, a medical officer and assigned to the 8057th Unit of the 6th ROK Army Division during the Korean War, was himself taken captive and imprisoned in not far from where Farrar-Hockley was held.

"This deeply personal experience added a special dimension in translating this magnificent and moving book, with thoughts of my brother's plight, in a sense, guiding me as I tried to convey in translation Farrar-Hockley's own experience," Kim said. "Since many ROK military personnel like my brother were not included in the 1953 POW exchange program, neither they nor their plight should be forgotten."

Without question, one of the book's strengths is Farrar-Hockley's strong will to survive despite being captured on his numerous escape attempts as well as surviving both the physical and emotional torture at the hands of his Communist captors. In order to vividly capture this in the translation, Kim got some unexpected help from Farrar-Hockley's wife.

"When I talked to his wife and she told me a little about his personality I could understand him more which helped me get into his mind when I made the translation," Kim said. "Then I could understand not only his will to survive, but also why he could not ever live under unjust oppression even for one moment."

Aside from being deeply moved by Farrar-Hockley's account of the Battle of the Imjin River, one of the things that Kim learned from reading and translating the book was how the human body could survive such terrible treatment as a POW.

"The terrible ordeal that Farrar-Hockley and other prisoners of war went through was beyond imagination," Kim added. "If I were in that situation I would die."

With the book currently being sold in local bookstores, Kim believes in this book so much that he told the publishers that he doesn't want any royalties. Whatever money he makes from the sales, Kim wants to give back to the publishers so they can boost advertising for the book and print more copies.

In the meantime, Kim is also confident that his original intentions for wanting to translate the book will also be a lasting tribute to The Glosters and other service members who came to the defense of South Korea.

"This translation of "The Edge of the Sword" is dedicated to those Gloster soldiers, and all whom they symbolize, who were dispatched to a remote unknown land where they lost their lives while defending freedom from invaders," Kim said. "Even though half a century has past, this translation serves as my deep and personal tribute and thanks to the Glosters for their courage and bravery. They should be an inspiration to us all."

At the same time, Kim pointed out that he didn¡¯t want to glorify the war with this book, but wanted readers to understand that through those countless sacrifices over 50 years ago, Koreans today can enjoy the freedom that was born on the battlefields of the Korean War. He also hopes the book will remind people never to forget those sacrifices.

"I want the young people to know what the true picture of North Korea is and what happened during the Korean War,"Kim said. "This can never be forgotten and young people need to understand not only the sacrifices but also how the Glosters and other soldiers saved Korea. I hope that by translating Farrar-Hockley's book people can understand the Korean War more and the sacrifices made by countless others which saved our nation during the conflict."

sparksjam@yahoo.com
10-12-2003 16:15

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