Korea and the Nobel Prize

       Reporting on the Seoul Literary Society's latest meeting, The Korea Times explains Why Korea wants Nobel Prize for literature.
       Well, given the Swedish connection, it's natural that it came up, with I Have the Right to Destroy Myself-author Kim Young-ha suggesting the Korean Nobel-eagerness is because:

This desire is an unconscious attempt to get compensation for a tragic history of Japanese colonization, during which Koreans were banned from speaking and writing their own language, he added.

       More interesting: Kim revealing:

He said he grew up watching more North Korean channels on TV -- his town had a better reception from North Korea than from South Korea -- and that had a great deal of influence in forging his perception of North Korea. "It was like one big theatrical performance."