Some poems return first as sound, before explanation. Kim Sowol’s “Sanyuhwa” works that way. Short phrases and repeated endings create a breathing pattern almost immediately, and once the rhythm settles in, it is difficult to forget.
NowHitz Editorial · 2026-09-30 · From the archive
In 1925, Kim published Azaleas, the only poetry collection released during his lifetime. The Encyclopedia of Korean Culture highlights how his work developed folk-like rhythm and everyday Korean feeling into a modern poetic language. Rather than relying on elaborate vocabulary, he deepened emotion through speech-like repetition.
In “Sanyuhwa,” flowers bloom and fall through recurring phrases and small variations. Nature keeps moving while the human feeling around it becomes quieter. The poem creates more space by saying less.
That is why Sowol can still feel immediate more than a century later. His poems suggest that memorable language does not have to be complicated—and that the rhythm of Korean itself can carry emotion.
Sometimes the words that last the longest begin with the simplest rhythm.
