Some lucky dude down in Busan got a chance to write something for Slate about being an expat writer. Yes, I’m green with envy. Essentially, he states the obvious:
So, expat scenes invariably have plenty of writers and artists but a curiously scant quantity of writing and art. This isn’t a new phenomenon: Ernest Hemingway alluded to it in The Sun Also Rises, when Bill Gorton jestingly upbraids Jake Barnes: “You drink yourself to death,” he says. “You become obsessed with sex. You spend all your time talking, not working. You are an expatriate, see? You hang around cafes.” George Orwell made a similar observation in “Inside the Whale” (an essay-length riff on Miller’s Tropic of Cancer), pointing out that expatriate writers are disproportionately obsessed with “drinking, talking, meditating, and fornicating.”
From personal experience, I can say my first few months in Korea were a struggle creatively pretty much ’cause of the things he mentions. Too often in Korea, it is very easy to slip into a “dissipated” state where you do a lot of talking and not a lot of writing. The general tone of the piece strikes me as somewhat mean spirited, but it’s probably just the usual expats generally not liking each other thing being displayed.
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Might want to change your link to http://www.slate.com/id/2152088/, Shelton.
It depends where you are. I drank more back home, we had much better bars and nightlife, but there are far more easy whores in East Asia, so I have more sex here.
the post is fixed. sorry.
You have to laugh at these self-romanticising comparisons of a) expats in 20’s and 30’s Paris with expats in today’s Korea, b) bloggers with novel writers, c) of French cafes with the universally identical Starbucks, d) chasing French women with being chased by variations of the same i’m-wanna-making-foreign-friend Korean bimbo.
A person can be an “expatriate” anywhere in the world. It is simply a matter of one’s mind.
A modern version of “An American in Paris” set to Seoul would be rather comedic indeed. A more interesting twist might be “A Korean in New York”. I think there is potential therein but it is a lot of notes to write . . .
I’m afraid, however, I would draw the line at “An American in Shanghai” and use that for toilet tissue instead.
The piece feels like a bit of a victory lap to me, but I think he makes some decent observations. Anytime someone starts throwing around the word “expat” I think of The Sun Also Rises, T.S. Elliot, and the like. That is, I think it refers to a specific time and place…a trend. So in that sense I think the piece sounds like a writer trying to fit things into a little box so he has something to talk about at length. I expected him to give Busan a 7.5 out of 10 on the Hemmingway Expat Rate-O Meter.
My creativity waned when I first came to Korea. I was convinced it was because, like Shelton says, the place can appear mean-spirited. I would even say alienating.
But after I got married I’m writing up a storm. Its helped me focus tremendously. Not because I’m rabidly in love, but because I’ve made a decision that forces me to see the end of my life. Things are much more black and white. I think feeling loved has helped me move on and focus on other things I love.
The writer’s whole idea of people trying to come here and be Henry Miller fits me to a T. Although, I did that in Europe before I came here. And I wrote a shitty book about it. And it didn’t get published. Now I’m just a boring 30-something married guy. I have nothing to prove to anyone and I can focus on writing.
“Some lucky dude down in Busan”? Uh, Rolf Potts wrote about Korea years ago in Salon.com when he was living in Busan, then took his writing gig on the road. He has long since gone on to become a reasonably successful travel writer:
http://www.rolfpotts.com/
All of which I am sure you know. Just was not sure how this made him “lucky.”
Mr Marmot, We miss the vixen shots, bring back the 90 pounders!
The guy looks vaguely familiar, although it looks like the only place we overlapped was the Dallas, what a bar in 1970 Itaewon probably looked like, across the street from Hialeah. For me, the late 90s were good times hanging in Haeundae and Kwanghali.
Fornicating!!! Damn…..I knew there was something I forgot to do!
Anyway…
Montclaire, I wouldn’t sell the Korean experience and the expats so short. True, no Hemingways or Fitzgeralds yet — but if you read there stuff and others from that time, I don’t think they would have much ground to condescend to the expats in Korea - though I’m sure they would.
They did seem to spend all their time drunk and abusing each other and getting laid —- but - yes - I guess they did write some too.
thought of you when i read that over the weekend shelton. if you look at all his work you’ll see it ain’t exactly “luck” that got him published.
It depends how you look at it. For some, being an expat in Korea is more than enough of a good reason to get drunk, even more so if they work at a hagwon.
Actually, I think that Korea lends itself to that sort of behavior.
With a bar at every street corner, it’s almost inevitable that many expats will to turn to the bottle to beat loneliness, boredom, and alienation.
You’re right, usinkorea. But the very word “expat” seems so complacent. The reality, in terms of what most of the English teachers are doing (during and after work, physically and intellectually), and how they are seen by the public, is much closer to: Gastarbeiter.
‘i drank more at home; we had better bars and nightlife but there are far more easy whores in east asia so i have more sex here.’ expat comment
my thoughts exactly.
*****
i hope mar’ won’t mind me putting this here:
‘what do you mean boon’s farm, night train, and mad dog? is that some kind of korean american slang?’ expat
i don’t know any korean american slang, but i do know american slang and can verse in it too. it’s seems you can’t. you’re not american are you? any american would understand my references stated in your quote.
*****
if you can speak korean should be watching ‘jumong’. man, the fight scenes represent a new level of sophistication. there’s also a good story with fantastic costumes. good entertainment.
Hmmm…Guess we can’t fault Pawi for dismissing white Gastarbeiter in Korea as empty headed boozehounds and bimbo collectors when so many are happy to describe themselves in those terms.
This is not just some guy. The guy writing the piece is Rolf Potts. He is a serious travel writer and published author who taught English in Korea about ten years ago. Not to be too snippy, but the fact that he was commissioned to write for Slate over you is not a matter of luck.
Ben
Y-y-you mean he’s THE Rolf Potts?? He’s serious, he’s published, he taught English…he’s the new James Joyce!
Guys,
Please let us not forget “what a hundred and fifty bones will get you in Korea”.
*THIS* is expat writing at it’s worst, meaning BEST!
http://www.camobear.ca/index.php?id=23
i’ll tell you right now. farmer chicks (Gunsan city) are extremely different from seoul or even osan girls. easier to throw game at and much more curious. here in kunsan… ehhh… a bunch of overly conservative, swamp land type thinkers who needs to seriously loosen up. sometimes i’ve turned to the bottle, but i’ve come to discover that there are a few loose cannons out there.
where does he get off???? writing on a blog website does not qualify as A) real writing or B) art. It’s just glorified whinging. And as for artistis in Korea…..the ones I have met are pretenders. Banging drums in Hongdae….woooohooooooo. coool! bohemian!
Really, I found it more sympathetic than that. I guess it’s true that we all bring ourselves to the book, so to speak…