September 20, 2016 13:11
Novelist Shin Kyung-sook is in hot water again after being accused of plagiarizing parts of her best-selling tear-jerker "Please Look After Mom."
Essayist Oh Gil-sun has filed a suit against Shin and her publisher Changbi seeking W100 million from each for plagiarism, according to legal sources (US$1=W1,120). The case has been on trial at the Seoul Central District Court since Sept. 8.
Oh claims that Shin plagiarized a 2001 essay that is very similar to Shin's 2008 novel in terms of storyline and expressions. The novel and essay both center around the reflections of a daughter when her mother develops dementia and goes missing.
Shin denies plagiarism and has said there are thousands of reports of elderly people who go missing every year.
This is not Shin's first brush with plagiarism allegations. Last year was accused of pilfering the classic novel "Patriotism" by Yukio Mishima for her short story "Legend," published in 1996.
She was cleared of fraud charges in June last year but apologized and promised to remove the story from future editions.
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