This is a comprehensive narrative history of Korean literature from its inception and the establishment of a royal Confucian academy in the seventh century, through a period during which most literature in Korea was written in Chinese and the subsequent invention of the Korean alphabet in 1443-4, to the present day. It provides a wealth of information for scholars, students and lovers of literature. Combining both history and criticism, the study reflects the latest scholarship and offers a systematic account of the development of all genres. Consisting of 25 chapters, it covers twentieth-century poetry, fiction by women, and the literature of North Korea. Other topics include the canon, ideology, and further critical issues central to an understanding of Korean literary history. This is a major contribution to the field and a study that will stand for many years as the primary resource for studying Korean literature.