In the July-August issue of the Atlantic, Joseph Epstein uses the release of Saul Friedlander’s book “Franz Kafka: The Poet of Shame and Guilt” to pose the larger question of whether Kafka is still relevant.“Great writers are impressed by the mysteries of life; poor Franz Kafka was crushed by them,” he observes, noting that “Kafka’s small body of work, which includes three uncompleted novels, some two dozen substantial short stories, an assemblage of parables and fragment-like shorter works, dia

Leo Hollis should have had me at the title. His book “Cities Are Good for You: The Genius of the Metropolis” seeks to articulate something I take as an article of faith: Cities are the only place to live.And yet, even the title highlights some of the problems with this uneven inquiry into urban life. It might have been radical to champion the city 30 years ago, when crime rates were high and the middle-class exodus to the suburbs remained in full swing. We live, however, in a different era, when

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― More than 200 Korean Americans gathered on Capitol Hill Wednesday for an event designed by Republican lawmakers to expand support from the ever-growing minority group nationwide.“I have the honor of representing one of the largest Korean-American communities in the country,” Rep. Ed Royce (R-Fullerton, California) said at the Korean American Meetup held at the Cannon House Office Building.“Today’s event is an exciting opportunity to open a dialogue between members of C

JOHANNESBURG (AP) ― Nelson Mandela has made “dramatic progress,” and may be going home “anytime soon,” said his daughter Zindzi on the eve of his 95th birthday. “I visited him yesterday and he was watching television with headphones,” said Zindzi Mandela in an interview with Britain’s Sky TV. “He gave us a huge smile and raised his hand ... He responds with his eyes and his hands.” Mandela is gaining “energy and strength,” said his daughter. “I should think he will be going home anytime soon.” T

Two Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, dubbed “Jedori” and “Chunsami,” returned to the sea near Kimnyoung on Jeju Island, Thursday, from an offshore pen where they had been training to adapt to the wild. Jedori and Chunsami were illegally captured near the coasts of Seogwipo and Jeju City in May and June 2009, respectively. It took Jedori 1,540 days and Chunsami 1,487 days to return to the wild.The ceremony to set them free was attended by officials from Seoul City, Jeju Province, Jeju Special Se

Shamanistic rituals that revolve around the lives of fishermen are the subject of a special exhibition currently taking place at the National Folk Museum of Korea.For the exhibition, “The Sea and Rites,” the museum’s curators gathered objects from more than 12,000 reference items that were donated by folklorist Ha Hyo-gil in 2012. Ha, who has studied and collected data about Korean shamanism since the 1970s, served as the director of the museum from 1982 to 1986. The exhibition offers insight in

Ministry initiative targets children and elderly people who lack easy access to cultural activities

This is the fifth installment in an 11-part series that introduces some of the best walking trails in Korea. Based on each trail’s popularity and the recommendations of travel experts and the Culture Ministry, The Korea Herald has selected the 10 best places for walking and hiking. The series received funding from the Korea Press Foundation. ― Ed.Hiking trails have sprung up all over Korea in recent years, but the Mount Jirisan trail is a hard one to match in terms of length, diversity and histo

Korean designer Lee Han-chul has won the finals of the International Talent Support fashion competition in Trieste, Italy. The 36-year-old graduate from Samsung Art and Design Institute was named the winner of the Fashion Collection of the Year award on July 13, the institute said Wednesday.Lee will receive 15,000 euros ($19,700) in prize money. He will also return to the 2014 edition of the ITS contest as part of the jury and has the chance to present a new collection.Lee won the Vogue Talents

The Ministry of National Defense and Lotte Group agreed Wednesday on overseas projects for Korean War veterans to mark 60 years since the cease-fire ended the conflict.Under the agreement, Lotte will pay for the Defense Ministry’s projects for overseas veterans for five years. To begin with, the projects will be held in Thailand, followed by the Philippines and Turkey.About 1,700 third-year cadets from the Korea Military Academy will visit Thailand during summer vacation as volunteer workers. Th

The local minting authorities will sell new medals from Friday to honor the five countries that gave the most combat support for South Korea during the 1950-1953 Korean War. Korea Minting, Security Printing & ID Card Operating Corp. said Wednesday that it will launch five medals for the allies, one each month for five months.The five countries that dispatched the most soldiers were the United States, Britain, Canada, Turkey and Australia. The U.S. sent 1.789 million soldiers, followed by Britain