SIE LERNT UM IHR LEBEN
(She learns for her life)
Südkoreas Schüler gehören zu den besten der Welt. Die gefürchtete Abschlussprüfung, der Suneung, hält das ganze Land in Atem. Über eine 17-Jährige, die nachts nur noch vier Stunden schläft – und die Frage: Wie viel Wettbewerb ist gut für eine Gesellschaft?
Translation:
She learns for her life
South Korea's students are among the best in the world. The dreaded final exam, the Suneung, keeps the entire country in suspense. About a 17-year-old who only sleeps four hours a night - and the question: How much competition is good for a society?
*Note: The protagonist of the story requested to remain anonymous in the online story and her name has been changed.
Excerpt from the story by Cathrin Schmiegel.
Commissioned and published by Die Zeit.
January 2024
Shortlisted for the Hansel Mieth Prize in 2025.
Photographed in Gimhae, South Korea
Seo Yeon* studies in her room at her home in Gimhae.
A class during school hours at Gimhae Girls’ High School.
Students walk through the corridors at Gimhae Girls’ High School.
Students line up for lunch at the cafeteria.
Students and teachers eat lunch together, consisting of Korean beef and bean sprout rice, perilla seed potato soup, braised lotus root, spinach, pizza, radish kimchi, tangerine and ice cream.
Visitors pray at Eunhasa Temple in Sineosan Mountain in Gimhae.
Students paint the walls at Gimhae Girls’ High School.
A few students enjoy a game of badminton in the gym after lunch.
Seo Yeon* studies in her room at her home in Gimhae.
Seo Yeon* shows her 2023 study planner for Suneung.
Students relax between the bookshelves in the library.
Workers serve lunch to the students at the cafeteria.
Students line up for lunch at the cafeteria.
Final year students play cards games during a relaxed day in the library, two days before their graduation at Gimhae Girls’ High School.
A final year student relaxes in the library, two days before graduation at Gimhae Girls’ High School.
Statues and prayer cards adorn the interior of a temple hall at Eunhasa Temple.
People visit Eunhasa Temple.