Saera Yoon
Associate Professor

Office: TMB 401-5
Phone: 052-217-2012
Email: sayoon@unist.ac.kr

Professor Yoon majored in Russian literature at university, since she thought it was the greatest literature of the world. A Dostoevsky fanatic, she wished to read him in his original language. Her dream came true in Moscow on study abroad in her senior year, as she read Crime and Punishment cover to cover in Russian, albeit with the assistance of a dictionary or a tutor alongside.

She continued to study Russian literature after graduation from Korea University. Even though she spent the best time of her life in Moscow, she decided to pursue her doctorate degree in the U.S. She figured that the U.S. would provide a graduate program better suited to her.

Professor Yoon received her Ph.D. in Russian literature from Indiana University Bloomington. She specializes in Russian literature of the nineteenth century, Russian culture, film, and comparative literature. Her favorite works of literature are Dostoevsky’s Brothers Karamazov and Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina. Among Korean writers, she loves Kim Yeon Soo and Han Gang.

Professor Yoon has written articles on various topics of Russian literature and writers, such as Nikolai Gogol, Nikolai Karamzin, and Alexandr Pushkin, largely in the context of national identity. Often being a foreigner and/or minority, she is always interested in the ways as to how one’s personal identity is shaped vis-a-vis national ideology.

Her latest research paper on Pushkin has been published in Russian Literature in April 2013. Since she translated Anna Karenina, Professor Yoon expands the scope of her research to Tolstoy. Other than professional activities, she enjoys swimming, yoga, watching men’s tennis, and exploring the streets and restaurants of Tokyo. She also adores Kim Ki-duk, Woody Allen, and Akira Kurosawa.

EDUCATION

Ph. D. Indiana University, Bloomington, 2004
Slavic Languages and Literatures
Major Field: 19th century Russian literature
Minor Field: Comparative Literature
Dissertation: Mythical Imagination in Historical Fiction: Pushkin, Lermontov and Gogol
Advisor: Dr. Andrew R. Durkin

M.A. Indiana University, Bloomington, 1998
Slavic Languages and Literatures

M.A. Korea University, Seoul, Korea 1995
Russian Literature

B.A. Korea University, Seoul, Korea 1993
Russian Language and Literature

Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
International Student Exchange Program, 1992

WORK EXPERIENCE

Associate Professor, UNIST, 2013-present

Assistant Professor, UNIST, 2009-2012

Research Professor, Daejeon University, 2008

Post-Doc, Korea University, 2007-2008

Visiting Assistant Professor, DePauw University, 2005-2006

Associate Instructor, Slavic Department, Indiana University, Spring 2004

Grader for Russian Literature, Fall 2004 and Spring 2005

Course Assistant, Indiana University, Spring 2004

Russian Cinema, taught by Prof. Dodona Kiziria

Future Faculty Teaching Fellow, DePauw University, Indiana, Spring and Fall 2003

Associate Instructor, Slavic Department, Indiana University, 1998-2002

Instructor, Summer Workshop of Slavic and East European Languages (SWSEEL), 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006