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The Possibility and Implications of “Fake News” in Korea's Early Modern Age : Maninsan(萬人傘, 1909)

  • Chunwon Research journal
  • Abbr : Chunwon Research journal
  • 2020, (17), pp.175-199
  • DOI : 10.31809/crj.2020.04.17.175
  • Publisher : Chunwon Research Society
  • Research Area : Humanities > Korean Language and Literature > Korean Literature
  • Received : March 15, 2020
  • Accepted : April 10, 2020
  • Published : April 30, 2020

PARK JUNG-HEE 1

1서울대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

This paper focused on the speciality of Maninsan(萬人傘) as part of a study of the newspaper media that appeared in the ‘new novel’(新小說) of the early modern Korean novel. Newspapers and newspaper articles appearing in the ‘new novel’ are recognized as mediums for enlightenment and education, and they also play an important role in the development of the narrative. However, Maninsan shows a special perception of newspaper media unlike other ‘new novel’ of the time. That is Maninsan shows the possibility of ‘doubt’ about the belief that ‘newspapers don't tell lies’ for the first time. Maninsan is a work that has accused and satirized the corruption of the feudal ruling class during the Late Chosun dynasty. Corruption powers take their own advantage, especially by carrying out ‘manipulation of public opinion’ while using all sorts of means for hawking and accumulating. In the work, ‘manipulation of public opinion’ is done through the traditional system ‘Manhinsan’ and the modern medium ‘Newspapers’. If the traditional system was done by ‘forced’, the modern ‘newspapers’ were caused by collusive political and media ties. In particular, the latter case shows the perception that newspaper articles can be manipulated. The early modern newspapers had a firm belief that they did not say ‘false’ and reported ‘fact’. Maninsan is the first work to show such ‘belief’ as a ‘fantasy’. Based on discussions on the feature of the newspaper Daehanminbo(大韓民報) and the influence of adaption novel Seoljoongmae(雪中梅, 1908), this study looked into the possibility of recognition of Maninsan’s ‘fabrication of opinion’ or ‘fake news.’ As a result, it confirmed the origin of the perception that newspapers could report ‘false’ through accusations and satire of collusion between corrupt officials and the media. When the perception of the boundaries between ‘fact’ and ‘fiction’ was established in the beginning of the Korean ‘new literature’(新文學), Maninsan is the first work to raise doubts about the ‘fact’ of newspaper articles in the realm of literature. However, this perception could not last because of the limitation on the external environment such as censorship, which became an important task for the inventors of journalism in the 1920s.

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