@article{ART003371766},
author={LEE SEIN},
title={Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals},
journal={International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL)},
year={2026},
volume={23},
number={23},
pages={292-308}
TY - JOUR
AU - LEE SEIN
TI - Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals
JO - International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL)
PY - 2026
VL - 23
IS - 23
PB - Glocal Institute of Language and Literary Studies(GILLS)
SP - 292
EP - 308
AB - This article examines the potential of postwar Korean plays as literary museum exhibition content, focusing on Im Hee-jae’s full-length play The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals( 꽃잎을 먹고 사는 기관차). Although literary museums in Korea have expanded their institutional foundations following the enactment of the Literature Promotion Act and the establishment of the National Museum of Korean Literature, discussion of exhibition methodologies remains limited. This study evaluates the play according to three criteria for literary museum materials: academic, historical, and artistic value.
Academically, postwar plays can broaden the scope and methodology of literary museum studies. Historically, The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals, Im’s early and only full-length play, holds a significant place in 1950s postwar realist drama.
Artistically, its boarding-house setting near Seoul Station and objects such as newspaper advertisements, reward money, a birdcage, a locomotive, and flower petals embody postwar deprivation and desire, damaged humanity, and the failure to reconstruct masculinity.
Based on these values, this article proposes three approaches to exhibition: representation, reinterpretation, and reconstruction. Representation recreates the play’s spatial setting and postwar urban environment; reinterpretation translates its scenes and emotions into media art and video; and reconstruction integrates play-related materials, contemporary criticism, and historical photographs into an exhibition narrative. These approaches transform the postwar period into an experiential space for visitors, demonstrating the potential of postwar drama to expand literary museum exhibitions beyond their conventional emphasis on poetry and fiction.
KW - Im Hee-jae;postwar Korean plays;The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals;literary museum;exhibition content;literary exhibition
DO -
UR -
ER -
LEE SEIN. (2026). Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals. International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL), 23(23), 292-308.
LEE SEIN. 2026, "Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals", International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL), vol.23, no.23 pp.292-308.
LEE SEIN "Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals" International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL) 23.23 pp.292-308 (2026) : 292.
LEE SEIN. Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals. 2026; 23(23), 292-308.
LEE SEIN. "Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals" International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL) 23, no.23 (2026) : 292-308.
LEE SEIN. Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals. International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL), 23(23), 292-308.
LEE SEIN. Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals. International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL). 2026; 23(23) 292-308.
LEE SEIN. Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals. 2026; 23(23), 292-308.
LEE SEIN. "Transforming Postwar Korean Plays into Exhibition Content: Im Hee-jae’s The Locomotive That Lives on Flower Petals" International Journal of Glocal Language and Literary Studies(약칭: IGLL) 23, no.23 (2026) : 292-308.
