본문 바로가기
  • Home

The Sexuality of Old Age and Being Woman - Focusing on the Style of Park Wan-suh’s Old Age Novels -

  • Journal of Humanities
  • 2024, (94), pp.031-068
  • DOI : 10.31310/HUM.094.02
  • Publisher : Institute for Humanities
  • Research Area : Humanities > Other Humanities
  • Received : July 9, 2024
  • Accepted : August 6, 2024
  • Published : August 31, 2024

hursoobeen 1

1성균관대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to reinterpret old age as an independent existence based on Park Wan-suh’s later works. In society, old age tends to be described as asexual and passive, free from desires and needs, and is sometimes exposed to compositive discrimination. However, Park’s novels overcome the stereotypes of old age. The novels focus on being “woman” by showing the characters who, while playing the typical roles, do not fully embrace the roles having been predetermined according to one’s life cycle. When her works are put in chronological order, it is clear that this tendency becomes more prominent as Park ages. This study explores a series of patterns that could be interpreted as a process of “the reconstruction of the self in old age,” as defined in psychoanalysis. In this context, this study examines the psychological and physical conflicts that the old people experience as they are reborn as proactive persons. It analyzes the core hegemony systems which they are trying to escape from and how they restore their sexuality and reestablish their identities. The aim of this study is to shed light on old age from a broader perspective and provide an opportunity to reconsider what it means to get older.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.