KJCKorea
Journal Central

The purpose of this study was to review the 19th century text, Samseolgy version “Nocheonyeo-ga”, from the perspective of the disabled, referring to All Bodies are Equal (2012) written by the disabled. The two have a large time gap, but Joseon in the 19th century and Korea in the early 21st century were not much different in that they were non-disabled-oriented societies. The analysis of All bodies are equal was intended to directly listen to the thoughts and feelings of people with disabilities about non-disabled centralism as a standard. As a result of the analysis, Samseolgy version “Nocheonyeo-ga” had a merit that not only old women but also disabled people were the main characters, but it was only a materialistic approach, and Samseolgy version “Nocheonyeo-ga” failed to express the authenticity of disabled people. In other words, non-disabled centralism was permeated throughout the work, and it was seen that non-disabled centralism was strengthened in the ending that the caricature and alienation of the disabled, the prejudice of the non-disabled about the ability of the disabled, and the empathy of the non-disabled. In addition, as long as we live in a non-disabled society, not only non-disabled people but also disabled people can not completely escape from non-disabled centralism.

This study explores the portrayal and narrative significance of the “foolish wife” (愚婦型) character type in the Myeongju Bowolbing(明珠寶月聘) series, a classic Korean novel from the late Joseon Dynasty. The series repeatedly presents this character type through the figures of Yeon Princess and Yeon Hui-byeok. In the first part, Myeongju Bowolbing, the focus is on the marriage between Ha Won-gwang and Yeon Princess, while the second part, Yunhajeong Sammun Chuirok(尹河鄭三門聚錄), examines the marriage between Ha Mong-seong and Yeon Hui-byeok. The narrative, which shows two generations of prominent male heirs marrying “foolish wives,” adds complexity and illustrates the evolution of this character type throughout the series. In the series, Yeon Princess holds the status of a “secondary wife,” while Yeon Hui-byeok occupies the role of the “primary wife,” leading to different outcomes of acceptance and exclusion. This reflects the conservative and discriminatory attitudes toward the roles of primary and secondary wives. Despite her foolishness, Yeon Princess is accepted into the family due to her love and obedience toward her husband. In contrast, Yeon Hui-byeok, lacking the qualities expected of a primary wife and consistently challenging her husband’s authority, experiences ongoing conflict and eventually dies of postpartum illness. Her death symbolizes how women who fail to meet the expectations of a primary wife and Matron of the household are excluded and erased in a patriarchal society, while also illustrating the differential expectations of primary and secondary wives in late Joseon society. Moreover, unlike other works such as Yussi Samdaerok(劉氏三代錄) and Imssi Samdaerok(林氏三代錄), which depict foolish wives from humble backgrounds, Myeongju Bowolbing portrays foolish wives from prestigious families, offering a more nuanced interpretation. The series also demonstrates narrative expansion and variation across its two parts. Through its depiction of the “foolish wife,” Myeongju Bowolbing reveals diverse character portrayals and new narrative possibilities, while also reflecting the values and consciousness of its readers from that era.

This thesis examines the different version and narrative characteristics of the classical novel Jin Gil Jeon. Jin Gil Jeon has been known as the Jin Gil Chung Hyorok, but there has never been a review of the different version and discussion of the entire narrative. There are currently four confirmed versions: two from Chonnam National University, and one each from Dankook University and Park Soon-ho. Only the Dankook University version is a lost version. The Chonnam National University versions are all in the Jin Gil Jeon series, while the Dankook University and Park Soon-ho versions are in the Jin Gil Chung Hyorok series. There is no significant difference in content between the series. Meanwhile, Jin Gil Chung Hyorok is a version that contains the entire narrative structure of Jin Gil Jeon, “Jingil’s lifetime,” while adding the narrative of Jingil’s sister’s birth in the beginning and a military tale and a tale of conflict between spouses in the latter part. However, the narrative added only to Jin Gil Chung Hyorok was inconsistent with the character personalities and narrative logic presented in “Jingil’s lifetime.” Accordingly, it was judged that the completeness of Jin Gil Jeon was higher, and in this study, the narrative of Jin Gil Jeon was analyzed. The narrative characteristics of Jin Gil Jeon were examined from three aspects. First, in the story of the marriage between a man and a woman, Guunmong is utilized as a allusion, but more notable is the use of previous novels in terms of narrative composition. Sodaeseong Jeon, Jo Woong Jeon, and Sukhyang Jeon were adopted for the narratives of Jin Gil’s birth, marriage, and achievement, respectively. Second, the narrative of birth, marriage, and achievement is driven by transcendental elements. Third, it is notable that the eight inserted poems assist the development of the narrative. Jin Gil Jeon shows an attempt to vary the heroic novel type. This is because it shows the protagonist’s personal desire to achieve personal desire within the given order by using the protagonist’s life story of success as the only narrative structure, but it also has a critical difference in that it does not set up the protagonist’s suffering. If we keep in mind that Sodaeseong Jeon, Jo Woong Jeon, and Sukhyang Jeon, which were accepted in terms of narrative structure, are representative narratives of the heroic novel type in which the protagonist’s suffering is extreme, it can be understood as a result of dissatisfaction with this. But the results ended up revealing limitations. The absence of suffering caused problems such as the narrative cohesion, the dynamic of the development of the story, and the sense of purpose of the conscious orientation to become ambiguous. The emphasis on transcendental elements and the repeated insertion of songs praising loyalty and filial piety can be understood as devices to resolve this. However, the emphasis on loyalty and filial piety through song seems like an attempt to artificially instill ethical ideology, and the narrative drive by transcendental elements highlights the failure of the protagonist’s individual characterization.