대중서사연구
- P-ISSN1738-3188
- E-ISSN2713-9964
ISSN : 1738-3188
Vol.25 No.3
Abstract
This study presents an investigation into South Korean films in the 1990s in the aspects of genre change and emotional reorganization. The 1990s witnessed a change of genres and a paradigm shift in the history of Korean films according to the revolutionary changes of the film industry structure and media environment. Believing that these changes had something to do with emotional changes driven by global capitalization symbolized by democratization in 1987 and the foreign currency crisis in 1998, the investigator analyzed the phenomena in film texts and examined the opportunities and context behind them. Unlike previous researches, this study made an approach to the history of Korean films in the 1990s with three points: first, this study focused on why the romantic comedy genre emerged in the 1990s and what stages its formation underwent since there had been no profound discussions about them; secondly, this study analyzed the biggest hits during the transitional period from 1987~1999 to figure out the mainstream genres and emotions during that period since these hits would provide texts to show the genre domain and public taste in a symbolic way; and finally, this study grew out of the separate investigation approach between melodramas and romantic comedies and looked into an emotional structure to encompass both genres to make a more broad and dynamic approach to South Korean films in the 1990s. History flows continuously without severance from previous times. When there is attention paid to inflection points and opportunities in the continuum, it can show the dynamics and structures of changes. This research led to the following conclusions: the mainstream genre of South Korean films had been melodramas until the 1980s. The old convention had been kept to offset or suture contradictions and excessive elements deviant from the structural consistency. Here, the structural consistency refers to no compliance to rational regulations or trade. The process of genre reorganization in the 1990s happened while securing some distance from the convention of making the structural consistency a sacrifice. The direction was to reinforce control through reasonable rationalism and logic of capital. It developed into romance, which would start with comedy to keep distance from the objects through laughter, heighten the level of remarks, and expand criticality, symbolize emotions with taste items, and build through the logic of mutual consensus and practical trade. In the 1990s, the South Korean films thus developed in a direction of moving away from the narrative of urgent pathos based on unconditional familism. It was on the same track as the entry of the South Korean society into the upgraded orbits of democracy and capitalism as the twins of modern rationalism since the latter part of the 1980s.
Abstract
This paper looks at the readers and publishing strategies of paperback romance novels in the the 1980s based on the ‘high-teen’ concept. The purpose of this article is to examine the meaning the ‘high-teen’ concepts as expressed in the media through the publication of paperback romance series in the 1980s. Among paperback romance series, this paper was based on pirated/licensed version of novels published by Harlequin, a Canadian publisher, and the magazine media’s advertising promotional phrases that were published targeting the same readers. Since the 1970s, mass media have referred to teenagers as high-teens and called them important consumers. High-teen was a term referring to teenagers in school uniforms, mostly girls, and in the 1980s, ‘high-teen’ was also introduced as a new consumer market, and the publishing market put forward a number of publishing strategies to attract them. The paperback romance, including <high-teen romance>, has identified ‘high-teen’ readers as late-teen girls, sensitive consumers for best-sellers/million-sellers, readers with a tendency to read stories of love, and readers that favor American and Western culture. Since the 1980s, the market for paperback romance has been in the recession, but readers have kept the romance genre alive by accepting and localizing the Harlequin series. With the rise of a new form of media called the ‘Web Novel’, interest in the romance genre is increasing, and we hope this study will serve as a starting point for a variety of discussions with (women) readers about romance reading/enjoyment.
Abstract
This paper analyzed romance novels imported into Korea in the 1980s and examined the traits of Korean girls’ culture at that time. To this end, This paper chose as subjects the series of ‘high-teen romance’ published by Samjungdang, ‘princess bestseller’ by Seoul Publishing and the ‘silhouette romance’ by Joongang Ilbo in the 1980s. Through the aspects of the paperback romances, the traits of the artist, the content of the work, and the response of the reader, this paper analyzed the position and affection of romance as a genre in Korean culture in the 1980s. In the 1980s, most of the paperback romances available in Korea were translations of the modern and progressive present lines of Harlequin Enterprise’s category romance. There were also many writers who were mostly introduced with progressive characters like Charlotte Lamb. The Harlequin romance depicts a story of sensual love. These translated 1980s paperback romance novels allowed girls in Korea to freely imagine the problems of sex and love. In particular, it showed a new perspective on women’s sexuality. In Korean love novels, the sexuality of women was treated as an object for the gaze of men. The novels of female writers as college student who criticized this dealt with women’s sexuality, but focused on criticism and resistance to the ideology of chastity. The paperback romance made it possible for women to freely enjoy their sexuality by escaping the ethical standards of reality. In addition, the paperback romance was an escape from the frustration of love. Romantic love in Korean love novels did not lead to the unification of mind and body, and always ended in tragedy. On the contrary, the paperback romance started with the fear of the girl who felt love for the first time, showed the process of winning over anxiety, confirming love and reaching a happy marriage. Through this, girls understood general love that was not subordinated to the ideology of chastity, and accepted love positively. The process of establishing romance as a genre in Korean culture and the traits of its readers have not yet been sufficiently clarified yet. This paper compared the romance genre with the other love novels of the day, explaining the position and meaning of the romance genre in Korean culture in the 1980s. Through this, we were able to chart the historical development of the Korean romance genre.
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to examine the logic of choice, transformation, and exclusion in The Song of sword, comparing it with the historical records. This paper explains how a novel is ‘produced’. Through this, it searches for the aspects in which The Song of sword changed into ‘a narrative revealing the disillusionment of the novel’s subject with the world’. In the logic of choice, it explores which time and space were chosen in the novel, and which character was chosen to prepare the content and formal framework of the novel. In the logic of transformation, it is confirmed that the meaning of ‘individual’ is highlighted in the novel, unlike the historical records, by transforming both the character of the enemy and the meaning of war. In the logic of exclusion, it studies the characteristics of the modern (novel’s) subject in the novel by excluding the characteristics of the historical subject that existed in a particular time and space. This paper differs from previous studies in that it examines the way in which a novel is produced by comparing and analyzing The Song of sword based on the historical records. Through these analyses, we can see the unity of various heterogeneous elements, such as the historical reality, the writer’s ideology and imagination, and the desire of the contemporary in the form of a novel. Also, by examining the elements of text that can not be sutured into a complete form, we can see the meaning of the novel’s text as an unstable system.
Abstract
This article aims to examine the manner in which the ‘Byeongmat’ discourse was constructed, and the mechanism of the ‘Byeongmat’ discourse. I claim that the constructed discourse excludes disabled persons and women. When the ‘Byeongmat’ first appeared in the mainstream, it was understood as being presented only by webtoons. Furthermore ‘Byeongmat’ and webtoons were understood as almost synonymous. In this sense, it is no exaggeration to say that the way in which the ‘Byeongmat’ discourse was constructed is the way in which ‘Byeongmat webtoons’ were interpreted. In this article, to find out how the ‘Byeongmat’ discourse was constructed, I examine two things. First, the reception of media of ‘Byeongmat’. ‘Byeongmat’ was at first understood as ‘kitsch’ by the media, but soon after generational meaning was added. Second, the interpretation of ‘Byeongmat’ in academia. In academia, the ‘Byeongmat’ discourse is advanced as a refined generationalism. Regardless of the ‘Byeongmat webtoon’ itself, ‘Byeongmat webtoon’ is interpreted as a text which is destructing narrative and filled with parodies. Furthermore this characteristic of the ‘Byeongmat webtoon’ is interpreted as a resistance culture of the younger generation. However, this interpretation serves as a mechanism which excludes the disabled and women. Currently, Korean society faces the popularization of the ‘Byeongmat’ code, the decline of the ‘Byeongmat webtoons’ and the crack of the younger generation discourse. The current situation allows the ‘Byeongmat’ discourse to be criticized without losing its social context while securing a distance of critcism. I expect that this article can contribute to further diversifying interpretations of ‘Byeongmat’ and ‘Byeongmat webtoons’, and accelerating the crack on the younger generation discourse.
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to compare zombie narratives in relation to the Other. In previous research, the view of zombies as post-capitalist soulless consumers or workers has been frequently expressed. But in this article, I wanted to look at zombies as the main cause of the collapse of the world and a new future. First, zombies do not only mean the representation of the consumer in the late capitalist era. Rather, it is an awakening subject desiring the outside of the system. As you can see from the Uncanny’s point of view, zombies are something that we should oppress as freaks and monsters that threatened the Other. To be a zombie in this way is to meet one’s other self, the “Fundamentals of Humanity,” and it is the moment when everything becomes the subject ex nihilo, the new beginning. Second, the concept of infection shows a new ethic. Zombie cannibalism is different from the selfish love of a vampire who sucks a worker’s blood. Zombie cannibalism is an infection, which is a model of Christian love for one’s neighbor. It is a moment of awakening and the beginning of solidarity. It is on the waiting for the solidarity that the zombie hangs in such a way, and the attack on the human being is an active illusion. Third, the situation of the end of a zombie narrative is another event for newness. The anger of a zombie serves not just to show monsters, but acts as a catalyst that accelerates the world’s catastrophes. The anger of zombies is the messianic violence that stops the false world, and presents a new way. The emergence of zombies and the popular response to them embody a desire for the possibility of a new subject and world.
Abstract
Films of the 1960s in both Korea and Egypt share many common characteristics. These include the main trend of such films’ in addition to some of the political situations. This trend mainly relates to the adaptation of novels into films. In the late 1940s, Andre Bazin wrote his ideas about a similar phenomenon in Europe and the United States. Based on Bazin’s thoughts and other examples for films adapted from novels in the 1940-60s, I found that the trend in both Korea and Egypt can be explained as an international phenomenon, in which film developed to a further stage due to a dialectic between content and form after the increase in the development of film techniques. The trend in Korea is believed to have led to the so-called golden era of Korean movies, while in Egypt films adapted from literature were not able to earn high profits, even though in a 1996 list of the best 100 Egyptian films, 23 had been adapted from novels. To explain the reasons behind this phenomenon, I looked into the internal demand from filmmakers themselves to further develop the industry through the articles written at that time. In addition, I explored the different situations and policies that influenced film production in both countries in the 1960s. I found that political situations and policies could have helped in the continuity of such trend, but it is difficult to consider these as the main reason for its creation, in contrast to the internal demand, which I believe is the main reason for the creation of such direction.
Abstract
Oral literature can largely be categorized into myth, legend, and folktales, which are stories orally transmitted from the prehistoric times. The purpose of this study is to compare the discourse on the oral literature of the East and the West from a cultural studies viewpoint by focusing on its “symbolic systems,” particularly “figures of speech,” or “tropic traits”, in order to utilize this oral literature as a resource in the study of Northeast Asian culture. Undergoing modernization, the symbolic meaning of oral literature has been demythologized both in the West and in Northeast Asia. Of course, oral literature, verbally transmitted over a long period of time, has naturally been changed over time and even “contaminated” in a sense by losing its original archaic archetype while it was textualized with letters during the early period of the modernization process. Nevertheless, the principle of “resemblance” and “similarity” between nature/universe and human/humanity, which has been stripped away in modernity, can still be found in oral literature with its mythic power. For this reason, the study of oral literature in the West has attempted to restore the lost magical power within it, particularly in myth. As such, this study delves into the symbolism of the mythic thought of Northeast Asian countries, namely Korea, China, and Japan, which has been lost in the course of their compressed modernization, in relation to the tropic figures of their oral literatures.
Abstract
This article analyzes the multi-layered communication in the Webtoon Princess Pari, released on the Daum portal site, created (written and illustrated) by Kim Naim, through analyzing the narrative structure and comments with the qualitative / quantitative methodology. The webtoon Princess Pari is structured in an omnibus style in which unit narratives are intermittently articulated, multi-lined, and interconnected. As integrated narratives which link with unitary narratives, Pari’s growth story as a shaman and a romance narrative are structured. The classical original story of the shaman was used as a prehistory corresponding to the prequel of the webtoon through a preview, and the writer restructured the narrative to overcome the contradictions of the gender asymmetry and the patriarchal ideology of the original text. The viewer then creates a conversational space by giving critical and reflective comments. According to a statistical analysis conducted through sampling, the types of comments can be classified as follows: Appreciation and criticism of the contents ≫ Emotional response ≫ Intuitive overall review ≫ Knowledge and reflection ≫ Comments on comments. In the process of creation and acceptance of the Webtoon, a multi-layered dialogue between classical and modern, content and audience, acceptance and creation has been at play. In the creation dimension, the writer used a device to fill the gap of mythical symbols of the contents. At the level of the audience, they formed a culture of sharing information, knowledge, and reflection about tradition/folk/culture through comments. This corresponds to classical and modern dialogue through the webtoon. The viewers form a sympathetic bond, attempt hermeneutical coordination, supplement the information, and search for a balanced angle through controversial conversation. In addition, by commenting on attitudes, views, and perspective, the commentators showed a behavioral pattern corresponding to meta-criticism in literature. The viewers’ comments acted as feedback on the creation of the webtoons, so that the creation and acceptance itself influenced the production of the content of the webtoon. The webtoon Princess Pari, which was based on Korean classical narrative, has been reorganized onto ‘moving and dynamic’ content, which leads to sense, thinking, criticism and reflection through the formation of various dialogues.
Abstract
This paper examined the meaning and task of romance research with a focus on Reading the Romance(1984) by Janice A. Radway. This book, which analyzes romance texts by examining the situation and meaning of reading romance by women readers integrating between cultural studies and literary studies, is one of the most popular studies on the romance genre. Radway scrutinized the practical significance of reading romance in a community of women readers. Through a study involving questionnaires and in-depth interviews, she found that for women, romance reading is a ‘compensatory fiction’ that brings happiness and emotional redemption through a sense of liberation achieved by escaping from patriarchal daily life. The romance that women prefer is composed of 4 stages and 13 divisions: ‘Encounter → Attest → Recovery → Happy End’. It also maintains a formula that begins with an immature female character’s identity crisis and ends with a blissful union that recognizes the intrinsic value of the main character, who has turned into a man who is considerate of the women. Therefore, romance plays the role of pursuit of the ‘female utopian fantasy’ and at the same time a reconciliation of women to patriarchy. Feminist critics of the day criticized this argument. However, reading romance is a ‘feminine reading’, and romance is literature about the functional relationship between women’s lives and patriarchy. Yet the interpretation could differ depending on the different viewpoints and definitions of the women’s utopian fantasy. In recent years, the conditions of female reader’s lives, awareness and imagination have been changing rapidly. As a result, the female utopian fantasy has also changed significantly. Nevertheless, women’s lives in the real patriarchal system are still contradictory, and their adventurous imagination is spreading in alternative spaces such as the subculture. In this regard, the question is about the definition of romance and the meanings of romance research are still important task.