연날리기와 운명과의 싸움: 린다 수박의 『연싸움』, 로런스 옙의 『용의 날개』와 할레드 호세이니의 『연날리는 아이들』

Abstract

Since long ago, flying kite or kite race has been a popular outdoor activity which was much favored by children. Also as the symbol of freedom and hope, flying kite has been used in lots of poems, essays and paintings. Acknowledged often as the birthplace of kites, Asian countries still enjoy kite flying in many cultural events, festivals, and holidays. One notable thing in flying kite is that flying kite also connotes a cutthroat competition among different anonymous others. The kite fighting encourages people first fly kites as high and far as possible. But soon later people deliberately try to cut the others’ line. In this relentless kite fighting competition most of kites are doomed to be drifted into the sky by being cut by other kites except for the only one sturdy winner. In this regard kite fighting represents these days’ severer struggle for existence and the wind in kite fighting may be regarded as the metaphor of multicultural confliction. Interestingly the three Asian children’s writers in this article successfully use the kite flying and fighting as the cultural symbols of Asia and show how their troubled cultural hero boys wisely overcome all sorts of barriers facing racial, classical and generation schisms in connection with the age-old tradition of kite. In Asian American literature such as Linda Sue Park’s The Kite Fighters, Laurence Yep’s Dragonwings, and Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, the more interesting use of kite is that kite becomes a symbol of letting go the misfortune as well. Although the heroes in three Asian-American texts live in different periods and society, respectively pre-modern Korea, modern China-America, and postmodern Middle East-America, their brave fighting with the unfortunate fate in the underprivileged surroundings finally frees both themselves and others to bring in the hope in the conflicting world. In this way, their undefeated spirits for the future vision without daring to flying higher freely is a very effective low-flying or middle way strategy in cultural clashes.