북관(北關) 고적(古跡)에 대한 홍양호(洪良浩)의 인식과 시적 형상화

Abstract

Hong Yangho(洪良浩, 1724-1802), after being relegated to Gyeongheung(慶興), toured the remains of the ancestors of the Joseon Dynasty in Hamgyeong-do Province(咸境道) and wrote several Chinese poems. This study analyzed his works to derive a characteristic way in which he perceived the history of the founding of the Joseon Dynasty. Several important trends are found in Hong Yangho’s method of dealing with historical sites related to the four previous kings(四祖). First of all, according to his own point of view, he adjusted the status of the four kings to a different aspect from the viewpoint of the early Joseon Dynasty. For example, while dealing with the historical sites of Aldong(斡東) and Jeokji(赤池), he highly emphasized the role of King Ikjo(翼祖) and admired him as a person who laid the core foundation for the founding of the country. In addition, the palace in Hamheung(咸興) was originally a detached palace built on the site of the former kings since King Tojo(度祖), but among them, King Hwanjo(桓祖) was especially emphasized, revealing the relationship between him and Hamheung Palace. Second, Hong Yangho paid attention to the present meaning of the historic site. He did not recognized the ruins only as a legacy of the past, but recalled their meaning based on his own era. For example, he expressed his anger and sorrow at the reality that Aldong ruins across the Tumen River(豆滿江) became the land of the Qing Dynasty and he had no choice but to look at it, and defined Jeokdo ruins where King Ikjo settled after leaving Aldong as an auspicious land, not just a refuge. Thirdly, miracles and miraculous experiences that could be considered absurd were actively interpreted. The story that the sea split and created a road when King Ikjo fled to Jeokdo had been mentioned since the early Joseon Dynasty, but Hong Yangho mobilized various images and imaginations to portray the scene even more solemnly. Also, he valued his personal experience of meeting King Hwanjo and Prince Imyeong(臨瀛大君) successively in dreams, and recalled his mission to investigate the historical remains of the ancestors of the royal family left in the north. Even in the works dealing with the remains of King Taejo(太祖), several characteristics that are differentiated from those of the early Joseon period are found. First, he tried to define the status of King Taejo as a hero who had both literary and martial arts. While King Taejo’s military appearance is clear, it is true that there are very few records that he had academic or Confucian insights. Hong Yangho tried to describe King Taejo as a ‘cultural hero’ or a ‘moral giant’ in a practical sense by highlighting his literary qualities by specializing in the site of a dug-out house and a reading hall where King Taejo was said to have read books in his childhood. Second, even the trivial abilities of King Taejo were brought into the historical context and linked. For example, in the early Joseon Dynasty, King Taejo’s polo skills were dealt with by themselves, but Hong Yangho compared a polo ball and a club to the urgent situation of the late Goryeo Dynasty and King Taejo’s ability to overcome it. He portrayed King Taejo striking the ball vigorously with a polo stick and praised King Taejo’s practical achievements in overcoming national crises one after another. Third, it was emphasized that King Taejo’s merits continued to Hong Yangho’s time. He gave meaning that Joseon was able to preserve its civilization even after the collapse of the Ming Dynasty as King Taejo’s literary spirit, who had been absorbed in reading since childhood, continued unabated. In addition, he described with great emotion how the people peacefully continued their livelihood in the Cheolryeong(鐵嶺) area, which Taejo restored after suppressing the Samseon(三善) and Samgae(三介)’s rebellion. Fourth, Hong Yangho put importance on miracles when dealing with the remains of King Taejo, just as he dealt with the remains of the four previous kings. In particular, he paid attention to new anecdotes related to later wars. For example, he expressed the anecdote in a poem that blood flowed and gusts of wind and thunder erupted when the Japanese army tried to damage the pine tree that Taejo was said to have hung his bow on during the Japanese invasion of Korea in 1592. In addition, he also importantly dealt with the anecdote that the stupa of Lee Jiran(李之蘭), the deputy chief and sworn brother of King Taejo, was broken in the fall of 1636 and warned people that the Qing Dynasty would invade soon. As such, Hong Yangho described the history of the founding of the dynasty in a way that was different from that of the early Joseon Dynasty in many aspects, and actively utilized the remains in the northern region for this purpose.