『한성신보』 수재 고전소설의 실상과 향유 양상

Abstract

This study aims to examine classical novels published in 『Hanseong Sinbo』 and how they enjoyed the novels. The first series published in 『Hanseong Sinbo』 is <Naparyunjeon(A Story about Napoleon)>. In this work, ‘the balance of power’ is mentioned from the beginning of it. At the moment when <Naparyunjeon> was mentioned, the idea that Japan had been responsible for Eulmisabyeon was prevalent among people. In that situation, with this didactic writing, Japan was intending to seek cooperation from Chosun people about international criticism setting the balance of power forth. The biographies serially published afterwards, too, were just text for the newspaper to make their ideology public. This is why we need to be careful to decide if those works are really novels. Narrative works were published serially in 『Hanseong Sinbo』 after April 19th, 1896 when they prepared the newspaper’s reform measures secretly set forth. The newspaper’s reform measures can be largely classified into ones for making space for novels, ones for increasing journalists, and ones for enhancing its entertaining function. Also, publishing the novels serially, they had the newspaper’s own ideology intervene with the contents of the novels. One of the classical novels published serially along with this was <Jobuinjeon>. <Jobuinjeon> has this theme: ‘Women also have to be strong and independent.’ <Sinjinsamundapgi> published serially after that was intended to instigate Japanese policies, and <Gwakeosajeon> had diplomatic relations with neighboring countries as its theme. They realized political writing by publishing classical novels the most familiar to Chosun people. There was another trend different from this, too. It is that works mainly for entertaining also started to be published serially. <Boeunisu> <NamJunYeoGirl> are one of the examples. As works like <Jobuinjeon> occupied the regular column of the first page in the newspaper, these works were placed on that of the second page. It means that on the first and second pages of 『Hanseong Sinbo』, a regular column was created for purpose and for entertaining each. Later, only the regular column for entertaining came to be left in 『Hanseong Sinbo』, and finally, the title of the regular column was fixed as ‘Soseol(=Novels, 小說)’. This is the first ‘Soseol(=Novels, 小說)’ column in Korea. As novels came to be issued serially, readers’ recognition on newspaper changed, too. Originally, newspaper was a field of public opinions shared by those living in that age. After novels were published serially in it, however, readers started to understand it as an infosheet richly containing interesting reading materials like novels as well as information about the market. This is a new scene that was created by the popularization of newspaper.