18세기 후반 서울의 都市相과 尹愭의 시선

Abstract

This paper analyses poems written by Anonymous YUN Gi (1741-1826), a native of Seoul who made the city his home his entire life. In his many works, Yun (whose pen name was "Anonymous," or "Mumyeongja") is consistently critical as he observes the intimate details of everyday life and the prevailing social customs of the day in Seoul. In this regard, he is unique among his contemporaries. When writing about Seoul, the capital city of the country then and now, other poets of his time tend to highlight the bright and dynamic aspects of the city; they describe a thriving metropolis, bustling with commerce. Yun Gi's works, on the other hand, tend to underscore the lives of those who are hard-working and suffering: in other words, those who live in the shadows of the flourishing metropolis. Thus, the poems strongly reflect his critique of society and culture. My paper focuses on this aspect of Yun Gi's poems as it examines, more specifically, the following: 1) his portrayal of life and society in Seoul and their pathos 2) his critical view of those who have vested interests in society; 3) his sympathy for the urban poor; and 4) his view of the rampant lawlessness of the day. Yun sees Seoul in the late eighteenth century as one large marketplace, a city where mammonism, debauchery, and lawlessness are rampant. Furthermore, in his view, Seoul had once been whole and balanced, but it became a hub for commerce where corruption and chaos prevailed and where the gap between the rich and poor was widening. He wanted to expose how the city was rapidly destroying what was noble about human dignity and human value. The value of his literature lies in this unique view he held during his time.