<구운몽(九雲夢)>에 나타난 미적(美的) 표현의 특징과 기능

Abstract

This paper aimed to look at a phase of beauty represented by classical novels by paying attention to the aesthetic expression of Guunmong. In particular, Guunmong was created by a literati, so it was expected that the aesthetic expression would be able to extract the beauty that was combined with the nobility’s world of consciousness. Thus, the aesthetic expression of Guunmong confirmed two major aspects. One was the aesthetic expression of emptiness, by which beauty was being embodied in the direction of being washed clean and emptied. Therefore, visual images of transparency and tactile images of coldness, mainly related to clearness, were utilized here. On the contrary, there were aesthetic expressions of filling that embodied beauty in the direction of abundance. These include visual images related to brightness, auditory images of jade and music, olfactory images of incense, and tasteful images of cooking. The aesthetic expression of emptiness and the aesthetic expression of filling were mainly used to represent the character of Sungjin’s world and the Soyou’s world, respectively. However, such rhetorical functions are not the only ones that have been performed. More active functions were also found; first of all, attraction, a function in terms of narrative development. It is a function that induces a change in the main character’s behavior and thus leads to the development of the narrative. The second is the function of global transformation. The world of Guunmong was being transformed three times, and aesthetic expressions were being used to make the transition natural. Third is the function of subject implementation. This, in particular, is well illustrated in the end of the third world transition. The aesthetic expressions of fill and emptiness were subtly blending together to embody the ultimate ideal. As such, the aesthetic expression of Guunmong was characteristic in that it resonates with the spiritual values that nobility appreciates. Through the aesthetic expression of fill, a harmonious and noble life was dreamed. Through the aesthetic expression of emptiness, rising above the common life tied to the present world was dreamed. The ultimate realization beyond the two was also embodied through the aesthetic expression. Either way, the aesthetic expression of Guunmong showed the character of assuming ideals and heading toward those ideals.