이수복 시에 나타난 전통 서정의 계승과 변주

Abstract

Evaluated as a work that demonstrates traditional Korean lyricism, Lee Soo-bok's "Spring Rain" continues the lineage of traditional lyrical poetry of the 1950s. As the title "Spring Rain" suggests, Lee Soo-bok's poetic world has been classified under the traditional lyrical genre amidst the literary circles of the time, which were seeking modernity. However, while inheriting traditional lyricism, he was also a poet who exhibited an intellectual desire and will to renew the limitations of traditional lyricism and to question the essence of poetry. This study reconstructs the literary chronology of Lee Soo-bok and, based on this, examines how his poetry inherits traditional lyricism while contemplating the nature of poetry, overcoming his sentimental attitude and the limitations of traditional lyricism, and pursuing modernity. Debuting through the recommendation of Seo Jeong-ju, Lee Soo-bok expressed respect and affection for Seo Jeong-ju, aiming to embrace his poetic spirit. Lee Soo-bok's poetry evokes the resignation and compliant attitude displayed in Seo Jeong-ju's works. Lee Soo-bok explained that the origin of this poetic stance could be traced to the unconscious shadow of his poetry. Additionally, by presenting images such as 'flowers' that recall the feminized view of nature held by ‘the Cheongrokpa’, Lee continued the mainstream flow of traditional lyricism in the post-liberation literary scene. As a poet, Lee Soo-bok was a successor who embraced Seo Jeong-ju's eternalism worldview and the ‘the Cheongrokpa’s traditional aesthetics of nature. However, Lee Soo-bok reflected on the limitations of his poetry and sought to contemplate poetry with an intellectual attitude. While pursuing pure poetry imbued with traditional lyricism, he also revealed a consciousness that explored the essence of poetry through metapoetry or reflections on the act of writing poetry, showing a will to overcome sentimental attitudes and introduce intellect. As evidenced in his poems and essays, Lee embraced T.S. Eliot's discussions, which aimed at overcoming personal emotions and individuality, in an effort to approach the spirit of poetry. For Lee Soo-bok, poetry was a dynamically changing spirit, akin to the "image of clouds," and a spirit that could not be confined within the framework of the self. By acquiring such a spirit, he sought to see the world as it is. As observed through his life and writings, Lee was a poet who did not become complacent with his literary position as a successor of traditional lyricism, but instead, explored the modernity of poetry within the post-war reality, striving for a leap in the poetic spirit.