이규보 문학에 나타나는 자기형상의 양상과 그 의미 − 自述的 요소에 주목하여 −

Abstract

This article examines Yi Kyupo (李奎報)’s literary portrayals of self, with special attention paid to the autobiographical descriptions found in his works. Two key traits define Yi Kyupo’s literary portrayals of self – madness (狂) and righteousness (直). The mad self formed during his young adulthood, when Yi Kyupo underwent frustration and failure; but later, while looking to launch his career as an official, Yi Kyupo tries to pass off his madness as a mere act. He makes an effort to show that he is actually a noble person with great morality, even going as far as to dismissing his madness as a ‘fake madness (佯狂)’. However, in truth he never truly disavowed his characterization as a madman. Instead he actively called himself a madman to adopt the positive aspect of madness, with an aim to cast himself as a literati-artist with a free, unrestrainable nature. Righteous self emerged once he began his career as an official in his 30s. Prior to this, at the age of 29, he characterized himself as someone who does not bow to lesser men. And this became the basis of his self portrayals as a righteous person; after getting dismissed from his then position – minister of Chŏnju – at the age of 32, he claimed he is, by nature, ‘solely righteous (孤直)’. Here, he painted himself as a only defender of what is right, battling against unrighteousness (不義). Righteous self became dormant in his 40s, but emerged again when he was sent exile to Wido at the age of 63. But his word choice altered slightly, and the ‘upright self’ (方直) came to be the new ‘righteous self’. It seems that Yi Kyupo aimed to find self-respect as an official by priding on the fact that he is a man of righteousness. While discussed separately in this article, two main traits found in Yi Kyupo’s perception of self – madness and righteousness – were closely related. Both features have been invented to help himself cope with a grim reality, from the time when he had to defend his shrunken ego or make excuses for himself. This factor, which has to do with Yi Kyupo’s sociopolitical circumstances, distinguishes his self portrayals from that of other literati. However, we should not take his self portrayals to be merely reflective of his life. Self-characterization found in writings is first of all, a product of a subjective mind, and constitutes just one method in an array of efforts to properly represent the self. Yet self portrayals are not complete fabrications as well, since they are found based on his understanding of his circumstances and reactions to said circumstances. For this reason, probing his self portrayals provides a meaningful gateway in navigating the society and history of his time. In short, his self portraits are on one hand, a literary work; but at the same time, it is also a valid testimony on a literati’s mode of being during the mid-Koryŏ military regime period.