한·중 설화에 나타난 국왕인식 비교

Abstract

This thesis addresses both commonalities and differences in perceptions about kings as shown in the folk-tales of China and of Korea. A king was a pivotal entity in society presiding over his kingdom in the Middle Ages. In this respect, the perceptions of a king would enhance the understanding of a country. Comparisons of folk-tales about kings in China and kings in Korea would shed light on how kings were regarded in their respective countries. Furthermore, folk-tales, jointly compiled by the hoi polloi, would unveil how the grass-roots of society viewed the kings unlike history books and would contribute to expanding the depth and breadth of understanding of both countries by revealing how the general public thought about their kings. This study is based on a total of 84 volumes of “The Series of Korea’s Literature of Oral Traditions” and a total of 40 volumes of “The Complete Works of Chinese Folk-tales.” It compares the two countries’ folk-tales in various aspects of a king’s qualifications, political actions and autocratic rule. According to Korean folk-tales, a king was considered to be chosen by heaven as shown in tales of geomancy. In Chinese folk-tales, a king was to have an extraordinary “ability.” Korean folk-tales mainly depicted the king as a just ruler who monitors and listens to his people, travelling incognito. Chinese folk-tales were short on this point and even if they were not, kings took precedence over people. Korean folk-tales were characterized by kings who took someone else’s wife as his, while Chinese folk-tales put emphasis on kings maintaining their royal power, using their authority to pursue fortunes and longevity. Korean folk-tales pit ordinary people against tyranny, leading to the defeat and killing of kings. In contrast, Chinese folk-tales show supernatural beings such as Confucius and Buddhist saints or people existing in high social echelon such as prime ministers and chief Buddhist monks challenging the authority of kings. In Chinese folk-tales, kings were ridiculed rather than defeated and killed. Sometimes thrones were usurped by others unbeknownst to the king. Korean folk-tales described kings as a being whose sole responsibility was to take care of the people without fear of usurpation and without having to worry about wealth or longevity thanks to their stable grip on power, while Chinese folk-tales characterize kings as beings preoccupied with their safety and power without regard to people’s welfare.