근대계몽기 『대한유학생회학보 』의 정체성과 문학적 상상력

Abstract

The 'DaehanYuHakSaengHoeHakbo'(대한유학생회학보) was a journal published by the Association of Korean Students Studying in Japan, starting from March 3rd, 1907 to May 25th, 1907, with a total of three issues. The Association of Korean Students Studying in Japan was established on September 2nd, 1906, as an organization where all overseas students could gather for discussions. It was not a unified and integrated entity with a single goal, but rather a group that came together in the sense of collaboration, based on actual individual organizations and their respective academic journals. However, instead of achieving a complete unification, the 'collaboration' itself became the identity of the Association of Korean Students Studying in Japan. By uniting under the umbrella of the Association while maintaining their own identities as separate organizations and academic journals, the DaehanYuHakSaengHoeHakbo' became the platform for that 'collaboration'. Thus, the 'DaehanYuHakSaengHoeHakbo' was a journal that embodied the characteristics of 'solidarity' and 'collaboration.' Rather than being created with a unified theme and perspective under a single ideology, the journal consisted of diverse and scattered writings that retained the unique features of each contributing journal. Especially in the realm of literature, the varied and scattered forms of these writings were particularly prominent. The ''DaehanYuHakSaengHoeHakbo' included a majority of the narrative forms that were published in contemporary Korean student association journals in Japan. Among them, Yi Gyu-yeong's 'Words of a Tiger Hunter' (박호자의 설) depicts a narrative format where a character traveling domestically engages in a conversation with a tiger hunter in a village, leading to an enlightening realization. It combines various forms of narrative genres while incorporating the concerns and situations of Korean students association journals Studying in Japan in the present moment, delivering stories and lessons specifically tailored for Korean students studying in Japan. Furthermore, Jin Hak-mun’s ‘Falling house’(쓰러져 가는 집), written entirely in Korean script, can be considered an experimental form of modern fiction. Although it may not be classified as a complete modern short story, it is a work that explores new forms of storytelling. This piece not only portrays a Korean household entangled in customs and vices but also critically and metaphorically depicts the occupation of Korea by Japan, depicting the self-destruction and downfall of Korea. Of course, due to the experimentation of various narrative forms and the scattered presence of multiple narratives, it may appear that the 'DaehanYuHakSaengHoeHakbo' contains literature that is sporadic and lacks consistency. However, this is not a result of randomness or inconsistency but rather stems from the collaborative and collective nature of the journal. In other words, the diverse inclusion of narratives in the ''DaehanYuHakSaengHoeHakbo' was made possible because it served as a literary platform, enabling various novelistic experiments. In essence, the journal fulfilled its function as a contemporary literary magazine, ultimately becoming a product of collective imagination. Whether intentional or not, the 'DaehanYuHakSaengHoeHakbo' facilitated numerous novelistic experiments and provided a space to explore the possibilities of modern fiction.