『토지』의 대중 인식 변화 연구 - 1969년~1999년 일간지 기사를 중심으로

Abstract

As research on the audiences of Land by Park Kyong-ni, this study set out to analyze changes to the public’s perceptions of the novel in daily newspaper articles in 1969 ~ 1999. Since there were few means to directly check the acceptance patterns of the novel among general audiences rather than professional readers, the study traced changes to the descriptions of the novel in daily newspaper articles and inferred inversely changes to the public's perceptions of the novel as audiences based on them. In 1969~1976, Land was treated as the “woman writer” Park Kyong-ni’s “controversial work” that was worth attention rather than the work itself. The ambiguous descriptions of articles posed limitations with tracing the public’s specific perceptions as audiences, but it was apparent that the public audiences showed considerable interest in the novel in that many people actively enjoyed even its transformations such as movies and radio dramas as well as the original work. In 1977~1984, Land enjoyed its heyday in terms of popularity among the public. People started to add the modifier “the author of Land” to Park, and Land was established as her representative work. As her novel was turned into a TV drama during the spread of TV sets, it had an impact on the commemoration among the public audiences. Publishing companies and magazines competed each other over the publication or serialization of Land, and a TV drama drove the reading of the novel. During this period, Land was perceived as a work that the public audiences wished to read and should read. In 1986~1999, Land was considered a “masterpiece” by anyone in every aspect including the duration of serialization, background period, and literary value. When given an example of Land without separate explanations, the public audiences were able to think of a similar impression. In 1994, the publication of the complete series of Land was followed by the creation of commemorative spaces, the construction of commemorative buildings, and the establishment of commemorative foundations, which further consolidated the status of Land as an unprecedented masterpiece in Korean literature. The high status and long volumes of Land, however, put huge pressure on the public audiences trying to accept the novel actively. The novel was considered a work that was difficult to enjoy in reality.