동슬라브 신화의 현대적 변용과 재의미화 : 영화 <그는 용>의 용의 형상과 여성성

Abstract

It is agreed by most researchers that the absence of a clear record or a comprehensive system of pre-9th century East Slavic mythology, which can only be found in old and folk tales. Nevertheless, the research to restore the Eastern Slavans’ mythology and the world of their primitive imagination through oral and folktales has continued steadily. What is clear is that the oral texts, folk tales, and myths written by the East Slavans in their literal form have already been transformed from their original form in the Christian world order. The mythical femininity, which was important in the maternal order of the ancient East Slavans, changed from a male hero-centered narrative in the historical world. One of the most transformed symbols in the Logos-centered history was the image of a serpent/dragon associated with creative femininity. In the mythical world of East Slavans on the Black Sea influenced by the Scythian civilization, the serpent/dragon figure, symbolizing cosmic time and directly linked to the image of femininity and water, was also represented as a sacred being in the sky. However, the serpent/dragon shape has changed in a confrontation to highlight the heroism of the father-hero in the Christian order and is stuck with the image of a giant and powerful monster that is increasingly hard to defeat to highlight the hero’s greatness. This paper analyzed how the dragon figure in the East Slavic mythology is transformed to create a new current myth in the Russian fantasy film He is a Dragon, one of the highest-grossing Russian films abroad in 2016, declared the “Year of Russian Cinema.” In this film, the story of dragon and dragon is remarkably different from the image of dragon as a source of evil in East Slavic myths and folktales written since the adoption of Christianity as the state religion. In addition, in this film, ‘Dragon-Fire-Male’ is transformed into a new dimension that combines death and violence into a harmonious life, where the crucial role is the shape of ‘Bride-Water-Femininity’, a source of creative natural power in the ancient East Slavic worldview.