러시아 이주 한인의 항일 의병 투쟁 －박경리의 『토지』를 중심으로

Abstract

Of independence movements that centered on Korean Donghak Revolutionists and independence movements in Russia or Manchuria, which are independence movements of two different flows handled in Toji(Land), this study researched the latter. In particular, it attempted to look into the status of the historical novel and the writer’s consciousness by analyzing the piece with a focus placed on independence movements and righteous army struggles in Russia focused on the aristocrat Lee Dong Jin. Lee Dong Jin leaving his home for Russia was an independence movement act of the aristocrat class which had clear anti- Japanese sentiment at the time. However, his aristocratic ideological thinking and judgment were broken as he crossed borders and witnessed the lives of the Korean immigrants who had settled there. They were fighting ethnic battles for survival and some abandoned their nationality and chose naturalization. Because they could not be protected by the government or politicians, they organized righteous armies for protection. Even naturalized citizens of Russia actively participated in this and they acted devotedly towards their country and people. Toji displays such historical situations through the relationships among the fictitious character Lee Dong Jin and the actual historical figures of Choi Jae Hyung and Lee Bum Yoon. Independence activists gather in a maritime province considering it to be the most appropriate base for an armed struggle and there, they organize a righteous army and concentrate their strengths on training. The fictitious character Lee Dong Jin also fought as a righteous army soldier together with the Russian army in the Russo-Japanese War alongside actual historical figures and this also paved the road to draw Russian support. At a time, the power of the armed anti-Japanese righteous army was strong, making independence movements active and raising anticipations but independence movements in Russia changed according to changes in Russian and Japanese relations and this could be seen through the novel. Through Lee Dong Jin, who did not cease acting in independence movements until his death, Toji continuously awakened ‘righteous armies’. Toji clearly states that there once was ‘an age of righteous armies’ through characters who have expectations towards, praise, and feel frustrated because of the existence of righteous armies.