‘조선어독본’과 일제의 문화정치 - 제4차 교육령기 『보통학교 조선어독본』의 경우

Abstract

‘Chosun-uh-dokbon’ of the Forth educational law period which this paper investigates, was of the same category as ‘Kokuh-dokbon’ and ‘Sushin’, which were specific manuals for converting Korean people to suit Japanese intentions. The purpose of these textbooks was to foster the enculturated changes in Korean people as subjects of Japan, therefore Koreans were reborn as Japanese people, learning a new culture. ‘Chosun-uh-dokbon’ of the Forth educational law period strengthened Korean tradition as well as emphasizing industrial education, but emanated from colonial intentions of Japan. Japan justified its difficult national conditions under the rubric of Korean indolence and employed this theory to overcome economic hardship caused by logistics. Through these intentions, Japan attempted create in Korea a country that resembles a silent internal subject, akin to a ‘bull’, and one which silently exerts great effort. Korean history and geography was understood in that same way. Although those textbooks dealt with Korean history and people, they only described the functional aspects of history and people, omitting the historical connection and spirit of Korean. Therefore, Japan labeled Korea as one of its subjects, and used forceful violence against Korean People. However, the claim that poverty could be overcome by personal efforts was ideological, as it argued the incompetence of one person caused the problem of Japanese coercion. These contents of the textbooks produced Korean people of integrity. We can find out when Korean educational flaws began from this instrumentalization of education. In this point, the study of textbooks is not colonial one but post-colonial one.