전통의 보편성에 대한 탐색적 사례 연구 심곡서원의 전통 만들기에 대한 스토리텔링 분석

Abstract

Korean Seowon, a space for memorial rituals and study, have been recognized as the collective body of Confucian traditions. Recently, people are focusing on the meaning and value of Seowon, on the belief that they embody universal value of human. Based on the proposition that tradition is the product of social context and conditions of the time, this article traces the process through which Simgok Seowon, located in the city believed to most visibly which (is) embody contemporaneity, established itself as tradition. Considering the fact that Korean Seowon have existed through the turbulent history of political rivalry and tension, this study applies storytelling as a tool for analysis. This article also tries to analyze Simgok Seowon using a value-based framework in which not only the original function of a peculiar tradition but also its physicality and spiritual value are simultaneously appreciated. This research connects the life of Jo Gwang-jo, the main occupant of Simgok Seowon, with the seowon space and establishes the story of ‘Making the Tradition of Simgok Seowon’ based on the interactions among the people related to the seowon in order to draw the universal characteristics of seowon tradition, and discuss the universality of tradition. ‘Making the Tradition of Simgok Seowon’ progresses in three stages: ‘the chronicle of Jo Gwang-jo’, ‘the establishment of Simgok Seowon’, and ‘the period of signification’. As each stage passes by, Simgok Seowon comes to have a meaning of “space of irony”, “space of politics”, and “space of discussion” respectively, and the subject of making tradition was expanded from an individual character to contemporaries, and to the country and community. Particularly, in ‘the period of signification’, as it was made official by the country, the seowon acquires authority, and as contemporary interpretations are added by the governance between country and civil society, it comes to obtain legitimacy as a tradition. In other words, Simgok Seowon became a tradition based on its spatial condition of urban location and the democratic decision-making process become universalized. Therefore, it is more valid to regard the universality that Korean Seowon are equipped with as the common feature that emerged in the process of their becoming tradition rather than the Confucian spirit itself that dictated their foundational purpose and goal. In conclusion, the universality of tradition refers to the aspect of tradition that can explain several individual traditions within a culture. It is also the aspect of tradition that the community members think as important, and obtains legitimacy by the social community’s autonomous interpretations.