기억과 망각의 서사― 옌거링(嚴歌苓) 소설 《방화(芳華)》가 문화대혁명을 서술하는 방식

Abstract

Yan Geling’s Youth, published in April, 2017, is a novel which depicts events which occurred during the Cultural Revolution, it is based on stories that Yan Geling herself had experienced. Youth is written in Xiao Suizi’s first-person narrative, and depicts the love and conflict of a young soldiers who were members of the Literary Arts Group of the Cultural Revolution 30 years ago. In particular, the heroines Liu Feng and Hou Xiaoman represent the memory and oblivion, respectively, and these elements have a unique context in harmony with the historical events of the Cultural Revolution. As Yan Geling’s unique narrative technique is added to it, readers look back to their memories and ask for their own historical responsibilities in them. Through analysis, this paper aims to examine how Yan Geling recalls and describes Cultural Revolution with the keywords ‘memory’ and ‘oblivion’. To further extent, this paper explores the narrative technique of Youth described in the first person perspective, and trace what the author wants to convey to the readers through the novel focusing on the way in which the characters are composed through memory and oblivion.