'재일(在日)'의 현실과 '재일(在日)'의 의미-재일동포 한국어 소설의 정체성 구성에 대하여

Abstract

The Korean-language novels written by Korean residents in Japan underline coherently the identification and consciousness of “one’s self” that has been broken up by the sense of estrangement from ethnicity and nation. It is also coherent that they put an emphasis on the argument about race or nation in view of the historical traditions and the realities of life as Korean residents in Japan. In the novels written by Moon Yei-dong, the motifs are developed based upon the following concepts. The personal history of ordeals and dispersed family is closely related to the history of the race. And the discrimination and inequality in the daily life is also closely related to the social environments such as the nonexistence of the homeland from the beginning of the colonial age and the social treatment received as unpatriotic people. As the generations shift and the environment of the times changes, however, it should not be overlooked that the current Korean-language novels written by Korean residents in Japan deal with the realities of residing in Japan while handing down the past memories, in other words, the memories of the parent’s generation and recognizing the historical views in terms of the current prospective. The early novels written by Moon Yei-dong emphasized the ethnicity and nation from the aspect of idea and conception, and made hastily the nation-oriented or the north Korea-inclined conclusions. Meanwhile, the novels written after the mid-nineteen seventies by Moon Yei-dong have reflected the reality of the domiciliation and residence in more specific ways. By encapsulating the specific phases of the past memories and the parent generation’s memories, they showed the perception of history that Moon Yei-dong had. Especially, it is very inspiring that he attempted to make a new self-consciousness on the history and identity of the race by suggesting the new conceptual bases for the recognition of the traditional cultures. It is worthwhile that the Korean-language novels written by Korean residents in Japan imply the strong and consistent efforts to estrange from the oppression of colonialism by describing the realities of Korean residents in Japan who live a severe life in the shadow of the extant colonialism. Furthermore, while consistently indicating the extant colonialism up to now, they suggest the needs to reconsider the illiberal nationalism that ethnicity is nation. They also seek for the national and cultural communities just beyond a nation. Based upon this notion, they imply specifically the possibility to become the national literature. These points could make them worthwhile as a ‘ Diaspora’ literature in our country.