남정현 연작소설 ≪허허선생≫의 그로테스크 변모 양상

Abstract

The grotesques in Mr. Heoheo by Nam Junghyun shows a characteristic of transfiguration over time. Grotesque observed in the early stage describes well the tension in the confrontation between the father, Heoheo and his son. On the other hands, the grotesque situations and scenes in the middle stage are the visualization of distortions and ironies in modern history. In the ending part, the balance between father and son leans toward the father dissolving tension and providing unilateral discourse. Man(Seok) Heo who narrates this story of Mr. Heoheo from the third person’s point of view internalizes fear by evil of his father which is regarded same as social evil. The grotesque with collapsed tension and conflicts leaves only fear. The early grotesque revealed the conflicts between father and son coming from the conflicts between the reality and fantasy, then, the grotesque in the middle stage described our modern history through the unnatural of grotesque, in other words, distortion and contortion. In theending part of the story, with an expansion of absolute evil, fear dominates joy. Absence of offensiveness, general characteristics found in satire, points out lethargy of new force symbolized by Seok Heo and Man Heo, and at the same time, it shows the firmness and steadiness of conservative force, Mr. Heoheo. Nam Junghyun depicted the concerns on foreign countries and conservative group who were firmly and steadily remaining after several events named with symbols of democratization after late 1980s in his novel, Mr. Heoheo.