17(th) Century East Asian Warfare and Korean Narrative Poetry in Classical Chinese: Telling Historical Truth through the Memories of Hostages

Abstract

The hostage problem was one of the most difficult and sensitive issues to plague Choson society following the Manchu invasions of the 17(th) century. It was a memory that Choson's ruling elite preferred to forget. The government went so far as to actively suppress any remembrance of the event unsanctioned by the official records. In literary works of the period, however, we find attempts to excavate individuals' memories of captivity that run counter to the state discourse. "Marooned Merchants" by Ch'oe sung-t'ae (d. 1684) and "Old Monk of Pear Blossom Hermitage" by Ch'oe Sung-dae (b. 1691), two narrative poems written in classical Chinese by Choson men of letters, are prime examples that draw attention to the plight of both Ming and Choson hostages whose lives were scarred by war in devastating ways. In these narratives that map the tumult of international warfare onto the turbulent course of an individual's life, the figure of the "hostage" emerges as the veritable emblem of the wars' many disgraces and contradictions. While narratives about the succession of wars that engulfed East Asia around the turn of and into the rrh century can be found in Japanese and Chinese literature as well, examples from Korean literature are distinguished by the crossing of national boundaries in the plot, the insistent focus on the experiences of common people, and the emphasis on the hostage problem. In short, Korean narrative poetry written in classical Chinese that focuses on the scars left behind by 17(th) century East Asian warfare reveals the historical truth lodged within memories of individuals.