자산 안확(自山 安廓)의 조선 민족사에 대한 이원적 접근 — <조선문학사>와 <조선문명사>를 중심으로 —

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to understand Ahn Hwak(1886~1946)'s perception of national history through 『History of Joseon Literature』 and 『History of Joseon Civilization』. He presented the 'cultural history' of Joseon from a modern point of view, by exploring the mental and emotional aspects of the Korean people ingrained in the literary works from the various historical periods. He also reconstructed the national history from Gojoseon era to Joseon dynasty as a continuous 'political history'. For him, a nation was not merely a cultural community, but also a political community. His thought was that while 'culture' and 'politics' are dualistic, they should also be viewed as the two sides of the same coin. In 『History of Joseon Literature』, Ahn emphasized the mental 'Awakening(自覺)' of the nation. 'Awakening' is a process of universal progress in which the mind pursues freedom by freeing itself from the material bondage. In 『History of Joseon Civilization』, he finds history of 'Autonomy(自治)' as the characteristics of Joseon’s 'history of politics'. He believes that Joseon was able evolve into 'self-aware and voluntary civilization' because of the tradition of 'Autonomy', a political system of reflecting and gathering of the will of the people. Through his two books, Ahn Hwak underlines the idea that the national history of Joseon was a history of 'Awakening', from a cultural perspective, and a history of 'Autonomy', from a political point of view. To him, 'Awakening' was a concept focused on the universality of the mind, while ‘Autonomy’ was a concept that emphasized the uniqueness of a nation. In sum, Ahn Hwak, through his works, tried to combine cultural universality and political identity.