일본 근대문학자와 동북아해역- 아쿠타가와 류노스케(芥川 龍之介)의 『軍艦金剛航海記』를 중심으로 -

Abstract

Akutagawa, a writer, is called as a genius writer in the modern Japan. Due to his consistent intelligent writing activities, he is also called as a writer of ‘Intelligencism.’ He is a writer to describe human’s selfish and contradictory attitudes from an intelligent position in detail. Also, he is a writer of ‘the art-for-art principle’ that considers ‘arts for arts,’ which is the completion of arts as the best value. His intelligent skills and methods made him to be called as a ‘genius writer.’ On the other hand, he turned away the numerous social and political problems in the modern Japan in his writings, like Natsume Soseki who was his teacher. Positioning as the top intelligent at that times, he was known to be indifferent to the aggressive war and colonization to keep the hegemony of Northeast Asian sea without active mention. However, ‘the voyage of Warship Geumgang’ that had rarely been reviewed in the previous studies shows totally different features of Akutagawa Ryunosuke. There were a few descriptions to show the episodes that he had been called as ‘a defeated instructor’ during the period of Navy Academy. In addition, this writing demonstrates clearly what ‘unqualified teacher’ mentioned meant at the remark on joining the company when he joined in Osaka Mainichi Daily after resign of Navy Academy. ‘Geumgang’ warship in which he boarded as an instructor of Navy Academy was the largest and strongest battle cruiser in Japan at that time. Furthermore, it was far faster than the other battle ships since it was a battle cruiser. In a sailing story of warship that symbolized the imperial Japan and travel essay with reportage type planned for publication, Akutagawa severely criticized the melody of a military song that glorified the Sino-Japanese War, “to be miserable and desperate.” Literally speaking, he was a ‘defeated instructor’ and ‘unqualified teacher’ in the Navy of imperial Japan. No previous studies had been reviewed on Akutagawa’s courage that criticized the stupidity of Navy captain who was enchanted by a victory against Russia and described the horribleness of sailors’ working site like ‘bugs’, using the type of reportage as a voyage story. Rather than dignity of ‘Geumgang,’ Akutagawa thought about “the lands, fields, people, and villages;” and yearning for normal land life of “early summer” when the vitality became stronger, together with butterfly. It is considered enough to reevaluate Akutagawa’s attitude which had been indifferent to ‘the spirit of the times.’