민족주의로 재구성된 난징대학살의 기억― 옌거링(嚴歌苓)의 ≪진링의 13소녀(金陵十三釵)≫에 대한 일고찰

Abstract

Yan Geling’s The Flowers of War is a novel published in 2011, based on true events that took place during the Nanjing Massacre in 1937. Though an article, author mentioned that as a “nationalist”, she had no choice but to write The Flowers of War. No doubt that the author’s intention was to imagine the situation in Nanjing at that time through fictional narratives, and to maximize the horrors of the war by properly placing prostitutes and schoolgirls within the narratives. However, it is problematic that the narrative of the novel develops in a way that values national identities. It is not easy for readers to sense the nationalist colors as the community within the cathedral is composed of people from different race, religion, gender and age. However, by analyzing the structure of the novel through Prasenjit Duara’s perspective, we can see that the community within the cathedral share a common status as a victim of Nanjing Massacre and share identical experience of enduring Japanese invasion. As a result a national identity is created within the community. In this respect, based on the nationalistic viewpoint, this paper explores the question of how the novel constitutes national identity through the Nanjing Massacre, and how it represents historical tragedy at the expense of women, and proceed with a more comprehensive analysis.