백두산절·오족협화·대동아공영론 -그림엽서 <백두산절>의 경우

Abstract

This article is to identify the origin, formation, dissemination and popularity of 「HAKUTOSANBUSHI(SONG OF BAEKDUSAN)」, a Japanese folk song related to ‘Baekdusan (Mt.)’ as well as its various variants, conversion to a militant song, and its effect on the folk songs of Chosun and secretive rejection. Ueda(植田) introduces folk song 「HAKUTOSANBUSHI」 comprised of as many as 16 pieces in GUKGYEONG IBAEKRI(國 境二百里) that contains the everyday life and institutions and customs in the border area between Chosun and Manchuria and five representative paintings 「HAKUTOSANBUSHI」 that has adopted it as its theme. 「HAKUTOSANBUSHI」 sings exotic sentiment of Amnokkang scenery and customs, fatigue of living in border area, romantic love, invasion and suppression of bandits, and loyalty to Japan and its emperor with the adoption of a female voice. Up to this period, there is an emphasis placed on the cooperation between the people of Chosun and Manchuria but the life in border area and the main agent of the song are concentrated on the Japanese. 「HAKUTOSANBUSHI」that was once sung by people in border areas has gained huge popularity in Japan as a song sung by a Japanese in Chosun that expresses a painful and jeopardous life away from home. Eventually, 「HAKUTOSANBUSHI」was converted to a militant song that pledges participation in allout war and self－annihilation for the sake of the Japanese emperor during the period Pacific War, and even three or more illustrated postcards were issued based on this song. The system of play and intimacy represented by the folk song and the postcard was degraded to the symbol of ‘Thanatos’ that encourages and praises participation in war and honorable death and the model of decisive war as it was combined with the emperor fascism. This was further reaffirmed by 「Song of frontier guards of Chosun ManMong」 and 「Amnokkangjeol」 that were produced in another forms of postcard and folk song, which implies the violence and fabrication of ‘distorted patriotism’ expressed in songs and illustrations encouraging all－out war. Meanwhile, the folk songs of Chosun under the Japanese colonialism have sung Amnokkang and Baekdusan multiple times, and ‘Amnokkang’, which was close to the life of Chosun people was more popular than hard －to－reach ‘Baekdusan’. However, the song ‘Amnokkang ’ is all about bitter sentiments of farewell and loss while 「Looking at Baekdusan」 sought awakening of national and personal identify as (people of) Chosun through memories and calling for national territory (homeland) with the effect of making new discoveries of ‘authenticity of place’.