『실낙원』의 사탄과 『금강』의 신하늬

Abstract

Creating an epic was the dream of Korean poets in their first developing period of 1920-1940. When they first encountered the western epical poem they were much shocked, and admired its beautiful, musical effects and the interesting story of its heroes and their actions. As such, Korean poets began to imitate the western epic, and the first trial was Night on the Border Land by Kim Tong-Hwan. However, it was not successful, because its hero was so private as an epic, even though it told the tragedy of poor people wandering on the northern border. Other Korean trials were also not so good until 1960s when the first successful epic, Keumkang, was published by Shin Dong-Yup. Keumkang is an epic about the Donghak Rebellion, an uprising by farmers who were defeated by strong foreign troops, and its hero is much more characteristic compared to those of other Korean epics. This study tries to compare the heroes of Keumkang and Paradise Lost, which is also a story of revolt in heaven, and the hero of which, Satan, is a distinguished character in the long history of British literature. Shin Hanee of Keumkang is not so heroic character as Satan at first but he became stronger and heroic as the poem progresses. At last he becomes a great symbol of Korean farmer rebellion. We can compare the two heroes of Paradise Lost and Keumkang and think about the British great epic tradition and how it has inspired Korean poets in turn.