식민지조선의 징병제 실시와 종이연극

Abstract

This paper discusses the use of kamishibai for propaganda and the introduction of the family register to facilitate the draft of Koreans after the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War. The examinations is based in particular on the narratives and paintings of the newly discovered 1943 works from the Joseon Development Association, Revolutionary of My Brother and Return of Father. First, these works emphasize the relationship with real life. Although the family register was introduced for the purpose of the draft, the Japanese government encouraged Koreans to register, citing that the register was closely related to economic interests such as education, property inheritance, and distribution of daily necessity. Actually, considering that there were Koreans who reported increases in the number of family members, regarding the register as a basic survey for the distribution of wartime daily necessities at the time, profits from property would have been an advantage that cannot be ignored. Second, the role of the father is emphasized in both examples of Kamishibai. It can be said that, in Japan's family system, the head of the family is given the authority to control the family members. In these works, the father, the head of family, plays the most important role in determining the future of his son and daughter. It can be said that this ensured the legitimacy of the draft and facilitated physically mobilizing the people by guaranteeing rather than limiting the authority of the head of the family. Third, the kamishibai works emphasizes that the draft is the way to become a legitimate citizen and be protected by the state. For Koreans, the draft was an exploitation they want to avoid, but the Japanese imperialisrs stated that by becoming a soldier, a person could become a true Japanese and a man, and that people would be protected by the state when performing military duties. Both works feature a soldier, or a son who wants to become a soldier, who demonstrates the duty of Koreans to serve in the military by demonstrating the attitude that the family of the soldier and the family of the son should have towards state policy, such as registering themselves in the family register. The appearance of a Korean protagonist who is based on a true story, or based in reality, was a very necessary storyline for Japan at the time and was also a role model requested by Koreans. These kamishibai works can be said to have standardized the life of individuals, who are not categorized as a “subjects” of imperial Japan but specifically embody and present the appearance of the subjects in life.