THE RECOGNITION AND REPRESENTATION OF POLAND IN MODERN KOREAN LITERATURE – FOCUSING ON 2 NOVELS WRITTEN IN LATE COLONIAL PERIOD

Abstract

This paper examines the aspects of the recognition and representation of Eastern Europe in modern Korean literature, especially focusing on the case of Poland. The late colonial period(1930~1945) needs to be considered as significant phase when we are trying to grasp the major aspects of representation and recognition of Poland and Eastern Europe in modern Korean literature. In the literary works written by writers of late colonial period, such as Kim Kwang-gyun (김광균), Lee Hyo-sok (이효석), and Lee Tae joon (이태준), we can observe that there were much similar historical and political situations between Poland and Korea. That’s why Korean writers often tried to mention Poland’s situation in metaphorical and analogical ways to express their political opinions, avoiding the censorship of Japanese government. This paper deals with those aspects in modern Korean literature.