North Korean Cultural Research Articles

Artistic conception revealed in Hwang Chang-bae's art world－Focusing on the "North Korean Cultural Journey" organized by the Center for Unification and Culture of the JoongAng Ilbo in December 1997－

Artistic conception revealed in Hwang Chang-bae's art world－Focusing on the "North Korean Cultural Journey" organized by the Center for Unification and Culture of the JoongAng Ilbo in December 1997－

North Korean Culture and Society in the Works of Blaine Harden, Hyeonseo Lee and Yeonmi Park

The prominent goal of this paper is to examine North Korean culture and society in the select works of Blaine Harden’s Escape from Camp 14, Hyeonseo Lee’s The Girl with Seven Names, and Yeonmi Park’s In Order to Live. The research explores how these works highlight the challenges of escaping tyranny and assimilating into a new culture while offering information on the evolution of culture and identities through cultural study. The personal accounts of North Korean defectors offer priceless insights into life under a repressive system as well as the difficulties experienced by those who manage to flee such inhumane conditions. This evaluates how the protagonists, Yeonmi Park, Hyeonseo Lee, and Shin Dong Hyuk depict the challenges and victories of their journeys. This research reveals the unheard voices and untold tales of the sufferings endured by the brave individuals in a brutal regime, who have crossed borders which serves as a limelight for other nations who are unaware of North Korea.

A literature review to explore the use of Contact Theory, in exploring integration strategies between students who have defected from North Korea and South Korean students

Objectives The purpose of this research was to explore effective integrated strategies utilizing Contact Theory principles, to reduce prejudice and discrimination and build friendships between North and South Korean students.
 Methods A literature review synthesizing the findings of literature retrieved from searches for integration between North and South Korean students. Especially, Contact Theory was particularly used for the theoretical framework.
 Results Intergroup cooperation: Repeated integrated strategies and high-quality contact strategies should be applied in school curriculums to build friendships based on intergroup cooperative tasks such as discussion or presentations about each other’s culture, and societal issues between the two Koreas’ students. Common goals: Both students groups should discuss and debate the common goal of peace within the Korean Peninsula by allowing students to consider the advantages and disadvantages of inter-Korean unification on their own. Equal status: Schools should provide some programmes via literature or films related to North Korean words which are neglected by South Koreans who will need to change their perception by developing a more objective view of North Korean culture and their way of thinking that can ultimately bring equal status between the two Korean student groups. Support of institutions: The support of authorities of the Korean government is suggested. Especially, the government will need to provide more effective teacher education for integrated education between two Korean students to prepare for future reunification.
 Conclusions The implications and limitation of the study is provided. Suggestions for future studies are also presented.

김정은 시대 문화정책과 남북 문화교류 방향

In the Kim Jong Un era, North Korean cultural policy can be broadly divided into 'Securing legitimacy through Baekdu bloodline', 'Modernization and internationalization in pursuit of a normal state', and 'Achieving a powerful socialist civilization'. North Korean culture in the Kim Jong Un era can be seen as having a complex character in which the 'national tradition' and 'modern culture' are combined.
 Based on these characteristics of the cultural policy of the Kim Jong Un era, this thesis examines the status of each culture, such as music, performing arts, dance, and sports, and promotes 'exchanges to form homogeneity' and 'exchanges to restore homogeneity' between the residents of the South and North Korea.' and suggested two directions for inter-Korean cultural exchange.
 In both South and North Korean societies, a new generation without “memories of war” is growing as a social leader, so future generations must form a new “homogeneity” and lead the process of unification and integration. In addition, the “recovery of homogeneity” of the nation should be promoted together by reflecting on the history of the nation shared by our people.

North Korea and Poland: A Cultural Approach to Bilateral Presence

This descriptive article focuses on the cultural relations between Poland and North Korea in 1948–2020. In 1948–1980, bilateral relations were very close due to belonging to the same ideological movement, but economic matters dominated. Subsequent cultural relations became the main area of cooperation. The article focuses on two issues: The spread of North Korean culture in Poland and the place of Polish culture in North Korea. The article presents historical and cultural facts concerning cultural cooperation between the two countries.

Social integration and well‐being of North Korean migrants in South Korea

AbstractI examined the social integration and well‐being of North Korean migrants in South Korea, guided by a modified model of migrant integration that includes indicators of both systemic integration and value integration of North Korean migrants. The level of systemic integration was measured using indicators of employment, education, housing, and health. The level of value integration was measured using indicators of a sense of belonging, a sense of trust, and multicultural acceptance. The main data for this study were collected by a telephone survey of 400 North Korean migrants aged 15 and over conducted from November 24, 2016 to December 7, 2016. Data analysis revealed a low level of systemic integration and poor health condition of North Korean migrants. The level of value integration was intermediate. North Korean migrants strongly identified as South Korean citizens and strongly believed that they could reach the same status as South Koreans. However, their North Korean culture and identity were not recognized or accepted in South Korean society and they felt strong pressure to assimilate to South Korean culture and identity.

Buddha under Control. Buddhism’s Legacy in North Korea

This paper explores the significance of the legacy of Buddhism in North Korea. Our primary concerns in the North Korean context are twofold: the presence of Buddhism in North Korean culture and the role of Buddhism in North Korea cultural and propaganda policy. We argue that the religious revival in North Korea seen from the 1970s onwards was part of a project created by the Workers’ Party of Korea and had certain political goals. Fieldwork and analysis of sources revealed that the North Korean state has used Buddhism to repair the country’s international image by creating a facade of religious freedom to promote tourism and as a part of policies towards unification. While seemingly peripheral, Buddhism still has relevance at state and social levels in North Korea.

‘사회주의 미풍양속’과 ‘준법기풍’을 통해 본 북한의 문화 검열

이 글의 목적은 ‘사회주의 미풍양속’과 ‘준법기풍’을 통해 북한의 문화검열 양상을 분석하는 데 있다. 2012년 김정은 체제가 시작되면서 ‘사회주의 문명국’ 건설을 새로운 시대의 아젠다로 제시하였다. 사회주의 문명국은 경제건설과 사회문화의 두 차원에서 추진되었다. 경제건설은 과학을 중심으로 한 교육 개혁으로 이어졌다. 사회문화에서는 ‘사회주의 미풍양속과 준법기풍’으로 구체화 되었다.BR ‘사회주의 미풍양속’은 정치적으로 최고지도자를 받드는 풍조, 혁명선배를 존중하고, 군과 인민이 하나로 연결되는 사회를 의미한다. 이러한 사회주의 미풍양속을 지켜가는 것을 전체 인민에게 교양함으로써 김정은 체제의 도덕적 인민 만들기를 통해 사회적 풍조를 바로잡으려 하였다. 나아가 사회주의 미풍양속에 반하는 행위나 태도에 대해서는 사회적으로 통제할 수 이는 근거를 만들었다. 이와 함께 법을 잘 지키자는 준법 기풍, ‘사회주의 생활양식과 고상한 도덕기풍’ 확립을 강조하는 것이다. 경제 개혁과 외부문화를 접할 수 있는 기회를 확대하면서, 내부적으로는 문화적 통제와 검열의 도구로서 사회주의 생활 양식으로 강조하고 있다.BR ‘준법기풍’은 북한 제체와 관련되는 문제로 헌법을 비롯한 모든 법을 절대 존중하는 태도이다. 첫째, 사회통제의 출발로 사회주의를 지키기 위한 수단이라는 점을 강조하면서 사상적으로 통제하려는 목적이 있다. 둘째, 법의 실효성을 높이려는 것이다. 셋째, 법을 중심으로 한 체제 운영을 통해 북한 사회의 부패, 관료주의, 뇌물 등의 부정적 현상을 바로 잡아 사회 기강을 잡겠다는 것이다.

Landscape of the minds of South and North Koreans: unification perception, mutual recognition and the possibility of cultural integration

ABSTRACT Cultural integration based on the people's consciousness, emotions, values, attitudes, and so on is the determinant of the persistence and validity of political, economic and institutional unification. Thus, it is paramount for the unification of South and North Korea in which the people have long lived separately in two absolutely different and hostile systems. However, the analysis of various surveys reveals a huge gap between South and North Koreans in terms of unification perceptions, mutual recognitions, and acceptability toward each other's culture. While one out of every four South Koreans feels that unification is either not needed or is impossible, the overwhelming majority of North Koreans consider unification necessary. There is a marked difference in the North and South Koreans’ receptiveness towards each other, and North Koreans are bewitched by the Korean wave (Hallyu) while South Koreans shun North Korean culture. The gap in the landscape of the minds of South and North Koreans is growing over time. This reality shows the possibility that the inter-Korean integration process might cause serious discordance between the people of two Koreas and new social conflicts. Efforts need to be made in advance to clearly recognize this reality, to learn from the experiences of precedent post-socialist countries, and finally to use all these lessons for the peaceful future of inter-Korean unification.

Effects of Pre-service Early Childhood Teachers’ Respect for Human Rights and Human Rights Consciousness on Unification Consciousness : Focusing on the Mediating Effects of Acceptance of North Korean Culture

본 연구의 목적은 예비유아교사의 인권존중과 인권의식이 통일의식에 영향을 주는 과정에서 북한문화 수용성의 매개효과를 알아보는 것이다. 이를 위해 수도권 및 비수도권 유아교육과에 재학 중인 163명을 대상으로 SPSS 20.0과 AMOS 20.0으로 분석하여 집중타당성과 동일성을 확인한 후, 변인간의 구조적 관계를 구조방정식으로 분석하였고 bootstrap 방법으로 매개효과를 검증하였다. 연구결과, 첫째, 인권존중, 인권의식, 북한문화 수용성은 통일의식과 통계적으로 유의미한 정적 상관관계가 나타났다. 다만, 인권의식의 인권적 태도는 통일의식과 통계적으로 유의미한 상관관계가 나타나지 않았다. 둘째, 인권존중은 북한문화 수용성과 통일의식에 영향을 주는 것으로 나타났으며, 인권의식은 북한문화 수용성에는 영향을 주나 통일의식에는 영향을 주지 않는 것으로 나타났다. 북한문화 수용성은 통일의식에 영향을 주는 것으로 나타났다. 이러한 결과는 인권존중이 통일의식에 영향을 주는 과정에서 북한문화 수용성이 부분 매개하는 것이며, 인권의식이 통일의식에 영향을 주는 과정에서 북한문화 수용성이 완전 매개하는 것이다. 연구결과를 통한 정책적 시사점은 통일정책 수립 시 다양한 정보를 줄 수 있으며, 통일에 대한 사회적 합의를 도출하기 위한 기초자료를 제공한다는 점에서 의의를 갖는다.The purpose of this study is to examine the mediating effect of acceptance of North Korean culture on the relationship between pre-service early childhood teachers’ respect for human rights, human rights consciousness and unification consciousness. The survey data were collected from 163 students majoring in early childhood education at colleges located in capital and non-capital area. Collected data were put to SPSS 18.0 and AMOS 20.0, and convergent validity and the equality were verified. This paper employs structural equation modeling to analyze the survey data and Bootstrap to verify the mediating effect. The results of this study were summarized as follows. First, respect for human rights, human right consciousness and acceptance of North Korean culture were positively correlated with unification consciousness. However attitude to human rights of human rights consciousness was not correlated with unification consciousness. Second, respect for human rights had an effect on acceptance of North Korean culture and unification consciousness. Human rights consciousness affected acceptance of North Korean culture, but it did not affect unification consciousness. Acceptance of North Korean culture had an effect on unification consciousness. These results shows that acceptance of North Korean culture had a partial mediation effect on the path between respect for human rights and unification consciousness, and it had a complete mediation effect on the relationship between human rights consciousness and unification consciousness. This research can be used as the basic data for unification policy and social consensus for reunification of Korea.

Effects of Pre-service Early Childhood Teachers’ Respect for Human Rights and Human Rights Consciousness on Unification Consciousness : Focusing on the Mediating Effects of Acceptance of North Korean Culture

본 연구의 목적은 예비유아교사의 인권존중과 인권의식이 통일의식에 영향을 주는 과정에서 북한문화 수용성의 매개효과를 알아보는 것이다. 이를 위해 수도권 및 비수도권 유아교육과에 재학 중인 163명을 대상으로 SPSS 20.0과 AMOS 20.0으로 분석하여 집중타당성과 동일성을 확인한 후, 변인간의 구조적 관계를 구조방정식으로 분석하였고 bootstrap 방법으로 매개효과를 검증하였다. 연구결과, 첫째, 인권존중, 인권의식, 북한문화 수용성은 통일의식과 통계적으로 유의미한 정적 상관관계가 나타났다. 다만, 인권의식의 인권적 태도는 통일의식과 통계적으로 유의미한 상관관계가 나타나지 않았다. 둘째, 인권존중은 북한문화 수용성과 통일의식에 영향을 주는 것으로 나타났으며, 인권의식은 북한문화 수용성에는 영향을 주나 통일의식에는 영향을 주지 않는 것으로 나타났다. 북한문화 수용성은 통일의식에 영향을 주는 것으로 나타났다. 이러한 결과는 인권존중이 통일의식에 영향을 주는 과정에서 북한문화 수용성이 부분 매개하는 것이며, 인권의식이 통일의식에 영향을 주는 과정에서 북한문화 수용성이 완전 매개하는 것이다. 연구결과를 통한 정책적 시사점은 통일정책 수립 시 다양한 정보를 줄 수 있으며, 통일에 대한 사회적 합의를 도출하기 위한 기초자료를 제공한다는 점에서 의의를 갖는다.The purpose of this study is to examine the mediating effect of acceptance of North Korean culture on the relationship between pre-service early childhood teachers’ respect for human rights, human rights consciousness and unification consciousness. The survey data were collected from 163 students majoring in early childhood education at colleges located in capital and non-capital area. Collected data were put to SPSS 18.0 and AMOS 20.0, and convergent validity and the equality were verified. This paper employs structural equation modeling to analyze the survey data and Bootstrap to verify the mediating effect. The results of this study were summarized as follows. First, respect for human rights, human right consciousness and acceptance of North Korean culture were positively correlated with unification consciousness. However attitude to human rights of human rights consciousness was not correlated with unification consciousness. Second, respect for human rights had an effect on acceptance of North Korean culture and unification consciousness. Human rights consciousness affected acceptance of North Korean culture, but it did not affect unification consciousness. Acceptance of North Korean culture had an effect on unification consciousness. These results shows that acceptance of North Korean culture had a partial mediation effect on the path between respect for human rights and unification consciousness, and it had a complete mediation effect on the relationship between human rights consciousness and unification consciousness. This research can be used as the basic data for unification policy and social consensus for reunification of Korea.

North Korean Cultural Politics - An Analysis of The Light of the People

North Korean Cultural Politics - An Analysis of The Light of the People

From North Korea With Love: Reviewing Pyongyang’s Arirang Mass Games

This review of North Korea’s Airirang Mass Games presents a primary account and analysis of a performance unlike anything and unseen anywhere else in the contemporary world. This review contributes to the beginning of a conversation about this performance that has been nearly inaccessible and unavailable to most people, including most other academic researchers or commentators, outside of North Korea. It is arranged into a first-hand descriptive account and then an analysis of the Arirang Mass Games.This review analyses the Arirang Mass Games through a discussion of the materialization, enactment, and embodiment of the regime’s ethnocentric Communist ideology and culture. This analysis draws upon the work of performance philosophers and the work of other scholars and journalists, who have either analyzed and/or also attended the games, to start connecting the ways in which this performance can be regarded as the material embodiment of North Korean culture, national identity, and ideology, or at least the regime’s construction and fantasy of these aspects of the country.This review does not aim to provide justifications for or intend to give support to the North Korean government. Its purpose instead is twofold: first, to help shed light on a spectacular performance that few people outside of North Korea have experienced in such a little known or little understood country; and second, to present a perspective on repetition established in such an isolated and mysterious place, at least compared to the relative openness of most other countries, that few other individuals have personally experienced.

Entrevista a dois atletas portugueses que foram correr a maratona à Coreia do Norte

In this case study, the difference between two cultures will be analysed, being them, the Portuguese culture in contrast with the North Korean culture. A case study will be presented in which two Portuguese athletes, Andre Leite and Joao Abreu, go to North Korea in order to participate in an event of that country: the Marathon. This event attracts thousands of participants from all over the world and has become a good propaganda tool for the North Korean government. The athletes, during an interview to the newspaper Expresso and to Observador, explain how it was to live for a few days in a country where everything is controlled by Kim Jong-un's government. Throughout this work, themes such as the notion of culture, the difference between mass culture and popular culture, signifying practices and cultural codes, the relationship between culture and power, cultural transits, social constructivism and translation as intercultural action will be addressed.

Development and Evaluation of the Educational Program for South Korean Middle School Students in Preparation for Reunification on North Korean Family Living Culture

본 연구는 통일 한국에 대비하여 통일 후 대한민국의 주축으로 성장할 청소년들을 대상으로 북한의 가정생활문화에 대한 이해를 돕기 위한 교육 프로그램을 개발하는 것을 목적으로 하였다. 이를 위하여 현행 교육과정에서 이루어지는 통일교육과 가정생활문화에 해당하는 선행연구를 고찰하고 이를 근거로 교육 내용을 선정하였다. 교육은 2015년 12월 사이에 서울시내 남녀공학 중학교 1학년 두 개 학급을 대상으로 시행되었다. 교육 내용은 가정교과의 세부 내용학을 중심으로 실생활과 밀접한 식생활, 의생활, 주생활, 가족생활 및 대인관계, 소비생활 및 여가 등의 주제로 12차시 분량으로 준비되었다. 사전-사후 평가에서 소비생활, 여가생활, 아동·가족생활, 식생활, 의생활, 주생활의 모든 분야에서 유의한 효과가 있었다. 또한 학생들의 구술 응답에서도 프로그램의 내용이 실생활에 도움이 될 것이라 하였으며 학기 중에도 이와 같은 교육프로그램이 개설될 것을 희망하였다. 이 프로그램은 남한의 청소년들에게 북한의 가정생활문화의 이해를 도움으로써 앞으로 다가올 미래의 통일한국을 대비 하도록 하는 통일교육 프로그램의 역할을 할 것으로 기대된다.This study aimed at developing an educational program for South Korean adolescents on North Korean family living culture so that the students become familiar with the values and everyday lifestyles of North Korea. Understanding of North Korean culture is considered important as a foundation for social integration in prospect of future reunification. The contents of the program were developed based on the analysis of North Korean defectors’ interviews and review of the literature and media reports on North Korean family culture. The program consists of 12 units of 40-minute sessions with the following topics: economy and consumption, leisure activities, family relationships, dating and spouse choices, fashion changes, clothing acquisition and care, food choices and local diets, dietary problems, housing, and neighborhood. The program was implemented between December 21 and 30, 2015 in a middle school located in Seoul. This program is expected to be useful in preparing the students as future leaders to create harmonious family living culture in the reunified Korea.

재일조선인 귀국(歸國)문제를 기억하는 문화적 방식 : 북한의 경우를 중심으로

이 논문은 해방 이후 재일조선인들이 귀환/귀국하려는 모습을 북한에서는 문화적으로 어떻게 기억하고 그려내려 했는가를 살펴보고자 했다. 1차 귀국문제와 2차 귀국문제의 형상화로 나누어 그 재현의 양상을 연대기적으로 조감해 보았다. 북한 내에서는 제2차 귀국운동 40주년인 1999년을 중심으로 하여, 즉 2000년에 즈음하여 총체적으로 그 역사적 기억을 복원하려는 서사적 형상화가 이루어지고 있었음을 확인할 수 있었다. 해방 직후의 1차 귀국운동과 분단 이후의 제2차 대규모의 정치적 귀국운동을 포함하는 대사건들을 동시에 기억하려는 문화정치학적 구현이었다.BR 1차 귀국운동에 관하여서는 소설과 영화장르간의 ‘사실’을 중심으로 한 ‘허구적 기억’이 차이점으로 주목되었다. 2차 귀국운동에 관련해서는 초기의 서정적인 시장르의 현실 반영 문제가 차츰 오체르크와 소설, 영화로 그 소재 구현이 서사장르로 확장되는 양상이 나타났다. 그리고 드물지만 문화적인 ‘통합’을 위해 ‘사회주의적 모성’ 표상을 활용하는 작품들이 1999년과 2000년에 등장하면서 북한으로 귀국한 재일조선인들의 적응 과정을 묘사하고자 하는 의도를 드러냈다. 그러나 1차 귀국운동과 다르게, 2차 귀국운동은 김일성정권의 주도하에 이루어진 역사적 사실이 분명하기에 사실 구현, 즉 기억의 정당한 복원이라는 측면에서는 상당히 한계를 지니는 모습이었다. 다시 말하자면, 2차 귀국운동을 기억하려는 형상화에서 정치적 배제와 이데올로기적 조율이 보다 강하게 나타났다. 이것은 특히 김정일의 후계구도에서 의도된 정치적인 문화통합의 필요성과 일정하게 연관되는 것이다. 결국 내부문제는 사실적으로 드러내기를 꺼리면서도, 1차 귀국운동과 같이 역사적 사건에 외부적인 요인이 강한 것은 사실적으로 그 기억을 구현해내면서, 정치적인 검열이 문화장에 따라 보다 유연한 형태를 취하고 있었던 것으로 이해된다.

The Impact of North Korean Culture on China before China's Reform and Opening-Up Policy: Focusing on China's North Korean Film Imports in the 1950s~70s

The Impact of North Korean Culture on China before China's Reform and Opening-Up Policy: Focusing on China's North Korean Film Imports in the 1950s~70s

Leader symbols and personality cult in North Korea: the leader state

The legitimacy of the North Korean is based solely on the leaders’ personal legitimacy, and is maintained by the indoctrination of people with symbols and the enactment of leadership cults in daily life. It can thus be dubbed a leader state. The frequency of symbols and the richness and scale of leader-symbol-making in North Korea are simply unrivalled. Furthermore, the personality cults of North Korean leaders are central to people’s daily activity, critically affecting their minds and emotions. Both symbols and cult activities are profoundly entrenched in the institutions and daily life, and if separated and cancelled, the North Korean would be transformed. This book analyses North Korea as a leader focusing on two elements, symbols and cult activities. It argues that these elements have been, and continue to be, the backbone of North Korea, shaping North Korean culture. To reveal the leader state character, the book specifically examines North Korea’s leadership cults, its use of symbols in these cults, and the nature of the symbolism involved. How has the North Korean developed the cult of the Kim Il Sung family? How does the use symbols to perpetuate this cult? How has the developed myths and rituals that sustain the cult in daily life? What images has propaganda manufactured? How does the state’s manipulation of symbols affect the symbolism that is assigned to the leader’s actions? In answering these questions, this book sheds new light on the strength and resilience of the North Korean state, and shows how it has been able to survive even the most difficult economic period of the mid-1990s. Leader Symbols and Personality Cult in North Korea will be essential reading for students and scholars of North Korea, Korean politics, Asian politics, political sociology and visual politics.

Death and Transfiguration: The Late Kim Jong-il Aesthetic in North Korean Cultural Production

This article assesses the official music scene in Pyongyang over a span of five dramatic years, surveying how changes in the field of music from 2009 to 2014 mirrored and in some cases presaged North Korean dynastic succession and political consolidation. The article draws upon a new abundance of performance data on North Korean musical groups, data which we argue is important but has largely been ignored or mischaracterized heretofore. The central crisis dealt with in the article is the decline and demise of Kim Jong-il, the architect of North Korea’s musical culture. In his final years, Kim Jong-il assented to the creation of a new leading musical group known as the Unhasu Orchestra, promoted a song (“Footsteps”) about his son’s succession, and was commemorated as a passing figure even while still alive (in the film Wish). This article reads the transition of power to the young Kim Jong-un in musical terms, revealing churn in the cultural sector. The text therefore advances questions about the role of music in the North Korean society generally, and will appeal to readers interested in North Korean culture, as well as to scholars of music and politics in general.

The Junction between Realism and Fantasy in North Korean Culture and Arts: Evaluation and Fantastic Discourse about Classic Novels <SimCheong-Jeon> and <Yong-Goong-Bu-Yeon-Rok>

이 글은 고전소설 <심청전>과 <용궁부연록>의 분석을 통해 북한문학과 환상의 접점을 모색하는 데 목적이 있다. 북한문학은 리얼리즘을 유일한 창작방식으로 한다. 때문에 민족문학의 수용에서 ‘환상’은 논란이 되었던 요소이다. <심청전>과 <용궁부연록>을 비롯한 김시습의 작품은 북한문학사에서 높게 평가되는 작품이다. 동시에 리얼리즘과는 대척적인 위치에 있는 작품이다. 이 논문은 북한 문학계에서 문학사적으로 의미를 부여하는 두 작품에서 ‘환상’ 문제를 어떻게 다루고 있는 지를 살폈다.<BR> <심청전>은 광복이후 북한에서 창작된 최초의 연극 작품이었다. 연극에서는 심청의 개안(開眼) 장면이나 용궁장면은 꿈으로 처리하였다. 문학사에서 높은 평가를 받고, 인민들이 즐기던 고전문학이었지만 환상적인 요소를 그대로 수용할 수 없었다. 연극을 본 김일성은 <심청전>의 환상부분에 대해 ‘당대 사회 인민의 염원과 지향’으로 규정하면서, 다시 무대에 올릴 것을 지시하였다. 김일성의 언급은 이후 고전문학의 환상적인 요소를 민족문학적 특성으로 수용하는 계기가 되었다. 비록 환상적인 이야기이기는 하지만 그속에는 인민대중의 염원과 생활감정, 그들의 재능과 지혜가 그대로 반영되어 있다는 ‘중세적 환상’의 개념이 생겨난 것이다.<BR> <용궁부연록>은 김시습의 『금오신화(金鰲新話)』에 수록된 다섯 작품 가운데 한 작품이다. 글 잘하는 선비 한생이 용궁에 가서 상량문을 쓰고, 잔치에 참석하고 돌아온다는 이야기이다. <용궁부연록>의 환상성에 대해서는 시대적인 제약으로 드러낼 수 없는 현실 문제를 환상을 이용하여 우회적으로 드러내기 위한 수법으로 평가하였다.<BR> 북한문학에서 유일하고도 올바른 창작 방식으로 인정하는 것은 주체사실주의이다. 하지만 <심청전>과 <용궁부연록>에 대한 해석에서 알 수 있듯이 고전문학에 대한 수용에서 그리고 아동문학이나 아동영화에서 환상성은 창작의 요소로 인정된다. 뿐만 아니라 최고지도자의 우상화와 관련된 혁명설화나 혁명역사의 등의 ‘환상’이 공존하고 있다. 고전 수용에서 적용된 인민의 염원이라는 명분은 최고지도자와 관련된 환상적인 이야기를 수용하는 토대이기도 하다.