Korean writers and their works. Literature of Korea in the XII-XIV centuries

Korean literature

KOREAN LITERATURE. - Oral K. l. little researched; attention European science attracted ch. arr. Korean fairy tales (trans. 1893). On the development of written K. l. Korea's economic and cultural dependence on China had a huge impact.
Before the creation of its own Korean alphabet in 1446, the so-called. “Hongming Denum” (“correct sounds”, i.e. correct phonetics for teaching the people), the Korean people used Chinese hieroglyphic writing; in other words, Koreans spoke Korean and wrote in Chinese. Hence, naturally, there was a complete break between oral and written speech. There are two points of view on this period in the history of Chinese literature: some argue that although Chinese characters were used and the style and plots were no different from Chinese ones, nevertheless, the presence of our own classical literature must be recognized; for it is the work of Korean writers themselves and reflects the life of the Korean people. Others believe that although it is the work of Korean writers, since it is no different from Chinese in terms of style, plot and writing, it should not be recognized as Korean, but rather as one of the movements of Chinese literature in Korea. In any case, the emergence and further development of genuine K. l. as such was conceivable only if there was a Korean written language of its own, combining written and oral speech into a single whole.
The enormous advantage of the new Korean alphabet over Chinese characters is the completeness of sound designations, ease of writing, and the convenience of the alphabet for teaching literacy. But due to the influence of China on Korea, the consolidation of Chinese characters (according to historical data, hieroglyphs first appeared in Korea in the 1st century, and already in the 2nd century there were attempts to plant ancient Chinese literature), which had taken deep roots there, was strong enough to have a great impact resistance to the widespread dissemination and popularization of the Korean alphabet. Sinophile scholars, who enjoyed great prestige at that time, were ardent opponents of the mandatory introduction of the Korean alphabet and its replacement of Chinese characters. The new Korean alphabet became the property of almost exclusively women and poorly educated people as the most backward in culturally part of the population. The passion for Chinese writing remained in great fashion even after the creation of the new Korean alphabet, not only among scientists and writers, but also among educated people in general for more than 400 years, and all the works of the great Korean writers were not only written in hieroglyphic writing, but also in terms of style and in terms of plot, they represented just one of the trends in Chinese literature. This literature, not to mention the numerous works of poets of various magnitudes, includes the complete collection, which is highly valued by Koreans. composition Toige (1498-1568), a poet of great importance to this day. From writers modern era Let's point out a major master - Unyang.
The artificial implantation of the ideas of Confucianism, in particular its ethics, by the ruling strata, accompanied by the extremely conservative policy of the “Chinese Wall,” contributed to a passion for the classical forms of poetry, didactics, etc. and a disdain for the story, drama, and lyrics. The famous story about the girl Chunhyang and many lyrical works were not appreciated at the time as artistic creativity and attracted attention much later. The Tale of the Chunhyang Girl is High artistic merit and draws the feudal system in Korea, expressing the indignation of the people against unheard of exploitation and cruel oppression ruling circles, against the injustice of old feudal customs. So. arr. Korean feudal literature existed only in the form of “Koreanized” Chinese literature, because it was completely divorced from the masses, being only the monopoly property of a small circle of intelligentsia. Small “folk” stories of that time, poor in content, few in quantity and low in quality, cannot be considered literature. Only “shizo” and “gasa” (shizo and gasa, similar to the Japanese “waka” and “haiku”, have a completely unique rhythm exclusively in Korean) were one of the types of genuine national art(Collected works. Noge, 1589), but this area of creativity was ignored by the so-called. educated circles.
True story K. l. we need to start with late XIX, beginning of the 20th century, since the appearance bourgeois literature. The first step towards creating an independent K. l. translations of classical European and Japanese literary works writers Lee Insig, Choi Namsen, Cho Ilzai, Lisankhev. Following this, they began to appear independent works Korean writers themselves, differing from previous literary works in style and plot: Lee Kuangsu, Hyun Sosen, Zin Sun Sen, Min Ubo. It should be especially noted important role Li Kuangsu in the design of the new literary movement. More in works early period(“Golden Mirror”, “The Sorrow of a Young Man”, “Quan Ho”, the stories “Letters to a Young Friend”, “No Mercy” and “The Predecessor”) Li Kuangsu raised high the banner of the struggle against the decaying old feudal morality, preaching complete freedom of the individual. This was the first arrow aimed against old traditions. His preaching of freedom of love met with the warmest response from the youth of that time.
Choi Namsen and Lee Kuangsu were the creators of the new style. Their merits in this matter are enormous. But both of these writers, starting around 1920, followed the path of reformist conciliation in the national liberation movement anyway. arr. lost all their authority. IN Lately both of them work mainly on historical topics. Li Kuangsu in his works of the period after 1919 ("Conductor", "Golden Cross", "Bloody Letter", "Holy Death" and a number of others) comes more and more towards humanism; In addition to his stories and novels, Lee Kuangsu is known for his poetry and journalistic articles and is the most prolific of all modern Korean writers. Kim Donin, Yeem Sansef, Den Yentak, Hyun Dingeng, La Bin, Chu Yohan, Kim Soool, Ben Suchu, Yang Muay, Kim Anse together with Li Kuangsu - creators and major representatives modern Korean bourgeois literature. Among the poets, it should be noted Chu Yohan (“Rain”, “Treasure”, etc.), Kim Soukol (“Mountain”, “Road”, etc.), Ben Suchu (“Longai”, the name of the heroine of the poem, “River”), Yang Muay (“After Separation”, “After Three Years”, etc.), Kim Ansei (“Spring Wind”, “Olmi Island”, “Mount Samgak”). However, poetry lags far behind prose both quantitatively and qualitatively.
As for drama, we can name Kim Unden, Yun Pyaknam, Kim Yenpar, Yu Dino, Kim Taisu and others, but so far there has been no serious success in this area. In the field of “sizo”, prominent authors are Choi Namsen, Lee Kuangsu, Chu Johan, Choun, Uidang, Karam, etc. Also popular in the field of short stories are Ban Ingun, Yun Boktin, Kim Kano, Dean Dansef, etc.
The beginning of the formation of proletarian literature in Korea should be dated back to 1924-1925. Bourgeois writers preached “the need to create an independent national literature for each nation, taking into account the specific conditions of the past and present of each nation.” At the other pole, voices were heard about the need to create class proletarian literature as one of the means of struggle for the interests of one’s class, a struggle related to the tasks of protecting the national interests of the oppressed nation. This movement was led by the poet and publicist Kim Kidin. In the poems “The Mountain of White Hands”, “The Waited Heart” and in the article “At the Cross Bridge” and others, he was the first to pose the question in full. Nak Yonghee, Cho Myonghee, Kim Donghwan Kim Lesu, Tsoi Sehai, Lee Kieng, Han Selya Lee Yksang responded to his call and united into a league of proletarian writers. IN new program League of Proletarian Writers, adopted in 1927, we read: “In the class struggle we stand on the point of view of the Marxist understanding historical process. Considering proletarian literature as one of the fronts of the struggle of the proletariat, we pose the following tasks:
1. decisive struggle against feudal-bourgeois ideology;
2. the struggle against the barbaric regime and despotism;
3. the struggle to create a conscious class asset.”
Some proletarian writers take direct part in the revolutionary movement of the working class. Since proletarian literature is still in the formative stage, it naturally lags behind nationalist literature in a purely artistic sense, but nevertheless surpasses it many times in energy and enthusiasm. Proletarian writers proclaim the so-called "dialectical realism". Of course, we can only talk about Korean proletarian literature conditionally, since it is still developing to a large extent under the sign of petty-bourgeois radicalism. Bibliography:
Courant M., Bibliographie coreenne, “Publications de l’ecole des langues orientales vivantes”, v. I, P., 1895, v. II, P., 1895, v. III, P., 1896; Supplement a la bibliographie, P., 1901. General overview in volume I - “Introduction”, pp. XIX-CLXXXIX.

Literary encyclopedia. - At 11 t.; M.: Publishing House of the Communist Academy, Soviet Encyclopedia, Fiction. Edited by V. M. Fritsche, A. V. Lunacharsky. 1929-1939 .

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Koreans and books

Unfortunately, the modern Russian reader knows almost nothing about South Korean literature. This is largely the result of the prohibitions that existed in the country for several decades. USSR to any, even the most seemingly harmless contacts with South Korea. Meanwhile, Koreans are a reading nation, and Korean writers have created last decades very interesting literature, about which, however, in the USSR / RF / CIS nothing is really known even to specialists.

However, today I will not talk about modern Korean literature, its features and problems. I myself am not very competent in this, and I can only hope that this gap in Russians’ understanding of Korea will be replenished sooner or later. Our topic is different - not korean literature or the book business itself, and the role that books (both fiction and others) play in Everyday life Koreans.

Although I began the article with the statement that Koreans are a “reading nation,” statistics show that in terms of the number of books read, Koreans are inferior to residents of some developed countries. However, I am not going to go back on my words. The fact is that, although the country has social groups, whose representatives cannot imagine life without books, not all Koreans read a lot. The statistics are primarily “spoilt” by representatives of the stronger sex, aged 25 to 55 years, that is, working Koreans. Indeed, working Koreans read little, if at all, and it would be strange if things were different: spending 8-11 hours at work and then another 1-2 hours in a crowded subway or in a car that makes its way at a snail's pace through countless traffic jams, a person returning from work is unlikely to pick up a book. At best, he will limit himself to TV and a newspaper, but rather, after exchanging a few words with his wife and children, he will go to bed.

The reading audience consists of that part of Koreans who, on the one hand, have education and a taste for reading, and on the other, the leisure time necessary for this activity. Such people include, in particular, students (schoolchildren are too busy - they are preparing for entrance exams), teachers and lecturers, housewives and, partly, working young women, who in their offices bear much less load and responsibility than their male colleagues. The predominance of women in the Korean reading public is obvious (one local critic once stated that the proportion of women among prose readers in Korea is 80%).

Number of book titles published in Korea in 1996 it was exactly twice as much as in 1980 (26,674 and 13,062, respectively). The total circulation increased during this time even more significantly - three times. However, volume growth slowed down around 1990 and since then Korea Approximately 26-29 thousand book titles are published per year. This is a good indicator. In terms of the number of book titles, Korea is only two times smaller than USA(with a population five times smaller), and two and a half times larger than India(with a population 20 times smaller). IN Russia in 1994, 30,390 book titles were published, which is slightly more than in Korea. At the same time, we must remember that our population is three times larger. Thus, the Korean indicators are quite good.

Speaking about Korean books, one cannot help but note their relative cheapness. A mass-produced book in soft cover, regular format, with good quality paper and printing, approximately 300 pages in volume, costs Korea somewhere around 6-8 thousand won ($5-7). For a monograph or limited edition in hardcover you had to pay 15-25 thousand won ($12-20). This price may seem expensive to a Russian reader, but in fact, compared to prices for similar books in Western countries, it is surprisingly low (a mass-produced regular-size book costs America 15-20 dollars, and a special monograph in hardcover - from 40 to 100 dollars).

What does a modern Korean city dweller read? If we talk about fiction, then in the seventies, the most popular were serious books devoted to philosophical issues of human existence. It is significant that this was a time of fascination with classical Russian literature, the influence of which reached its peak in those years. In the eighties, democratization and the easing of censorship restrictions led to the flowering of the political and historical novel. This novel is in South Korea was (and usually still is) left-wing, often even pro-communist in nature. The books often featured strike organizers or communist guerrillas during the Korean War. Of course, such publications caused gnashing of teeth among the conservative part of the establishment, but they enjoyed considerable commercial success (the recent “forbidden fruit” is sweet), so the publishing houses, freed from censorship control, published them willingly.

In the nineties, the collapse of the socialist system and the depoliticization and deideologization of Korean society led to the fact that interest in these works, and in serious literature in general, decreased significantly by the mid-nineties. The era of the entertaining novel has come, the time of light reading has come. Real, “high” literature has also largely reoriented itself from the problems of society to issues of individual life and the inner world of man.

Actually entertaining literature in Korea, that is, so to speak, “low genres”, is represented mainly by translated American publications. Among the entertainment genres, the detective story, both criminal and spy-political, dominates. Although in Korea and there is its own detective story tradition, but the vast majority prefer translations Western authors. This also applies to all kinds of thrillers and adventure literature, as well as science fiction. Popularity of science fiction in Korea generally lower than in Russia or Western countries. If we talk about the genre of magical fiction that has been fashionable in recent years (" fantasy"), then he is in Korea generally resides somewhere on the outskirts of the book market. At the same time, there are millions of urban housewives in the country, who form perhaps the only group of the adult population with free time. They create fertile ground for the spread of "ladies'" love stories here.

One of the features Korea is that all kinds of documentary and semi-documentary works are very popular among the local reading public: essays, popular science publications, travel essays. Unlike many other countries, these publications in Korea in their popularity among the mass reader they are not inferior to fiction. A significant part of such publications are translations, so that almost all notable Western works devoted to history, politics, economics, and philosophy appear in Korean very soon after their publication in the original.

Koreans in general are quite familiar with world literature, although its perception - the selection of books for translation, the authority of this or that writer - generally reflects American assessments and traditions, which are in many ways different from those to which the Russian reader is accustomed. Related to this is Koreans’ good knowledge of American and English-language literature in general, while noticeably less attention is paid to writers from other countries. However, some of the traditional cultural ties have their influence, and, for example, Chinese historical novel, both classic and modern, are very loved by Koreans.

Russian literature penetrated into Korea back in the colonial period (in secondary translations from Japanese or, less often, from English) and enjoyed considerable popularity there, especially in the sixties and seventies. In the last couple of decades, a decrease in interest in serious literature has led to the fact that the popularity of Russian authors has decreased somewhat, but it still remains quite high (President Kim Tae-jung, for example, considers his favorite authors Dostoevsky And Chekhov, which he read a lot in prison at one time). Which works of Russian literature Koreans know best can be judged from the popular reference book “200 best works world literature." Russian literature is represented in it by 5 titles: " Brothers Karamazov", "Fathers and Sons", "Anna Karenina", "Mother", "Lady with a dog"For some reason it didn't get there, really," Crime and Punishment", which is also very popular in Korea.A.N. Lankov
01.01.1999

We often think in cliches. For example, when quoting the immortal phrase that the East is a delicate matter, we mean the depth and originality of the Eastern perception of the world. And at the same time, we have a very vague idea of what is hidden in this depth. Try to name at least a few Asian authors of the last century or our contemporaries. At best, the Japanese of the second or third wave will be remembered: Abe Kobo or Kawabata, Haruki Murakami or the eccentric Mishima Yukio. But not only Japanese literature It is distinguished by a variety of genres and subjects, a special view of the world and an unexpected, fresh for us, perception of reality. We invite you to take a short excursion into the colorful and exciting world of modern Asian literature.

Reflections on Feelings: Contemporary Korean Literature

Korean literature was discovered by the Russian reader quite recently; just 15 years ago, translations of authors from this country were vanishingly rare. Today in Russian you can find original Korean melodrama, piercing historical prose, and philosophical lyrics. Here are a few works that will give an idea of the world of modern Korean prose.

Lee Seung Woo Secret life plants. A story about brotherly devotion and betrayal, about love and the meaning of life. Quite tough and biting, the book attracts attention with the development of the plot and juicy tongue. Each character has his own secrets, because each of us has roots, like trees and grass, but the understanding of these very roots, the attitude towards them can vary greatly even among members of the same family. Recommended for those who appreciate psychological dramas with intense plots and good language.

Lee Moon Yeol. Collection of two stories- “Our spoiled hero. Meeting with my brother." The author's name is well known both in South Korea and in the world literary arena. He is perhaps the most published Korean abroad. It has not been translated in Russia for a long time, and this book is the first experience. Lee Moon Yeol chose both stories for translation into Russian on his own. Their genre can be defined as everyday life. Vivid everyday sketches, lively characters, gentle humor, and sometimes quite sharp satire. The book is especially recommended for those who are at least slightly interested in the lives of people of other cultures. TO nice features what was previously called humanism should be attributed to love for people. The author clearly shows this feeling.

Jeong Unyoung. How She Uses Her Tears (collection of short stories). Korean postmodernity, coupled with Eastern concentration and the ability to concentrate, brought out a whole company of heroes with a difficult fate and even more complicated relationships. Vices, mistakes and delusions of a person, retribution and the subsequent twists of fate - all this is in the short stories of Chung Unyoung. Literature lovers will find parallels with Burroughs and other postmodern classics. However, the Korean version is also enhanced by extreme fatality, an understanding of inevitability human destiny. In short, a great read for art house lovers.

Lee Hochul. Southerners and northerners. An excellent opportunity to gain insight into the conflict between South and North Korea from the point of view of the direct participant. Academic reading will not work - the memories are too vivid, the wounds are too fresh. The author talks about the history of the country, passes it through the fate of one person. The novel is written quite harshly in places, so it has age restrictions. Recommended for lovers of realistic literature with a historical background.

One of the distinctive features of Korean literature is attention to the characters and feelings of the heroes, through which they learn the world and form their attitude towards it. This relationship is always dynamic, it changes day by day, just like the person himself.

Feelings, realism, allegories: modern Chinese literature

The literature of each country reflects its history and stages of development. In this sense, China is perceived rather one-sidedly, either as the birthplace of “red plays” glorifying the Party or as endless criticism of the same Party, which is carried out by writers who have left the country. Modern Chinese literature is much more complex and varied than many people think about it. Here are just a few samples.

Sheng Kei. Sisters from the North. An unexpectedly frank story on a banal topic - the conquest of a big city by provincial women. Fresh presentation, humor, bright characters, a dose of adventurism and growing intrigue turn an ordinary story into a real adventure. The most appropriate definition for the work would be “a psychological women's novel.” The quality of the book was noted by numerous critics, the novel was nominated for the Asian Literary Award, which is also called the “Asian Booker”.

Mai Jia. CONSPIRACY. An action-packed book that tells about a special unit of the intelligence department, which was formed from people with special talents and abilities. Three parts cover the period of the 30s to the 60s. Fans of the genre will find here a light style, adventure, passion, and brilliant insights. In China itself, the book was a huge success - a TV series was made based on it, and the author was nominated for the country's highest literary award.

Bi Feiyu. Collection “Moonlight Opera”- perhaps the most famous creation in our literary stores. Five stories, each of which is separate work, with its own mood and that unique atmosphere that makes every book by this author both expected and popular. The collection includes stories about everyday life and love, about people of different social strata. Regular human feelings, ups, downs, hopes and dreams - it's all in the book. It is interesting to get acquainted with it, at least from the point of view of understanding modern Chinese reality.

Mo Yan. Country of wine. A book published by the laureate Nobel Prize according to literature, in itself deserves attention. And if the novel is a bright and sharp satirical work in which fairy tales, reality, myths and allegories are strangely intertwined, then it is definitely worth reading. At least in order to understand what kind of term “hallucinogenic realism” was invented by Swedish academics specifically for the books of this writer. “Wine Country” is a strange, but bright thing. It is difficult to compare it with anything; you need to form a personal opinion about it. The plot centers on the correspondence between a provincial graphomaniac and a metropolitan writer. The former accompanies his works with generous offerings in the form of wine and vodka, the latter writes his reviews clearly under growing doses of gratitude. However, this is far from the only story line novel, but retelling the entire labyrinth of the plot is a futile exercise. This book requires personal acquaintance to form your own impression.

In China itself, the explicit genre is very popular. women's novels, as well as a combination of realism and revolutionary romanticism, which is the official literary direction. In general, modern Chinese literature presents a bizarre mixture of sensuality, grit, fairy tale and drama.

Mysterious Reality: Contemporary Indian Literature

It would seem that everything should be simpler with India than with Korea or even China. Many books have been written about this country, but finding examples of modern Indian literature translated into Russian turned out to be not such an easy task.

Ananta Murthy. Samskara. The novel takes place in a small Indian village and tells about the life and customs of the Brahmin caste. The new realities of today's world hardly penetrate the hard caste system India, but still changes occur and we have to cope with them. The book is interesting from the inside view, from the person who is built into this very system. A very worthy thing that will definitely appeal to those who want to better understand this amazing country and its people.

Rohinton Mistry. Family matters. Under this common name lies a description of the life of the fire-worshipping community. The author himself is connected with them by birth, so his descriptions and stories are colorful, they live their own special, incomprehensible life, like any good text. To briefly describe the plot, the novel is about love, about the obstacles in the path of loving hearts that faith and religion erect. Well, the main question is what a person is willing to do in the name of love, and will love accept his sacrifice? Rohinton Mistry is very popular in Europe, and Family Matters is a 2002 Booker shortlisted film.

Anosh Irani. Song of Kahunshi. The young writer created his own version of the adventures of Oliver Twist, only in an Indian way. The homeless child Chamdi ends up in huge Bombay, where he first finds friends and then shelter, but at the same time gets into serious trouble with a gang of criminals. True, critics prefer to compare the story with another modern masterpiece - “The Kite Runner”. But it's not that important. The main thing is that the book turned out to be very bright, juicy, and recognizable. It has drama, intrigue, characters, faith in man and a distinct taste of Indian measured fate - all living beings have their destiny and we all have to fulfill it.

Modern Indian literature has a recognizable appearance, exotic, reliable, unusually bright. Here the focus is not just on a person, but on his connection with the world. The theme of fate or fate often arises, but a person is expected to act, to actively fulfill what is assigned, which greatly distinguishes Indian literature from the works of its eastern neighbors.

Asian literature provides enormous scope for the application of intellectual effort, but if you wish, you can always find light, not too burdensome reading that will introduce you to the customs and morals of people living not so far from us.

Part 3.

The book consists of twelve short stories in which two elements confront each other - calming, all-washing water and destructive fire. Life is a river in which a hidden flame is hidden - passions, vices and desires that burn everything in its path, which often lead to monstrous acts...

Part 4.

Kim Seung Ok (born 1941) is one of the outstanding modern Korean writers, an excellent master of prose. Despite the fact that among the prose writers of modern Korean literature, its duration literary activity is relatively short, the few works he created, in which the turning point of the era of the sixties of the 20th century are perfectly depicted through the eyes of a contemporary, have a unique individuality. Thanks to his sensual style, lively and apt language, and laconic presentation, Kim Seung Ok has a reputation as an “alchemist of prose.” Critics define his work as a “revolution of sensuality.”

Kim Seung Ok's talent is multifaceted: he became famous both as a cartoonist and as a screenwriter and director. He is the recipient of many of Korea's most prestigious literary awards.

Part 5.

The novel is about gisaeng, about lung women behavior is an integral part of Korean culture, which played a large role in the formation and understanding of the role of women in society. Kisaeng is not a prostitute in the everyday sense of the word. Kisaengs appeared during the Goryeo Dynasty (935–1392). These were performers who entertained kings at feasts. They often achieved heights in art, poetry and literature.

To find peace and harmony of the soul, it is useful for each of us to look back from time to time. After all, the future often hides behind our actions in the past. Understanding the past can give us the key to solving the problems of the future and help us gain strength to live on. The story of a kisaeng's life as described in the novel should make us stop for a moment, look back and think about what we sometimes forget due to the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

Part 7.

On June 25, 1950, North Korea attacked South Korea. The Korean War began, in which UN troops - sixteen states, including the United States - took part. At first almost the entire territory South Korea was occupied by North Korean troops. However, some time later, UN troops drove them back. Moreover, they occupied almost the entire territory of North Korea. It seemed that the unification of the country was inevitable. But on January 4, 1951, Korean War Communist China's army of two million entered; UN troops and the South Korean army were forced to retreat.

The author of this book was mobilized into the Korean People's Army in early July 1950, and was captured in early October of the same year. National Army South Korea. Being in the thick of things during that turbulent time, he had the opportunity to personally observe the relationship between the North and the South.

For readers over 14 years old.

Part 8.

Lee Moon Yeol (born 1948) is one of the most famous modern South Korean prose writers. The first collection, published in Russia, included two stories telling about the recent history of South Korea and about a person’s search for his place in this history.

For readers over 14 years old.

Part 9.

Kim Yong-soo (b. 1970) is a South Korean writer, popular in his homeland and abroad. His works have been translated into English, French, Japanese, Chinese and other languages. Winner of many literary prizes of the Republic of Korea. The collection “The Girl at the End of the World” includes nine stories written from 2005 to 2009 and united by the theme of relationships between people.

For readers over 16 years old.

Part 10.

Kim Young-soo (b. 1970) is one of the most popular writers of modern Korea. My literary career started in 1993 as a poet and already in next year published his first novel, I Walk Showing a Mask. Kim Yong-soo's works have been awarded numerous prestigious literary awards.

Let's imagine that you become the owner of a superpower. How will you use it? Will you be able to resist temptations and use it only for the benefit of people, or will you submit to those who seek to use your ability for their own selfish purposes? A fifteen-year-old boy, Kim Jonghoon, who has received the gift of reading other people's thoughts, is trying to find the answer to this question.

In the XII-XIV centuries. A new type of Korean prose in Hanmun is developing - works of small forms - Paesol (cf. Chinese - Baisho). The authors of many of them were famous poets: Lee Inno, Lee Gyubo, Choe Ja (1118-1260).

Their works are a collection of narrative miniatures, untitled and not separated from each other. Typically, phaesol collections are significant in volume: they include up to ten and sometimes more books (kwons).

Phaesol literature reflects general trend era - emerging in the XII-XIV centuries. the desire to revise the well-known Confucian view of man from a Taoist position, since the writer is not interested in his official, state activities here.

A person wearing phaesol is often depicted as a participant in an unusual adventure or at the moment when he, admiring the beauty of nature, composes poetry.

Nevertheless, the hero remains a historical figure, and his image is still ideal. For the first time, the landscape becomes the object of depiction in fiction. The attention of literature has so far been attracted by “ideal”, conventionally beautiful nature. But such a landscape is localized geographically and static.

The emergence of baesol literature speaks of the development of the element of description, as well as the awakening of interest in a sharp, entertaining plot - thereby separating literary prose from historical writing.

At the same time, there is a certain penetration artistic origin into historical prose of the 12th-14th centuries: “unofficial stories” - yasa (Chinese - yeshi) - are widely used in it. special kind historical works, usually compiled by private individuals.

The most notable monument of this type is the work “Samguk Yusa” (1285), already mentioned in another connection, written by the Buddhist mentor Iryong. He set himself the task of collecting and recording everything that was not included in the historical works of the past, first of all, “Samguk Sagi” by Kim Busik.

He uses legends and traditions going back to folklore about the founders of states and the birth of the Vanir, about the construction of cities and temples, episodes that accompanied the creation poetic works, strange incidents, etc.

Iryong carefully collects and records samples artistic creativity of the Korean people, which he borrows from the “Ancient Writings” and, obviously, from oral literature.

In Iren’s work, along with the normative image of a person, suggested by Confucian ideas about what should be, another was created, which reflected special type relationship to the world.

It merged the Buddhist and Taoist understanding of man as an entity independent of society, not subject to the world of social connections with its usual norms. These ideas entered the literature, apparently, in connection with a change in sentiment in Korean society in the 12th-13th centuries, which was expressed in a general passion for Taoism.

Attention to literature of the XII-XIII centuries. to a person who had fallen out of official relationships, uncontrolled by the authorities, and turning to the funny, unexpected opened up great opportunities in terms of further development literature to plot.

Despite the different nature of Samguk Sagi and Samguk Yusa, the principle of depicting a person has not changed. The person in “Yusa” is still a historical or pseudo-historical person (even the most fantastic stories are historically localized).

The image of a person is ideal: it grows either from Confucian views on the individual and its place in the sphere of state and family relations (cf., for example, the stories about the loyal subject Kim Jaesan or about the devoted daughter who sold herself into slavery in order to feed her blind mother ), or from the Taoist-Buddhist idea of a person who is not subject to the world of social relations. The depiction of people and events is one-dimensional. The inner world of man did not occupy the literature of that time.

In Iren’s works one can see the first attempts to describe a person’s appearance. Each feature of his character is symbolic, significant and associated with one or another famous appearance; for example, a synonym tall The height of the Yin Tian-i has become, the regal face of the future ruler is compared with the “dragon-like face of the Han Gao-zu”, the eyebrows - with the “eight eyebrows of the Tang Gao”.

Combinations of these “signs” replaced portraits in the literature of that time. The same technique is used when moral character. Suffice it to say that so-and-so is similar to Jie and Zhou, and it should be clear to the reader that we are talking about a bad ruler. Subsequently, this method of comparison became firmly established in Korean literature.

The first period of the history of Korean literature ends with the advent of literary prose as an independent region literary creativity. For Korean literature, it was a formative stage, and this is its main significance. It was then that the main distinctive features of literature were formed, which passed through its entire subsequent history.

These features were determined by the fact that Korean medieval literature arose as a result of the interaction of two cultural traditions: originally unwritten Korean and written common to East Asia, Chinese. This was reflected primarily in the bilingualism of medieval Korean literature, which has been observed since the first stage of its development.

On Hanmun until the 20th century. all the literature of traditional scholarship was created - historical, philosophical works. Already at the first stage, Korean works included the principles of depicting a person and methods of constructing a work, suggested by the Confucian tradition.

However, Korean authors included materials from the oral tradition in their non-plot works (for example, plot legends about the founders of states and stories about outstanding people), presented information about national history, quoted Korean speeches and examples of literary creativity. This use of Korean material created a special look for hanmun works, despite their lack of plot.

Brilliant poetry in Hanmun was also created in Korea. Already from the 11th century. Hanmun literature is officially assigned the role of “high” literature by the state.

At the same time, other literature also grew on Korean soil, the formation of which was facilitated by Buddhist and Taoist ideas about the world and man.

In this line of Korean literature, local literature was much stronger folklore tradition legends, apocryphal tales, traditions. This area of literature is represented by phaesol and some types of Buddhist biographies.

Written literature on native language At first it was recorded using the walking method, and from the middle of the 15th century. - using the Korean phonetic alphabet. It also shows the interpenetration of two cultural trends.

In prose, this was apparently reflected in the influence of the style of historical works, in poetry - in the gradual assimilation of poetic literary imagery from the Buddhist and secular Chinese traditions. It is quite natural that in this literature national trends were decisive.

The type of interaction between two cultural traditions that developed during this period in Idu literature was characteristic of Korean poetry in the native language (shijo, kasa) and subsequently, during the Late Middle Ages.

With the subsequent development of artistic prose, the actual artistic genres. This fiction perceives the main features that were determined during the period of formation.

For example, the Korean story and novel of a later period were undoubtedly influenced by the principles of depicting a person, the stylization of artistic prose “to match history,” didactics, etc., put forward by the prose of the 12th-13th centuries.

Poetry in subsequent times not only inherited the elements of Chinese imagery that developed in the hyangga, but also in some genres developed the structural possibilities provided by ancient poetry in its native language.

Subsequently, Korean literature abandoned a number of features inherent in it during this period. Thus, the influence of ancient folklore - legends about the founders of early states - can be traced only until the 14th century. All this was inevitably connected with the forward movement of literature.

Story world literature: in 9 volumes / Edited by I.S. Braginsky and others - M., 1983-1984.