Download Subject: The study on the transforming aspects regarded with the

Subject: The study on the transforming aspects regarded with the sense of life featuring in the early
novels written by Yeom Sang-seop
Abstract
The main purpose of this study is to identify the distinct characteristics of novelist Yeom
Sang-seop’s novels by considering the internal change process of his literary world centering the
transforming aspects regarded with the sense of life featuring in his early novels. Conventional
discussions dealt with life narrowly on the level emphasizing the sense of self or individuality rather
than the implication of life itself. Also the grasp of the self-nature and fictional accomplishments with
the criteria of Western modern concepts caused the overlooking on the then influence of various
thoughts and the Yeom Sang-seop’s independent aspect as an acceptor. In this reason the meaning
of life which is seen in the early novels of him can be understood more concretely by examining the
intellectual tendency of those days, and especially they should be revaluated with ‘life’ which was the
core concept of the then world of thought as the center from understanding his study-abroad period,
the Taishō period.
Yeom Sang-seop didn’t regard life as the thing can be defined in accordance with other
criteria except life itself. Yeom Sang-seop defined life as a source of power that enables us to live
everlasting creative lives and the target we need to pursue for achieving such lives. The viewpoint
mentioned above had affected by Bergson who was at the heart of the Taishō life-ism. However as
like the then Bergson’s idea was reinterpreted variously by Japanese writers, Yeom Sang-seop also
established his own unique sense of life through active internalization. His sense of life expands to
the social dimension beyond the individual dimension. Yeom Sang-seop had struggled to find out the
effective narrative style which can manifest the changing meaning of life. Contrary to scrutiny on
characters’ inner-side description of the novels written in the early 1920s, his description style had
gradually changed to the objective one handling actual reality’s problems since the middle of 1920s.
In this study, the novels till 『Love and guilt』 where the objectification of narrator was attempted and
the characteristics of early novels and the changes within the period of going to Japan once again
were synthetically expressed are set as the early novels, and inquired under the division into three
periods according to the changing aspects concerning the sense of life.
Yeom Sang-seop’s novels which were published in the early 1920s are the figuration of critical
perception towards the world with the scrutiny into the inner side of characters that are depressed or
frustrated due to the world suppressing the individual lives. The narrators in 「A tree frog in the
specimen room」, 「A dark night」, and 「Death and its shadow」 refuse the life compromising with
living and fate and emphasize the self-will towards life. In this process of introspection, the
observation of others and the world is conducted but the inner-withdrawal of ego or exclusive
properties are not found. Thus, the narrative style focusing on the inner side needs to be understood
as the writer’s intention to manifest effectively the consideration on the world suppressing lives rather
than the excessive subjectivity.
「Watch Night」 is also distinguished from other two novels mentioned above because of its
strong unrealistic attribute, and can be considered with 「Mr. E」 since both of them are showing
conflicts and confrontations between the mechanical view of life and the creative view of life. The
mechanical view of life which suppresses individual lives are seen as the problem of heredity in
「Watch Night」 and the reality of school that refuses and materialize the creativity of life in 「Mr. E」.
The criticism on the world dominated by the mechanical view of life comes up through the processes
of endeavor and frustration undergone by characters.
The sense of life in Yeom Sang-seop’s novels thereafter proceeded to the direction of
discovering the importance of relationship with social community for realizing individual lives. Getting
out of the tendency for unfolding description centering a character’s inner side, in 「A sunflower」 and
「What did you gain」, narrators appear in front, conduct psychological descriptions on multiple
characters, and strongly criticize the characters lost their own sincerity. Especially 「What did you
gain」 rouses the necessity of examination on manifestation of individual lives on the social level over
the coverage of individual refinement. 「Ten thousand years ago」ends up with the suggestion of
self-centered life which can be considered as the manifestation of individual lives, and such ending is
made on the basis of awakening concerning others and communities. This novel shows the
description style of scrutiny on characters’ inner side and objective description attitude towards the
external world at once because it was completed in 1924 following 「A cemetery」 published in 1922.
Such description style expressed effectively the main theme of 「Ten thousand years ago」 which
aimed at linkage between the manifestation of individual lives and the awakening of the world.
Further more Yeom Sang-seop published novels showing the expansion of the sense of life
from the individual level to the social level by cognizing concrete reality and having the will to reform
reality. 「A biological mother」 and 「A rotary press」 are handling the cognition towards communities
and the limitation of individual lives. 「Did you pick up the pearl」 is also showing dramatically a
character feeling keenly the necessity of breaking down reality while spotting the reality where he
can’t realize his ideals. This novel conducts description centering character’s actions, and shows a
tragic irony caused by the conflict between ideals and reality. Meanwhile, Yeom Sang-seop’s period of
going to Japan once again is considered as a important starting point of his literary world’s
transformation since he became to cognize various literary form experiments, the Chosun dynasty’s
reality, and the nation in earnest at that time. 「Nam Chung-seo」 and 『Love and Guilt』 are showing
the sense of life’s movement towards spotting the nation and society while embracing individual
problems. Especially at that time, Yeom Sang-seop didn’t neglect individual anguish even while he
was realizing the world in general during writing process of full-length novels. The Chosun dynasty’s
reality and the nation are rediscovered during the process for establishing self-identity while pursuing
life through the arts, the love affairs, and etc, thus social self-identity is established and the meaning
of life is reinterpreted as ‘sacrificing love’.
The viewpoint concentrating on the sense of life in the early novels of Yeom Sang-seop
makes the attributes of the self shown in his novels that couldn’t be explained fully with the Western
modern concepts can be understood, and also clarifies the process of his literary internal changes.
Additionally it offers meaningful and organic explanation for novels’ immanent value and
social·historical context by the chain of examinations regarded with the mind as a writer and the
methods of creation.
Key words: The sense of life, the Taishō life-ism, Bergson, palpitation of life, inner side, depression, the
self, the mechanical view of life, narrator, tragic irony