무정

by 이광수

한국 근현대문학사에서 중요한 위치에 있는 작가들의 작품을 만나보는 「한국문학을 권하다」 제14권 『무정』. 문학으로서의 읽는 즐거움을 살린 쉬운 해설과 편집, 단행본으로 출간된 적 없는 작품들도 수록한 총서 가운데 한 권이다. 이 책은 저자 생전 마지막으로 간행된 박문서관본(1938)을 원문으로 하여 신문 연재본을 비롯한 여러 판본들을 참조해 잘못이 명백한 부분을 바로잡았다. 작가 고정욱이 이광수의 작품을 읽었던 청소년 시기의 감동을 글로 담아 한국문학을 즐겁게 소개하고 있다.

Genres: Fiction, Classics, 1917, Read For School, Literature, School

415 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1917

Reviews

[James F · Rating 3 out of 5]

A translation of Yi Kwang-Su's novel Mujŏng, "The Heartless", with a lengthy introduction and bibliography (about 20% of the total pages) by the translator Ann Lee. Yi's novel is an essential "classic" for anyone interested in modern Korean literature, because of its historical influence; it was the first novel written in modern vernacular Korean (although that isn't obvious in translation) and one of the first modern Korean novels to take on serious themes -- modernization (or westernization) vs. neo-Confucian traditionalism, arranged marriages, female slavery and concubinage, the position of women in general, ideas about education, and so forth. The subjects are relevant and important, the plot is interesting, the structure (as Lee points out) is based partly on Tolstoy's Resurrection.

Unfortunately, the actual writing style is rather hard to plow through; it is very didactic, with the omniscient narrator constantly explaining what the characters (and modern Koreans) ought to do and arguing against the traditional ideas. Even worse, the style is very repetitive, with basically the same sentence repeated three, four, or five times with minor variations. Let this paragraph (p.309-310) serve as a typical example of the writing, with both problems:

"However, this love was a sympathy like that of someone who jumps into the water to save someone who is drowning. It was effective for a moment, but would not last long. The love between husband and wife should not be like that. It should be such that one could only live if the other lived. One could only be happy if the other was happy. One became one body with the other. Sŏn-hyŏng's love for Hyŏng-sik was like sympathty for a drowning person."

Another form of repetition is the summarizing of things which we saw happening a few chapters before; this is undoubtedly because the novel, like most early Korean novels, was originally published in serial form in a newspaper, but it seems much more intrusive than in other serialized novels I have read from the period (or from earlier in the West, e.g. the novels of Dickens.)

The main characters in the novel are Pak Yŏng-ch'ae, the daughter of a pioneering schoolteacher called "Scholar Pak", and Hyŏng-sik, a poor, dedicated, modernizing middle school English teacher, who was once as an orphan child taken in as a student and protegé of Scholar Pak. They believe that Pak intended for them to marry each other when Yŏng-ch'ae was old enough. When Scholar Pak and his two sons are arrested and sent to prison because of a theft committed by one of his students, the school breaks up and Yŏng-ch'ae sets out disguised as a boy to try to see her father in prison. She sells herself as a kisaeng to raise money to buy her father's freedom but the money is stolen by the go-between, and her father and brothers die in prison shortly afterwards. To understand the novel, it is necessary to understand that a kisaeng is a sort of slave who entertains clients with singing, music, dancing and other arts, often but not necessarily including sex, similar to a Japanese geisha or an ancient Greek hetaira. It should not be confused with a prostitute in the Western sense who provides only sex. In fact, for eight years Yŏng-ch'ae refuses to have sex with clients, while hoping to find and marry the only person she thinks she can trust, Hyŏng-sik. He, on the other hand, also occasionally thinks of her and imagines that he may meet her and marry her, but it is less of an obsession with him given his different life. Eventually of course they meet and the novel carries on from there, but diverging from the expected clichés of the usual novels of the period.

Hyŏng-sik is apparently intended to represent the champion of modernization, but this is not always credible, for example when he spends several boring chapters moping around obsessing over whether or not Yŏng-ch'ae is a virgin. He also seems to always make bad choices. Lee considers this to be deliberate irony. In any case the "lessons" of the novel are expressed at greatest length and very explicitly by the narrator. (The character who seems the most modern is actually Yŏng-ch'ae's friend Pyŏng-uk, a student who is studying in Tokyo.)

Lee's very academic introduction, which should probably be read after the novel (I make this a regular practice now with fiction, because of spoilers), gives a history of late nineteenth and early twentieth century literature putting Mujŏng in context, explaining how the language it is written in differs from earlier novels which were written in an archaic style or a hybrid Chinese-Korean, and something about the popular genres that Yi is expanding into more serious literature. It describes a little about Yi's life and earlier writings, and gives an analysis of the novel and Yi's political and aesthetic ideals. Unfortunately there is also some postmodernist-feminist psychobabble about "abjection", which she takes from Nina Cornyetz rather than directly from Kristeva. Much of the introduction, however, is concerned with what other scholars have written about Yi -- a standard "survey of the literature" which suggests to me that the translation was probably her dissertation.

[John Armstrong · Rating 3 out of 5]

This work is generally considered to be the first truly modern Korean novel. The language (that is, the Korean of the original) is much more modern than that of traditional and “new” novels, and the thoughts, feelings, and self-awareness of the characters are described in much greater detail than in traditional narratives and provide an abundance – in fact almost a surfeit – of the “interiority” which is a defining feature modern Western fiction.

Nonetheless the characters are at best semi-believable and the plot is closer to melodrama than realism. The book is definitely readable, however, and includes some memorable moments. Some are humorous ones, as when Pyong-uk, introducing herself to the main female character Yang-ch’ae on the train, explains that “her name had been Pyong-ok at first, but she had changed it to Pyong-mok because she thought Pyong-ok seemed too soft and feminine. Pyong-mok, though, was a bit too strong and masculine, so she made her name Pyong-uk, which seemed somewhere in between the other two names.” (p. 274) Others are serious, as when Yong-ch’ae, having just had the virginity which she had protected through all her years as a Kisaeng forcibly taken from her by gang rape, obsesses over the blood flowing from her cut lip, which one suspects is a substitute for a different bleeding that the author does not mention.

But the book has a weakness that has nothing to do with modernity per se, which is the portrayal of the main male character and central focus of the book, Hyong-sik, who many modern readers will see as mercurial, overblown, and generally lacking in substance. How much this simply a failure of writing, and how much it reflects the nature of the author himself, is something to be considered.

[Marielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was the first Korean novel ever written, and for that alone should be read by anyone trying to read the most important literary works of the century.

But, for those of you with less lofty aspirations, I can also recommend this books simply as a novel. The negatives of the book lie almost entirely with the fact it was originally serialized- like many serialized novels, there's a bit too much repetion and review. In addition, some scenes are drawn out inappropriately to create suspense for the next edition as well as increase the number of publications.

Aside from that, this novel is filled with melodrama, suspense, near misses, and villians. It is also rife with cultural references which are alien, but also contains themes so closely aligned with our culture that it's almost hard to believe the book wasn't written here and today. This combination makes the book both easy to identify with and also quite facinating from an anthropological perspective.

[Alexis Grusby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Obviously this book has a lot of history associated with it which I believe makes it an important read on its own. However, story wise I think it’s interesting to look at the plot that’s occurring compared to Hyong-sik’s inner thoughts. I found his way of thinking quite intriguing and the writing does feel modern for the time it was written.

[Salina · Rating 1 out of 5]

wait so my copy was not 300 pages long it was like 270 but anyways I had to read this for Korean lit and it was boring as per usual as my other ones, I mean it's still good and says a lot about the time period in which it was written but I don't feel to bad leaving this review bc the author is dead.

[Horatio · Rating 2 out of 5]

Culturally influential but not an enjoyable read

[kc slay · Rating 2 out of 5]

literally validates my fear of men pt. billion

[khalil · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Nolan Park · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess team Son-hyung won the love triangle. Can’t tell if I liked that it ended this way or not.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Noted as the first modernist novel ever written in Korea, "Mujong", or "The Heartless" by Yi Kwang-su, is a story that takes into account many of the changing aspects of Korean society with its contact with Western influence, thought, and technology. It is probably a predecessor to modern Korean TV dramas as it is highly dramatic, introspective, has a love agenda, and almost unreal in what the characters end up choosing/doing as the story unravels. It really kept me on my toes and wondering what was going to happen next. For those of you who enjoy Korean dramas but in literary form, this would be perfect for you.

[ele · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I hadn't have been forced to read this for a class, I never would have picked it up much less even heard about it. But I'm glad I did. Of course, as a stand alone novel, it may be considered weak or soap-opera-like, but when one understands the historical implications, it becomes fascinating. Lee's purpose for writing this national novel is barely hidden under the surface plot, but that makes it all the more interesting. In addition, the relationships between the characters are constructed well, which adds to the overall Korean brotherhood message.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book poses an interesting question: What does it mean to be 'human'? The relationships in this book are so complicated, which is what makes the story so enthralling. It does become a little too philosophical and idealistic in parts though.

[Tricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would never have chosen this book on my own, despite my interest in East Asian studies. But after reading this book for a class, I must say that I really enjoyed it.