Yi Tae Jun (1904-early 1960s) was a Korean novelist. He attended Hwimun High School until his expulsion in his fourth year, after which he traveled to Japan as an international student. In 1925, he submitted his short story “Oh Mong-nyeo” (오몽녀 Oh Mong-nyeo) to Joseon Mundan and was named the winner. The same year, he made his literary debut via the Sidae Ilbo daily. Yi is known the short stories “Gamagwi” (가마귀 Crow) like and “Dalbam” (달밤 Moonlit Night), novels such as “Guwonui yeosang” (구원의 여상 The Feminine Statue of Salvation) and “Sasangui worya” (사상의 월야 Moonlit Night of Ideology), and the syntax theory text “Munjangganghwa” (문장강화 Strengthening of Sentences).
1. Life
Yi Tae Jun (pen name Sang-heo) was born on November 4, 1904, at Jinmyeong-ri, Myojang-myeon, Cheolwon-gun, Gangwon Province. In 1909, he migrated to Vladivostok with his father Yi Chang-ha, a pro-enlightenment intellectual, but the death of his father in August that year led to Yi’s return to Korea and settlement at Baegimi (梨津) in North Hamgyeong Province, where he learned Classical Chinese at the local seodang. Following his mother’s death in 1912, Yi was passed from one relative to another and managed to graduate from Bongmyeong Elementary School in Cheolwon, but ran away from home and wandered for two years. In 1921, he entered Hwimun High School and encountered Lee “Garam” Byeong-gi, who took him in as a writing student. In 1924, Yi became the editor of the school magazine Hwimun, but he was framed as a mastermind behind the mass school boycott and was expelled. With the help of his friend Kim Yeon-man, Yi went to Japan as an international student. In 1925, he submitted the short story “Oh Mong-nyeo” to Joseon Mundan and was named the winner. On July 3 of the same year, he made his literary debut via the Sidae Ilbo daily. In April of 1926, he was accepted to the department of arts in Sophia University, Tokyo, but dropped out the following year and returned to Korea. He worked as a journalist for publishers and newspapers such as Gaebyeoksa, Jongwe Ilbo, and the Joongang Ilbo. Starting in 1932, Yi began to teach at institutions such as Ehwa Yeojeon, Ehwa Early Education School, and Gyeongseong Early Education School as a composition instructor. In 1933, Yi banded together with other writers including Park Tae Won and Lee Hyo-seok to form the Group of Nine (Guinhoe) and delved into his creative endeavors. Yi went on to publish his representative works “Dalbam” in November of 1933 and “Gamagwi” in January of 1936. In 1943, he returned to his hometown in Anhyeop, Cheolwon, Gangwon Province, and remained in seclusion until the liberation of Korea. Following national independence, Yi actively participated in groups such as the Central Council for Cultural Construction in Joseon, the Literature Alliance of Joseon, the Democratic People’s Front, and the Joseon-USSR Cultural Association. In 1946, Yi crossed over to North Korea and traveled to areas such as Moscow and Leningrad as a member of the North Korean Cultural Delegation to the USSR. Yi received the 1st Liberation Literary Prize for his short story “Haebangjeonhu” (해방전후 About Liberation-Era). In 1954, he was investigated for his ideology and was criticized by Han Chorya alongside Im Hwa and Kim Nam-chon for his activities in the Group of Nine and his ideological beliefs, and was purged. The date of Yi’s death is unknown. (He is said to have been sentenced to hard labor at a communist farm in the mountains of Jagangdo in 1953 and died of illness in the early 1960s.)[1]
2. Writing
Following his debut with the short story “Oh Mong-nyeo,” Yi wrote a total of six vignettes, 63 short stories, four novellas, and 14 novels. His membership in the Group of Nine, a proponent of “high literature,” earned him the moniker of “standard-bearer of high literature” in the 1930s. Yi’s works are known for their meticulous construction, perfect structure, concise wording, clear personalities, and characterization.
Before the liberation of Korea, Yi preferred to pursue artistry by depicting the details and sympathetic qualities of characters rather than reflect social realities. Post-independence, however, Yi made efforts to include socialist ideology in his fiction. Socialist ideology is particularly visible in “Cheot jeontu” (첫 전투 The First Battle) (1949) and “Gohyanggil” (고향길 The Way Homeward) (1950), which were written during his time as a wartime correspondent.
“Dalbam,” the title story of Yi’s first short story anthology, is told from the perspective of a character known only as “I,” who observes the protagonist Hwang Su-geon. Hwang is a stubborn and naïve man living in the countryside whose every effort fails due to his inability to adapt to the changing times. The narrator assists Hwang, but even that effort goes to waste, and in the end, Hwang’s wife runs off after much hounding from her sister-in-law. In the final scene, Hwang gazes despondently at the moon and passes by with a cigarette in his mouth. This snapshot is a portrait of Hwang’s humanity as well as Yi’s display of his love for people.
“Gamagwi,” the title story of his second anthology, stars a woman with consumption convalescing in her hometown. The character identified only as “him” slowly grows fond of the woman, and when he finds out that she is afraid of crows, decides to kill them for her. He succeeds and goes to her, but the woman has already died. The hearse carrying the woman and her fiancé departs, leaving only the cawing of crows. This story was criticized for showing no relevance to the historical situation of Yi’s time, but is now considered the quintessential Yi Tae Jun short story for its sentimentality and the creativity of its tone.
“Bokdeokbang” (복덕방 The Lounge) is the title story of the anthology Bokdeokbang (복덕방 The Lounge) (1947), and was originally published in Jogwang in 1937. The story centers on three old men—Seo Cham-ui, Park Hui-wan, and Ahn Cho-si—who gather at the lounge, and ends with the suicide and funeral of Ahn. Ahn hears of a harbor construction project on the west coast of Korea and uses his daughter’s money to purchase land, but finds out that he has been conned and takes his own life. His daughter, a professional dancer, hides the fact that her father’s death was self-inflicted, in order to save her own face. In exchange, she gives him a grand funeral with the life insurance payout. By focusing on the elders who are unable to keep pace with changing times, “Bokdeokbang” paints a picture of the lives of the financially disadvantaged in Yi’s era.
In Yi’s full-length novels, the characters are often involved in love triangles, but the relationships are ultimately resolved and the characters come to an understanding about society, throwing themselves into good works for the people and the community. This trend in his stories led to Yi’s novels being considered “pulp” or “romance fiction,” but scholars have made efforts in more recent times to reexamine these novels.
Yi Tae Jun’s representative novel Sasangui worya is heavily autobiographical in nature The protagonist Song Bin is still very young when his family seeks asylum in Russia, but following his father’s death, the family returns to Korea. His mother dies of illness soon after, and the orphaned Song is taken in by relatives. After much hardship, he enters Hwimun High School, but is expelled for revolting against unjust regulations set by the administration. Song then crosses the sea to Japan to study as an international student. This novel represents the personal growth and socialization of an individual, while also seeking a solution to the realities of life in a colonized country. It is considered closer to high literature than the rest of his full-length novels.[2]
Reference
[1] Kang, Sang-ho, “My Experiences of North Korean Purges,” Joongang Daily, June 7, 1993.
[2] Lee, Byeong-ryeol, Research on the Novels of Yi Tae Jun, Pyeongminsa, 1998.
