This paper examines a seemingly insignificant subject – a withered tree in a Chinese county. From 1712, it became a persistent subject in Chosŏn travelogues, or yŏnhaengnok 燕行錄. It loomed large in Chosŏn travelogues because, as an outlet of Chosŏn anti-Qing sentiment, the tree was believed to prophesize the predestined downfall of Qing rule. The case of this ordinary object shows that Chosŏn writers’ perception of the Qing landscape was not restricted to their immediate observations but was deeply entwined with beliefs that were prevalent in Chosŏn. The withered tree, a ubiquitous subject in yŏnhaengnok, was completely omitted from the Qing imperial narrative, which was compiled in the comprehensive gazetteers of the empire and local gazetteers. How Chosŏn writers chose to write on Qing localities and landscapes was independent from the imperatives of the Qing imperial narrative, which was sponsored by and in turn endorsed the Qing empire-building process. The parallel relationship between the two narratives allows us to see yŏnhaengnok as fitting into a broader production of narratives in early modern East Asia.
목차
Abstract Introduction Foretelling the Barbarian’s Fortune The Case of the Withered Tree in Chosŏn Travel Writings Paralleling the Qing Imperial Narrative The Narrative of the Qing Empire Conclusion References
한국연구원은 1970년 5월 한국 민속의 각 분야에 걸친 자료의 수집과 학술적 연구를 목적으로 '한국민속연구소'로 출발하였다. 그 후 1973년 5월 연구 분야를 확대하며 민속뿐만 아니라 한국학 전반에 걸친 연구를 위해 '한국학연구소'로 개편하였고, 다시 1989년 3월 한국의 국제적 위상의 부상과 함께 한국학 연구의 중요성이 높아짐에 따라 '한국학연구원'으로 확대, 개편하였다. 한국학연구원은 한국학 전반에 걸친 연구를 통해 지역과 민족문화 발전에 기여하며 한국학의 세계화를 위해서 학술활동을 강화하고 나아가 내·외국인에 대한 한국문화 교육을 담당하고자 한다.