국내기사
여성인물의 “본질적” 자아 또는 “참자기” 추구 : 케이트 쇼팽과 전혜린 비교연구 = The female character’s pursuit of her “essential” self or “authentic being” : a comparative study of Kate Chopin and Hyerin Jeon
This paper compares The Awakening(1899), a novel by American author Kate Chopin, with essays and journals of Hyerin Jeon, including And No Word Said (1966), All This Agony Again(1966), and In the Time of the Future Perfect(1966). The aim of the essay is to explore the concept of the “essential” self in Edna Pontellier, the female protagonist of The Awakening, and that of the “authentic being” in the first-person narrator of Hyerin Jeon’s works. Both Edna and Hyerin Jeon’s first-person narrator share a comparable essence of self, possibly influenced by Emerson’s self-reliance or European Existentialism. In addition, they both long for a rare fleeting moment of transcendence to maintain their true selves and oppose the patriarchal society that does not permit an autonomous woman to thrive in marriage, by engaging in unconventional social behaviors. But all efforts to find meaning in life are in vain, and they both pass away from this world. Although it may appear that their attempt to live as their “essential” or “authentic” selves fails due to their ultimate death in the ending, Edna and Hyerin Jeon’s courageous challenge has served as a great source of inspiration for succeeding generations of women striving for self-assertion as independent individuals.