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The Posthuman and Transboundary Imagination in Contemporary Korean Literature: Considering the Works of Pae Myŏnghun and Yun Ihyŏng

The Posthuman and Transboundary Imagination in Contemporary Korean Literature: Considering the... Literature limited to the eyes of “humanity” as created by humanism is insufficient to explore the conditions faced in the twenty-first century. The posthuman forms prevalent in contemporary South Korean literature, such as cyborgs, humanoids, and artificial intelligence, go beyond reflecting scientific developments; they operate as critical, political rhetoric with regard to discourses of modernity. This article focuses on the posthuman forms and also future time and space in Pae Myŏnghun’s and Yun Ihyŏng’s short stories in relation to critical posthumanism. Although Pae’s allegorical approach may seem somewhat simplistic, the posthuman forms that are brought to life in his works are highly innovative and effectively criticize modern systems. In contrast to Pae, Yun uses the futuristic subject to concentrate on humans, through narratives of coexistence where nonsynchronism is in operation. Yun’s narratives focus on a performative posthuman discourse that traverses gender, age, and class-based dualisms. With hybrid, multilayered, and performative identities and the transgression of boundaries, the two writers undermine the modern notion of linear, progressing time and cast doubt on notions of objectivity or totalized knowledge, urging a rethinking of the “here and now.” http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Journal of Korean Studies Duke University Press

The Posthuman and Transboundary Imagination in Contemporary Korean Literature: Considering the Works of Pae Myŏnghun and Yun Ihyŏng

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Copyright
Copyright © 2018 by the Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York
ISSN
0731-1613
eISSN
2158-1665
DOI
10.1215/21581665-6973340
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Literature limited to the eyes of “humanity” as created by humanism is insufficient to explore the conditions faced in the twenty-first century. The posthuman forms prevalent in contemporary South Korean literature, such as cyborgs, humanoids, and artificial intelligence, go beyond reflecting scientific developments; they operate as critical, political rhetoric with regard to discourses of modernity. This article focuses on the posthuman forms and also future time and space in Pae Myŏnghun’s and Yun Ihyŏng’s short stories in relation to critical posthumanism. Although Pae’s allegorical approach may seem somewhat simplistic, the posthuman forms that are brought to life in his works are highly innovative and effectively criticize modern systems. In contrast to Pae, Yun uses the futuristic subject to concentrate on humans, through narratives of coexistence where nonsynchronism is in operation. Yun’s narratives focus on a performative posthuman discourse that traverses gender, age, and class-based dualisms. With hybrid, multilayered, and performative identities and the transgression of boundaries, the two writers undermine the modern notion of linear, progressing time and cast doubt on notions of objectivity or totalized knowledge, urging a rethinking of the “here and now.”

Journal

Journal of Korean Studies – Duke University Press

Published: Oct 1, 2018

References

  • Descartes’ Descendants: The Novels of Bae Myung-hoon and Kim Bo-young
    Bok, Dohoon
  • Pip’anjŏk p’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏnijŭm ŭi kihoek: Paet’ajŏk in in’gan chungsim juŭi kŭkpok
    Im, Sŏgwŏn
  • SF munhak, ŏttŏk’e pol kŏt in’ga
    Kim, Sŏnggon
  • Mirae ŭi chuch’edŭl
    Mun-Kang, Hyŏngjun
  • Han’guk munhak ŭi p’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏnjŏk sangsangnyŏk
  • Annyŏng, in’gong chonjae!
    Pae, Myŏnghun Pae,
  • Pyŏnsin hapch’e Ribaiŏdŏn
    Pae, Myŏnghun Pae,
  • P’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏn chaa: Honhapch’e roŭi tojŏn
    Philbeck, Thomas
  • Kŭ nŭn sangsangnyŏk ida
    Sin, Hyŏngch’ŏl Pae,
  • P’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏn chinhwa: Saiŏnsŭ p’iksyŏn ŭl t’onghae pon in’gan kwa in’gong p’ijomul kwaŭi chinhwajŏk kwan’gye
    Song, Horim
  • P’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏnijŭmjŏk sangsangnyŏk kwa munhakchŏk chaehyŏn
    Yi, Sujin
  • Pop’yŏn kwa pot’ong sai ŭi kiŏk
    Yi, Ŭnji
  • Saibogŭ insingnon kwa sŏng ŭi chŏngch’ihak
    Yu, Chebun
  • Taeni
    Yun, Ihyŏng Yun,
  • Kutpai
    Yun, Ihyŏng Yun,
  • Descartes’ Descendants: The Novels of Bae Myung-hoon and Kim Bo-young
    Bok, Dohoon
  • Pip’anjŏk p’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏnijŭm ŭi kihoek: Paet’ajŏk in in’gan chungsim juŭi kŭkpok
    Im, Sŏgwŏn
  • SF munhak, ŏttŏk’e pol kŏt in’ga
    Kim, Sŏnggon
  • Mirae ŭi chuch’edŭl
    Mun-Kang, Hyŏngjun
  • Han’guk munhak ŭi p’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏnjŏk sangsangnyŏk
  • Annyŏng, in’gong chonjae!
    Pae, Myŏnghun Pae,
  • Pyŏnsin hapch’e Ribaiŏdŏn
    Pae, Myŏnghun Pae,
  • P’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏn chaa: Honhapch’e roŭi tojŏn
    Philbeck, Thomas
  • Kŭ nŭn sangsangnyŏk ida
    Sin, Hyŏngch’ŏl Pae,
  • P’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏn chinhwa: Saiŏnsŭ p’iksyŏn ŭl t’onghae pon in’gan kwa in’gong p’ijomul kwaŭi chinhwajŏk kwan’gye
    Song, Horim
  • P’osŭt’ŭ hyumŏnijŭmjŏk sangsangnyŏk kwa munhakchŏk chaehyŏn
    Yi, Sujin
  • Pop’yŏn kwa pot’ong sai ŭi kiŏk
    Yi, Ŭnji
  • Saibogŭ insingnon kwa sŏng ŭi chŏngch’ihak
    Yu, Chebun
  • Taeni
    Yun, Ihyŏng Yun,
  • Kutpai
    Yun, Ihyŏng Yun,