Comparison of representations of coalmining in South Korea and Japan of the 1950's in the two movies "My second brother"(Jp.)/ "Even the clouds are drifting" (S. Kor.) (1959)

Kang, MunHee

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Other Title

1950年代における炭鉱記録としての映画『にあんちゃん』の日韓比較
1950ネンダイ　ニ　オケル　タンコウ　キロク　ト　シテノ　エイガ　ニアンチャン　ノ　ニッカン　ヒカク

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Description

In this article, I focus on the Japanese and the South Korean movies based on "Nianchan"( "My second brother") by Yasumoto Sueko, a Zainichi Korean, which was published in 1958 and caused a great sensation in South Korea as well as in Japan. The objective of this analysis is to show how coalmining is represented through the appearance of Zainichi Koreans and Koreans living in South Korea in both movies. The original work "Nianchan" was read in both Japan and South Korea as an account of the experience of "Zainichi Koreans/Koreans" and their life and labor in the coal mine. Both movies, separately produced and filmed in Japan and South Korea, depict a coal mine village, the setting of "Nianchan", and the life and work in the mine is in the center of the story. Yet, the emphasis of the two movies is dissimilar. The Japanese version focuses on the personal hardships of the Zainichi Korean workers due to discrimination and the separation of family members. On the other hand, in the Korean version, working in a coal mine is portrayed as a guarantee for a promising future. Focusing on these different depictions of coal mining in the Japanese and South Korean film adaptations, I attempt to shed light on and present a critical account of the diverging social and political conditions and discourses in which coal mining took place in the Japanese and South Korean context of this time.

Journal

Cultures/critiques

Cultures/critiques 9 83-96, 2018-09-30

国際日本学研究会