한국 가면극 해석의 한 시도 : 신학적 해석 = Toward a Theological Interpretation of the Mask Dance in Korea

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Korean history and its cultural tradition have seldom become the objects of theological studies in Korea. One can think of only a couple of theologians who respectively studied Confucianism, which was the philosophy of the ruling class and Shamanism which was the religion of the common people. This paper is a modest attempt to understand the Mask Dance, a festival event in the life of Minjung(oppressed people), and its sociological as well as religious significance from a Christian theological perspective. All these studies are a part of the Korean theologians' attempt to locate the work of the Holy Spirit in history and the present reality of Korea and to formulate a Korean theology, especially, Minjung theology.
The Constitutive elements of the Mask Dance have to be taken very seriously for the purpose of understanding the meaning of the Dance. The grotesque masks are originally of gods and have a religious significance creating a mysterious atmosphere, especially, when they reflect the flutter of bonfire during the performance at night. The music and dance are ones ordinary people enjoy. The vigorous dance motion especially helps the performers both to express their feeling of resentment and resistance and to experience ecstasy as happens with shamans in their ritual performances. The Dance is performed at any open space near the village without any fabricated "stage," and on lunar New Years Eve or on May 5 when farmers are not busy. The place and time of performance are closely related to the people's life and its rhythm. The language used is "dirty" coming out of the people's guts. It is densely interspersed with jibing jokes. It is raw, rough, honest, authentic and powerful. The writer or creator of the Mask Dance is not known. The content of the dialogue seasoned with impromptu remarks between the performers and between the performers and the audience comes out of their already familiar common knowledge. As a whole the constitutive elements of the Mash Dance creates a festive occasion with religious depth in which the people's pent-up feelings of resentment are exploded and channeled into an artistic form.
The dramatic conflicts, comically presented in three main stories, expose the incongruities of the establishment. The first story ridicules an old monk whor represents a "higher" religion which turns out to be too senile and impotent, too idealistic and otherworldly to provide any help for the people who have to work with their bodies in this world. The second story presents the aristocrats as stupid. They live on the pride that they are of the aristocratic status spending their time un-productively. Their life depends on the labor of the servants. They do not see what goes on in reality but accept what the servants tell them. Both the performers and the audience ridicule and laugh at them. The third scene, of the Old Woman Miyal, relates the miserable life stories of Minjung the oppressed. Yet the presentation is made with a great deal of humor. Minjung is even able to laugh at their own lot. The entire participants have a share in the tears and laughter. For everything in this world is laughable.
In the Mask Dance Minjung criticizes the entire society, not only the religious and the secular establishment but also their own lot, and transcends it by laughing at it. The stance of such a critical transcendence is not give from outside but is created out of the depth of the life experience of Minjung. It is Minjung who critically transcends the given, whereas the rulers cannot even see the reality not to speak of transcending it because of their privilege in and attachment to it. Such a transcendence is a religious experience which transcends even Shamanism to which Minjung cling to in ordinary life, an experience of "god above god."
The experience of critical transcendence, of "god above god," provides Minjung with both the wisdom to survive with humor and dignity in times of "no exit" and the courage to fight for freedom when the time is seemingly ripe, for they have come to realize that the present world order is not the ulimate. It is a present experience of the eschaton which, in turn, becomes a sure promise and hope of the final fulfillment. It makes Minjung both saintly and revolutionary.
Minjung who creates, performs and participates in the Mask Dance is the embodiment of messianic movement and hope in Korea's history.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Ⅰ. 서론
• Ⅱ. 탈놀이의 구성 요소
• Ⅲ. 극적 갈등
• Ⅳ. 종교적 의미
• Ⅴ. 사회적 의미
• Ⅵ. 결론
• 참고문헌
• 영문요약