데릭 월콧(Derek Walcott)의 탈영웅적 시학 －호머(Homer)의 서사적 영웅에 대한 『오메로스』(Omeros)의 전복적 관점－ = Derek Walcott’s Unheroic Poetics －from Omeros’s Subversive Perspectives of Homer’s Epic Heroes－

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study aims to discuss Derek Walcott’s unheroic poetics from Omeros’s subversive perspectives of Homer’s epic heroes. The title and fictional character of this long poem, Omeros is Homeros in ancient Greek and Homer in modern Greek. The poetic figure, like Homer as a humble, blind, hard, and lonely bard, is a sightless, and homeless poet and castaway reflecting the colonial wound and aftereffect of St. Lucia. And his figure is like those of Walcott's real characters.
Walcott’s real characters, such as Hector, Achille, Philoctete, Helen, Seven Seas, Ma Killman, unlike Homer’s epic heroes, have humble backgrounds and live hard lives. Hector, Achille, and Philoctete are fishermen. Seven Seas is Omeros or a person like Omeros. Helen is a maid and waitress. Ma Killman, a sybil and obeah who cures Philoctete, runs a cafe. They also have physical or spiritual wounds and pain because they are double victims first afflicted and exiled by the white colonialists and then by the majority black nationalists who have copied the white colonists’ or masters’ practices. Therefore, they are the subversive figures of Homer’s epic heroes.
Walcott’s characters are humble but noble because they are willing to heal their trauma of colonial history and maintain their national identity or spirit. Their nobility comes from the lonely, painful knowledge learned from isolation and suffering. They don’t depend on any gods to cure their painful wounds. Only their healing source is from the primitive intelligence and medicine distilled from the Caribbean nature, which represents an immense wound. Yet the truth we shouldn’t leave out is that there is no everlasting cure for the wounds in Walcott’s long poem.

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study aims to discuss Derek Walcott’s unheroic poetics from Omeros’s subversive perspectives of Homer’s epic heroes. The title and fictional character of this long poem, Omeros is Homeros in ancient Greek and Homer in modern Greek. The poetic figure, like Homer as a humble, blind, hard, and lonely bard, is a sightless, and homeless poet and castaway reflecting the colonial wound and aftereffect of St. Lucia. And his figure is like those of Walcott's real characters.
Walcott’s real characters, such as Hector, Achille, Philoctete, Helen, Seven Seas, Ma Killman, unlike Homer’s epic heroes, have humble backgrounds and live hard lives. Hector, Achille, and Philoctete are fishermen. Seven Seas is Omeros or a person like Omeros. Helen is a maid and waitress. Ma Killman, a sybil and obeah who cures Philoctete, runs a cafe. They also have physical or spiritual wounds and pain because they are double victims first afflicted and exiled by the white colonialists and then by the majority black nationalists who have copied the white colonists’ or masters’ practices. Therefore, they are the subversive figures of Homer’s epic heroes.
Walcott’s characters are humble but noble because they are willing to heal their trauma of colonial history and maintain their national identity or spirit. Their nobility comes from the lonely, painful knowledge learned from isolation and suffering. They don’t depend on any gods to cure their painful wounds. Only their healing source is from the primitive intelligence and medicine distilled from the Caribbean nature, which represents an immense wound. Yet the truth we shouldn’t leave out is that there is no everlasting cure for the wounds in Walcott’s long poem.

참고문헌 (Reference)

• 1 이영철, "데릭 월콧의 예술가의 초상: 제임스 조이스의 『젊은 예술가의 초상』에 대한 변용" 한국현대영미시학회 12 (12): 95-130, 2006
• 2 Rohlehr, Gordon, "Withering Into Truth: A Review Of Derek Walcott’s The Gulf And Other Poems in : Critical Perspectives on Derek Walcott" Three Continents P 212-219, 1993
• 3 Hofmeister P. Tomothy, "The Wolf and the Hare: Epic Expansion and Contextualization in Derek Walcott’s Omeros" 2 (2): 536-554, 1996
• 4 Walcott, Derek, "The Figure of Crusoe in : Critical Perspectives On Derek Walcott" Three Continents P 33-40, 1993
• 5 Walcott, Derek, "The Caribbean Culture or Mimicry in : Critical Perspectives on Derek Walcott" Three Continents P 51-57, 1993
• 6 Hirsch, Edward, "The Art Of Poetry in : Critical Perspectives on Derek Walcott" Three Continents P 65-86, 1993
• 7 Figueroa, John, "Omeros in : The Art of Derek Walcott" Dufour Editions 193-214, 1991
• 8 Walcott,Derek, "Omeros" Farrar, Straus & Giroux 1990
• 9 Terada, Rei, "Derek Walcott’s Poetry: American Mimicry" Northeastern UP 1992
• 10 Walcott, Derek, "Collected Poems, 1948-1984" The Noonday P 1994
• 11 Lefkowitz, Mary, "Bringing Him Back Alive in : Critical Perspectives on Derek Walcott" Three Continents P 400-404, 1993