[Feature] Democratic Sentiment and New Literature
The Quarterly Changbi 208, Summer 2025
Abstract
In this issue’s special feature, “Democratic Sentiment and New Literature,” we explore how “democratic sentiment”—which has become even more significant since the December 3rd Self-Coup Incident—intersects with literature and gives rise to new forms, and we analyze the narrative structures of such sentiment. Hwang Jung-a offers a rich discussion on the role and meaning of an emotion, interpreting the historical depth of citizens’ awakening to their responsibility in the present moment and their sense of “taking their turns.” Arguing how the process of restoring and repairing human emotions and history is compellingly portrayed in Kim Keum Hee’s novel The Great Greenhouse Repair Report, she discusses the potential for a new kind of coming-of-age narrative. Jeon Gi-hwa shows how the narrative of mourning in recent Korean literary works goes beyond simply consoling loss, instead actively calling readers into the space of mourning. Jeon discusses how narratives of mourning in recent Korean literature goes beyond comforting the wounded and actively calls readers to the space of mourning. The literary practice of reflecting on loss from the perspective of those left behind is persuasively conveyed. Capturing the communal sentiments in the poetry of Kim Hae-ja, Hwang Gyu-gwan illustrates how her poems revive our lost connections with others and the world. Borrowing the poetic address of 'ni' (you) in Kim Haeja’s poems, he suggested the possibility of forming new relationships beyond the destructive subjectivity of modernity.