Hwang Jae-moon

10.18399/acta.2016.19.1.005

An Chunggŭn individual act of violence Nationalism An Chunggŭn sagi Kojong hwangje wa ŭisa An Chunggŭn

To the Korean public, An Chunggŭn is a figure who is recognized as a hero without much controversy. However, this phenomenon also makes it difficult at times for Koreans to approach An’s activities and thought in an objective manner. Meanwhile, partially or wholly differing perspectives on An can be found in several Korean literary works, making them potential sources of insight. Taking into consideration the release dates of historical materials and the genres of the works, one can find five distinct takes on An’s activities, especially the aspect of the “individual act of violence,” in which An undertakes the Itō shooting alone with only limited, non-organized aid. The first suggests a Confucianist revenge from the traditional perspective that a liege will risk his own life to avenge the king if he is humiliated; the second suggests absolute fair revenge enacted as a hero of the people; the third suggests justification from a religious perspective, taking An to be an instrument of justice accompanied by religious symbolism. On the other hand, one can also find perspectives that put An in relative contexts in two ways: some works portray him as a self-reflective and developing figure and offer critiques on his choices of method, and others set up imaginary histories in order to objectify An’s actions in alternate contexts.