Contrast in space and characters: Han Sor-ya's counter-censorship strategies in the newspaper serial, Hwanghon (Dusk, 1936)

Abstract

The novel Hwanghon (Dusk) by leftist writer Han Sǒr-ya (1900-1976) portrays the dramatic transformation of a country girl into a revolutionary worker in Korea. Another aspect of the drama, one that reflects the context of its different editions, is the story of the novel's revision. This paper compares the original censored text, published in 1936 as a newspaper serial, and the revised 1955 text, which removed "unsatisfactory" expressions and reflected the North's postliberation politics. Examining the 1936 version, I argue that Han deliberately disrupted the regular serialization schedule by skipping days in order to disguise subversive themes and to confound the censor's memory. The articulation of those scenes, especially the rise of revolutionary workers, is significantly enhanced by Han's uses of space and characters. By setting up contrasts among his characters, and weaving them into spatial confrontations, Han not only evokes socialist themes, but also creates a multidimensional presence for them that frustrates attempts to locate them in a single source.