Aspects and Literary Significance of Visitors to the Transcendent World in 『GeumoSinhwa』 and 『GijaeGiui』

Abstract

『GeumoSinhwa』 and 『GijaeGiui』 are works that intensively feature the figures of visitors to the transcendent world from the era of tales. These visitors challenge the ontology of immortality not through variations of the ‘body,’ but through the experiment of ‘'crossing boundaries with the physical body itself.’ The aspects of visitors to the transcendent world in classical novels manifest as kinetic -centered, emotion-weighted, and suspended animation types. The density of the literary space is realized differently depending on whether the narrative focuses on kinetic movement, emphasizes emotional narrative, or explores the transcendent world within a state of suspended animation while maintaining both conditions. Kinetic-centered visitors actively utilize the movement of the ‘body,’ contributing to the expansiveness of the narrative space. Emotion -centered visitors emphasize the emotional solidarity between characters, leading to a prominent density of space. Visitors in a state of suspended animation travel to deadly realms that are difficult to reach through natural breathing, visiting the transcendent world in a sort of comatose state. The study of visitors to the transcendent world in classical novels holds literary significance in terms of the ‘author’s hidden personality modeling’ and the ‘narrative variation of the Seonhwa-ron (theory of transformation into an immortal).’ Studying the visitors to the transcendent world in both works is a way to shed new light on the character theory and creative consciousness of classical novels.