Cultural assimilation and the cross-national marriage ethics in Korea under Japanese rule: The transformation of the fable “the wedding of the mouse” in East Asia

Abstract

Japanese translations of Korean literature during the Japanese occupation established the foundations for the translation of Korean literature into other languages, and reflected the political dynamics and colonial agenda in Korea at the time, thereby illustrating the political aspects or dimensions of this body of literature. The objective of this study is to show how traditional Korean ethical imperatives, which are on display in Korean literature, were transformed in the process of the translation of this literature into Japanese. This goal will be approached through a focus on the fable “The Wedding of the Mouse” which originated in India and spread to East Asia and Europe. The original Indian version of “The Wedding of the Mouse” concerns a mouse who seeks a spouse, and it conveys the message that one's nature does not change. In China, this theme was transformed into the teaching that one should know one's place, and in Korea, into a moral criticism of the vanity of parents in their seeking of higher status through their children's marriage. In the 1920s, Korean literary works were translated into Japanese within the framework of the cultural policies of the ruling Japanese, and Korean-Japanese marriage was promoted in light of the cultural assimilation policy of the era. In such a context, marriage in the Japanese translations of “The Wedding of the Mouse” is positively portrayed as a process of self-discovery, in light of which these versions also critique in-group marriage and concubinage. This theme resonated with the self-perceived essence of colonialism, through which one nationality sought to expand beyond its own boundaries and to explore new territories with a sense of conviction and adventure, and an eye on the future. This suggests that translations of “The Wedding of the Mouse” during the period of Japanese colonialism served as a tool to accomplish political rule through cultural assimilation. © 2019 Shanghai Normal University. All rights reserved.