최남선의 『자조론(自助論)』 번역과 重譯된 ‘자조'의 의미

Choi Namsun's a Korean-language Version of Self-Help and the Meaning of Retranslated 'Self-Help'

Choi Namsun's Jajoron is a Korean-language version of Samuel Smiles' Self-Help. To put it delicately, Jajoron is a retranslated version that Choi worked consulting Nakamura Masanao's and Azegami Kenzo's Japanese-language version of Smiles' original text. Though Jajoron is a retranslated version, it is well worth careful consideration. The reason is that Choi's retranslation work symbolically showed the process of Joseon intellectuals' embracement and denial of the West that had been experienced through the Empire of Japan. In this sense, it has an important meaning to examine the aspect of the retranslated modern through Choi's Jajoron. To clarify this meaning of Jajoron related to the aspect of the retranslated modern, this paper aims to examine what contents Choi emphasized, accepted or rejected by studying the similarities and difference among his version, Japanese-language versions and Smiles' original text. And it also aims to inquire into the contexts and contents of making or translating texts on 'self-help' comparing the social, cultural, and political backgrounds among Joseon, Japan and England. For this purpose, Section Ⅱ compares Choi's version and Japanese-language versions to understand the meaning and characteristic of Choi's version. Section Ⅲ examines Smiles' original text and the related socio-cultural backgrounds in the Victorian age to show the similarities and difference between the Choi's version and Smiles' original text. Section Ⅳ studies the meaning of retranslated 'self-help,' and also reveals the intention and purpose of Choi's retranslation.