문학이론 교육의 한국적 수업모형 연구

A Study on the Teaching Models of Literary Theory Education in Korea

This essay attempts to suggest viable teaching models of literary theory education in Korea by exploring the theoretical as well as practical implications of "Theory Studies" in Korea for the past 15 years. Investigating the peculiar trend of theoretical interests in two prominent critical theory journals, Contemporary Criticism and Theory and Criticism and Theory, we discovered that Korean scholars of theory have preferred Lacanian psychoanalysis and Post-colonialism over the other theoretical positions. Unlike Anglophone academic journals whose 30-year index demonstrated the tendency of slow decline in theoretical studies, Korean journals show continued research interest in the so-called "Theory Criticism." In Korea, the 1990s witnessed a sort of upsurge of theoretical engagement and investment in contemporary "French" theories after the collapse of the stronghold of Marxist theory. The status of theory in Korea appears to have been stable and steady: pure theoretical researches and "theory criticisms" are getting popular, though classroom situation remains deplorable. In order to overcome the predilection for certain theories and enhance the theoretical literacy in literary education, it is urgently required to set up some basic principles of theory education. Combining the diachronic analysis with synchronic confrontation as the standard way of doing theories, this essay suggests two teaching models of theory education in Korea. One is for "history of theory"; the other for "theoretical overdeterrnination." While identifying relevant theoretical moments in literary and aesthetic texts, teachers help students confront "reflective moments" of vanous theoretical texts in their critical reflection. The success of theory education in Korea will depend upon developing such a theory-conscious reflection in the classroom through the practice of theory criticism.