Caves as Storied Matter: The Jeju April 3 Events and U.S. Imperialism

In this paper, I work to understand the multiple meanings of caves in relation to the Jeju April 3 (4.3) events. My particular focus is on Darangshi cave, both its discovery and the aftermath of that discovery, and the representation of caves in the film Jiseul (O Muel 2013). Both Darangshi cave and Jiseul testify to the necessity of understanding caves in order to fully understand the Jeju 4.3 events. The “turn to the material” in ecocriticism, and the idea of “storied matter,” can help theorize the social, political, and cultural significance of caves in the postcolonial history of Jeju Island. Viewing the Jeju 4.3 events from the perspective of the storied matter of caves offers a unique and unexplored angle on the first major battle of the cold war conducted under a U.S. military occupation. Rob Nixon asks, “What would it mean to bring environmentalism into a full, productive dialogue with postcolonialism?” This paper is an attempt to answer that question.