The Traumatized Writing of “Father's Absence” in Chinese and Korean Coming-of-Age Novels- Comparison between Wei Wei's In Search of Father and Kim Ae-ran's Run, Dad-

The Traumatized Writing of “Father's Absence” in Chinese and Korean Coming-of-Age Novels- Comparison between Wei Wei's In Search of Father and Kim Ae-ran's Run, Dad-

In the growth of individuals, especially females, the role of the father and the symbolic significance behind it is undoubtedly intriguing, thus making it a topic difficult to overlook in discussions concerning women. Coming-of-age novels written by the new generation of female writers in China and South Korea often take ‘father’s absence’ as their theme, exploring how women positioned as ‘others‘ in patriarchal societies engage in self-reflection, fulfill personal desires, and ultimately reconstruct their ‘subjectivity’. This study employs the literary trauma criticism method, using Wei Wei's In Search of Father and Kim Ae-ran's Run, Dad as the objects of research. It delves into the growth journey of female characters in the works from being ‘others’ to becoming ‘subjects’, starting from the aspects of trauma causes and trauma healing, uncovering the deep-seated female consciousness in the works, and comparing the similarities and differences in the trauma narrative of the theme of ‘father’s absence’ in the two works.

在个体, 尤其是女性的成长中, 父亲这一角色及其背后的符号意义无疑是耐人寻味的, 因而是女性话题讨论中难以略过的主题｡ 中韩新生代女性作家所创作的成长小说常以“父亲缺失”为母题, 探讨在父权社会中处于“他者”地位的女性如何进行自我省察、实现个人欲求并最终重建“主体”性｡ 本研究采用文学创伤批评法, 以魏微的『寻父记』和金爱烂的『老爸, 快跑』为研究对象, 从创伤成因和创伤治愈两个层面入手, 解读作品中女性人物由“他者”向“主体”跋涉的成长历程｡ 两部作品的共性可以归因于中韩性别环境下两位作者对女性成长过程中创伤的反思, 而差异则主要来自于两部作品对“父亲”这一角色的不同理解, 『寻父记』将缺失的父亲看作女性成长过程中的觉醒契机, 而『老爸, 快跑』则淡化父亲角色的重要性, 强调母女间构建的“姐妹情谊”｡