부산대학교 도서관

Fire, as an indispensable fundamental element in the advancement of human civilization, exerts a profound influence on human production and daily life. Moreover, it serves as a significant symbol that stimulates the creative imagination of literary authors. Within Lee Chang-dong's literary works, fire emerges as the recurrent imagery, offering crucial insights into the underlying themes. Notably, his collection of short stories, Possession, comprising works such as Fire and Dust, Sacrifice, Possession, and Trophy, places considerable emphasis on the imagery of fire. Consequently, Lee skillfully crafts diverse manifestations of fire on the external dimension while imbuing the internal dimension of this imagery with intricate meanings. To begin with, the external representations of fire imagery in Lee's short stories can be broadly categorized into two distinct forms: fire as a destructive force and fire as a ritualistic element. The former can be further subdivided into the fire of annihilation and the fire of self-immolation, while the latter encompasses the fire of sacrifice and the fire of cremation. Building upon this framework, this paper undertakes an analysis of the inherent meanings of fire imagery from the theoretical perspective of Bachelard. Through this analysis, it becomes evident that in Fire and Dust, the imagery of fire symbolizes struggle and resistance, stemming from the Prometheus complex. In Possession and Sacrifice, the fire imagery serves to console the souls of the departed and inspire the living, thereby reflecting characteristics associated with the Empedocles complex. Furthermore, the fire imagery in Trophy encapsulates the essence of human desire, aligning with the Novalis complex.