| Description |
Written at the height of Japanese colonial rule in Korea, Pak T'ae- wŏn's 1938 modernist novel Scenes from Ch'ŏnggye Stream portrays ordinary life for the lower class living along the Ch'ŏnggye Stream in a rapidly urbanizing Seoul. The heavily-polluted Ch'ŏnggye Stream and surrounding neighborhoods were largely neglected by the colonial government, but Korean residents relied on it. Pak's novel puts neighborhood women at the center of streamside life, their gossiping while doing laundry in the stream being one of the few recurring images in an almost plot-less story that loosely connects an overwhelming number of characters. I argue that the novel's women and the stream are symbolically connected, and both women and stream create gathering places where diverse characters build transformative relationships and meaningful communities in the bewilderment of a rapidly changing society. As they navigate modernity, the characters embody an innovative mixture of tradition and modernity that places value on social liberty and intimate relationships between family and friends and between humans and the stream. The characters' actions defy traditional perceptions of both women and the stream, challenging ideas about value and its connection to appearance and utility, as well as class and gender roles. As we relearn how to connect to waterways that have been transformed through urban development, stories about urban streams such as this one can play a crucial role in reimagining our relationships with our cities and with the earth while engaging issues of social justice and colonialism. |
