the art of pansori

My reaction after watching Sopyonje was the realization that it's an interesting film to study in the context of cultural and social change in a developing nation and how it's appeared by domestic and international audiences. The authors, Julian Stringer, Eunsun Cho and Cho Hae Joang, also take part in the issue of reception, and voice their perspectives as part of the two audiences in their own writings. 

The movie is presented in a "double-temporal" manner, alternating between the narrative of Yubong, Songhwa and Dong-ho's journey as wandering artists, and Dong-ho's search for Songhwa in his adult life. The significance of these alternating scenes, in the end, describes "the desire" that all Koreans seem to seek, as explained by Stringer: the past, or literally, "the good old days." These memories that Dong-ho holds dear may (or may not) represent han, a term that "not all Koreans can agree on, but that is felt by every Korean." (Im Kwon-Taek) The accumulated grief reached its climax during the reunion scene of Dong-ho and Songhwa, but instead or a joyful happy ending that international audience expect, the grief is left intact. It is a grief that should be kept deep inside, to maintain the ideology that pain is necessary to perfecting an art, to preserve a tradition and thus, strengthening their national identity in the midst of modernization. It is exactly what Yubong believes (and possibly part of what the director would want us to realize).  

These ideologies are embodied in the characters themselves and their living conditions in the story. Yubong strongly believes in his art of pansori singing. Despite hitting poverty, unemployment and isolation, he hangs on to his belief that pansori will be the answer to their misfortune once Songhwa masters the art, which he vocalizes when scolding Dong-ho in response to his complaints. In this particular scene, Yubong is teaching Songhwa "The Prison Song", but because of hunger and weakness, Songhwa is singing forcefully and painfully. Yubong scolds at her for not projecting her voice enough. At this point, Dong-ho talks back to him, outside the frame, and after receiving a beating, decides to leave without hesitation.  

Basically, Yubong represents a stubborn artist who wants to preserve his art, and is doing so by forcing it onto the female lineage (Songhwa, one of her student at the beginning of the movie, and possibly the little girl at the end of the movie). Then, the female lineage, who is the carrier of this tradition, can only succumb to it and follow this path blindly (literally). But at the same time, it is only through her painful experiences that this art can soar and live on. It seems that the female self-sacrificial character is a concept that is commonly accepted as an inevitable condition of being a Korean woman, yet the male character (Dong-ho) is only punished for his "betrayal" by the torturous desire to make peace. Then perhaps these two types of griefs are part of han, which Im Kwon-taek believes to be felt in different manners by each, but nonetheless, felt.