“I Am a Wanderer”: Paek Sinae (1908–1939) and Writing Travel

Abstract

AbstractPaek Sinae (1908–39) was a modern woman writer whose career was cut short by an early death. She lived in the era of New Women, but unlike most of her peer woman writers, Paek had little formal education or connections to the literary establishment (mundan). This background, combined with her modest output of fictional works, resulted in Paek Sinae being seen by critics during her lifetime and scholars long after her death as a provincial writer, thus affording her only limited recognition. This article challenges such dismissals and seeks an approach that would allow a more comprehensive appreciation of Paek Sinae and woman writers more broadly. First, the article looks closely at Paek's life based in her hometown away from the social center of Kyŏngsŏng (present-day Seoul) and considers how geographical and linguistic aspects of Paek's locale were misunderstood by critics. Next, with a focus on Paek's travels and her travelogues, cosmofeminism and global-local connections are examined as a key to understanding the complexities of being a modern woman writer in Paek's day. At the same time, by putting a spotlight on the “lesser” literary genre of the travelogue, this article also gestures toward a more inclusive approach to research on woman writers whose aesthetic or literary qualities were often judged only by their works of fiction (sosŏl) or poetry, while other important works like autobiographical or sociopolitical essays tended to be overlooked. Paek Sinae's life and work add breadth to the already complex definition of New Women and early feminism, and through her example, this article urges a more comprehensive consideration of works by Korean women writers in the early twentieth century.