History of Simcheong (1): Is Wonhongjang the Prototype of Simcheong?
Authors: Lee Jeong won 
Published: November 2022

This article aimed to describe the history of Simcheong. As research on the different editions of Simcheongjeon accumulated, it became clear that Simcheongjeon had a historicity. However, there is a misunderstanding that Simcheong existed in a consistent shape in the history of Simcheongjeon, and this identity was maintained because the understanding of Simcheong was insufficient. Therefore, this study intends to describe the history of Simcheong as an object of literary experience. However, the history of Simcheong is difficult to describe briefly, as the different editions of Simcheongjeon are numerous and their history is not simple. Thus, in this article, I first dealt with two issues. First, I analyzed the status of Simcheong in the Simcheongjeon. Second, I examined whether Wonhongjang can be recognized as the prototype of Simcheong. This is because the story of Wonhongjang is regarded as the origin story of Simcheongjeon. To judge the status of Simcheong in Simcheongjeon, I first examined the moral dilemma. This is because the moral dilemma was understood as the basis for self-identity in Simcheongjeon. The moral dilemma is only a part of the formation and acceptance of the work of Simcheongjeon. In other words, the moral dilemma does not cover the entirety of the work in narrative development. For example, doubts about open eyes, fear of death, and the father's deviance are important topics in the history of Simcheongjeon, but they are unrelated to the moral dilemma. Moreover, the moral dilemma reduces the literary experience of Simcheong to an ethical category. Finally, the moral dilemma has limitations in explaining the tragic world perception evoked in Simcheong's situation. Now, to prepare a form to describe the history of Simcheong, I reviewed the status of Simcheong in Simcheongjeon. Simcheongjeon forms a vast group of different editions, but the backbone of the narrative development is composed of Simcheong's narrative. At this time, Simcheong's story is composed of the relationship of four concepts to the fundamental questions that make up the literary experience. That is, Simcheong's identity, sacrifice, reward, and effect. Here, Simcheong's identity functions as a premise for sacrifice, compensation, and effect. Simcheong's sacrifice shows under which conditions humanity is expressed as a major premise. The logic of sacrifice reveals the relationship between humanity and the world. The reward for Simcheong shows the world's evaluation of the sacrifice. In other words, it reveals the relationship between sacrifice and the world. The effect of sacrifice shows under which conditions the purpose of sacrifice can be fulfilled. In other words, it reveals the purpose of sacrifice and the relationship of the world. Then, let us examine Wonhongjang as a form of describing the history of Simcheong. The story of Wonhongjang is similar to Simcheongjeon in that the daughter sacrifices herself for her blind father and becomes the empress, and the father also opens his eyes. Examining the heroine's narrative focusing on identity, sacrifice, reward, and effect, the story of Wonhongjang appears to be a story of filial piety. However, the literary experience lies in the religious awakening that one can be reborn as a new being when one trusts one’s inner Buddha-nature and meets the test of one’s piety. Ultimately, the story of Wonhongjang resembles a story of filial piety in that it deals with the sacrifice of a daughter, but it is actually a religious story that tests and rewards human belief in God's providence.