- 期刊
直視兒童的生存現實－論韓國少年小説《小雪：被愛的條件》
Recognizing the World that Children Live In: Studying South Korean Young Adult Fiction 설이Little Snow: The Conditions to be Loved
摘要
以童年為敘事核心的兒童文學創作必然朝向當代兒童生存現實的真實呈現與開放，並通過種種方式，向我們展示或暗示著對於成年世界的批判和期待。當代兒童文學的創作者已自覺地不再將兒童視為成人寄寓純真想像的客體，而是真誠面對現實中兒童複雜的精神世界。事實上，多數的兒童文學作品都是一場圍繞著童年開展的關於童年與成年關係的對話與探尋。而在少年小說中，更常以兒童在其特定的成長階段與身內潛在的成年世界，以及身外的現實成年世界之間的碰撞、錯位與交融關係為呈現內容。韓國作家沈允瓊的少年小說《小雪：被愛的條件》即是以被遺棄在育幼院的女孩小雪為敘事核心，思考在當代童年生活中發生著的各種童年事實，透過小雪的視角與感受，揭示成年世界中充斥著習而不覺的謊言與偽善。書中不僅批判韓國家長「拚教養」的教育現狀，也揭露不同社經地位家庭的教養策略與困境，呈現出階級差異與不平等的社會圖像；同時更直視許多父母的盲點―以愛為名的情感傷害。透過小雪的兒童視角，作者卻欲揭示的是：「愛你的孩子」和「感受你的孩子」，是截然不同的兩件事。多少優秀努力的父母卻教不出快樂的孩子？多少父母未曾自覺他們自以為是為孩子好的愛，其實是支配；他們幫孩子安排好生活內容、時程的愛，其實是控制；當他們因孩子無法以期待的方式回應而斥責時，其實是一種情感勒索，是對孩子心靈的侵犯與佔有。作者也藉由在育幼院工作的金恩淑阿姨擔任兒童創傷經歷中「協助見證者」的角色功能，由阿姨角色的存在來促成理想的童年／成年關係；而寄養家庭的父母及其他家長、導師、育幼院院長等成人角色的缺失，目的在於引發讀者對兒童／成人關係、教育及教養現況的深入反思。美國兒童心理學家布魯諾．貝特罕（Bruno Bettelheim, 1903～1990）指出故事若要豐富孩童的生命，必須能幫助孩童認清自己的情緒，呼應他的焦慮和渴求，完全認可他遭遇的困難；故事必須同時照顧到孩童人格的所有面向―絕不藐視孩童所處的困境，完全信賴並且嚴肅看待。故本文試從兒童心理發展與社會學的觀點，透過《小雪：被愛的條件》中的人物與情節，檢視當代兒童生存的社會與世界，反思作品背後所叩問的愛的本質與童年問題。
並列摘要
Contemporary children's literature that focuses on childhood invariably portrays the realities of living in the real world that children face today. Such literature also, through various means, indicates or hints the authors' expectations of and criticisms against the adult world. Authors of contemporary children's literature no longer view children as innocent individuals. Instead, they acknowledge the complex spiritual world that these children have. Most contemporary works of children's literature involve children exploring adulthood and engaging in dialogues with adults. Similarly, young adult fictions frequently present the clashes, dislocations, and interactions between children's internal world and the external adult world as children mature. Little Snow: The Conditions to be Loved, a young adult fiction written by South Korean writer Sim Yunkyung, tells the story of a girl by the name of ＂설이＂(literally ＂Little Snow＂) who is abandoned in a nursery by her parents. Contemporary childhood incidents that occur around Little Snow are observed and felt from her perspective to expose the adult world for its habitual lies and hypocrisy. The book criticizes the educational status quo of South Korean parents who focuses on giving their children the best education and upbringing. Furthermore, it discloses the parenting strategies and predicaments facing families with different socioeconomic statuses, presenting an image of inequality and class division. Also, the book highlights the ＂blind spot＂ witnessed in many parents: they emotionally hurt their children in the name of love. What the author attempts to reveal from Little Snow's perspective is that ＂loving your child＂ and ＂experiencing with your child＂ are completely different. For example, many parents who have achieved much success in their lives fail to give their children a happy childhood. Likewise, many parents never realize that what they do onto their children in the name of love is in reality nothing but asserting control over their children's lives. These parents arrange everything and set schedules for their children and think that they are doing it out of love, and when their children fail to meet their expectations, they blame the children for failure. This is emotional blackmailing that robs the children of their spiritual freedom. In the novel, Miss Kim, who works at the nursery, plays the role of ＂witness＂ to children's traumatic experiences; her presence facilitates the development of an ideal childhood-adulthood relationship. The author uses the flaws of other adult characters such as Little Snow's foster parents, other parents, teachers, and the director of the nursery to arouse readers' concerns for and help them reflect deeply on the current children-adult relationships, children's education, and children's upbringing. Bruno Bettelheim (1903~1990), an American child psychologist, indicated that for stories to enrich children's live, they must be able to help the children recognize their emotions, address their anxieties and desires, and empathize with the children in terms of the difficulties they are going through. The stories must also address all aspects of the children's personalities and never downplay the children's predicaments; the stories must make children feel trust and being taken seriously. Accordingly, this study adopted the perspectives of sociology and children's psychological development and referenced the characters and plot found in Little Snow: The Conditions to be Loved to examine the society and world in which children live in today. It reflected on the nature of love as well as childhood issues depicted in the novel.