서정주의「자화상」은 그의 초기작임에도 불구하고 직설적이며 도발적인 서술 기법이라든가 시어의 상징적 처리 등이 수준 높은 작품임을 느끼게 하며, 해석상에 있어서도 학계에 많은 논란을 가져온 시이다. 그러나 정본이 제대로 제시되지 않았고, 여러 학자들이 이 시가 시인의 전기적 사실에 의거하고 있음을 인정하면서도 철저히 역사 전기적 방법에 의한 접근이 이루어지지 않았다. 특히 해석이 확정되지 않은 부분은 이 방법을 통해 객관적인 논거를 마련할 수 있다는 점에서 이 연구 방법이 절실히 요구되는 실정이다. 이에 따라 연구자는 본고에서 판본 비교를 통한 정본을 제시하면서, 이 방법을 원용하여 학계에 논란이 되어 온 부분들에 대한 해석의 정립을 시도하였다. 「자화상」의 중요한 판본은 ①『시건설』(1939), ②『화사집』(남만서고, 1941), ③『서정주문학전집1』(일지사, 1972), ④『미당서정주시전집』(민음사, 1983), ⑤『미당시전집1』(민음사, 1994), ⑥『화사집』(문학동네, 2001)에 수록된 시가 된다. 이 가운데 ①에 실린 시는 가장 처음 발표된 것이기는 하지만 1, 2연이 산문체로 되어 있고, 의도적으로 맞춤법에 맞는 표기를 한 점으로 미루어 원본이 되지 못한다. 따라서 ②에 실린 시를 원본으로 봐야 한다. ④, ⑤, ⑥은 이 원본의 표기를 따르고 있다. 그러나 ④와 ⑤는「자화상」전체를 2연으로 처리하는 오류를 범하고 있다. 또한 띄어쓰기도 세 군데가 ②와 틀리며, 특히 ‘서껴’를 ‘서꺼’로 표기하고 있다. 그에 비해 ⑥은 ‘서있을뿐이었다’를 ‘서 있을뿐이었다’라고 한 것을 제외하고는『화사집』초간본과 일치한다. ③은 맞춤법 규정에 따라 현대어로 표기를 하여 정본에 가깝지만, 방언과 고어를 모두 현대어로 바꾸어 시의 맛을 살리지 못했기에 이상적인 정본이 되지 못한다. 또 ③ 역시 ④, ⑤와 마찬가지로 시 전체를 2연으로 처리했기 때문에 이것이 수정되어야 한다. 이 모든 사항을 참작하여 연구자 나름의 정본을 제시해 보았다. 시 해석에서 주로 다룬 것은 학설이 정리되지 못하고 논란이 되고 있는 부분이다. ‘파뿌리같이 늙은 할머니’는 누구이며 어떻게 살아온 분인가, ‘대추꽃’은 이 시에서 어떤 대상으로 등장했는가, ‘달을 두고’를 어떻게 해석해야 하며 임신한 아이는 누구인가, 외할아버지의 실종이 왜 ‘甲午年’이 맞는가, 그리고 이 시의 해석상 가장 난해한 부분인 ‘이마 위에 얹힌 詩의 이슬에는 / 몇 방울의 피가 언제나 섞여 있어’의 바람직한 해석은 무엇인가 등이다. 이 부분들에 대해서는 역사 전기적 방법을 원용하여 객관적 설득력이 있는 논거를 마련하고자 하였다. 미당 자신의 술회나 동생 서정태 옹의 증언, 부친 서광한의 제적등본에 의거함 등은 그 일환이다. 본고를 통해「자화상」텍스트의 실체가 좀 더 명백히 밝혀지기를 기대한다.

An early poem of Suh, Jung-Ju (Suh), "A Self-portrait", is famous for its high quality in using straightforward narrative technique and symbolic poetic dictions. It even brought controversies to the academia in terms of interpretations. Regardless of its quality and academic importance, neither the original text nor the authentic text was introduced to the public. Moreover, although many scholars agreed that it is based on Suh’s biographic events, "A Self-portrait" has not been interpreted with the historical biographic approach. By acknowledging the fact that the interpretation method of using historical biographic approach is needed in providing objective ground for the uninterpreted part of the poem, this paper tried to embrace and criticize existing interpretations as well as accept the historical biographic approach. Previous to the detailed analysis, the paper tired to define and establish the authentic text of "A Self-portrait". The construction of the authentic text was needed because "A Self-portrait" in Sigeonseol was not the original text and also the poem in Hwasajip published two years later was not the authentic text. In analyzing "A Self-portrait", the paper focuses on several things including whether the disappearance of grandfather happened in ‘Ga-bonyeon’ (meaning the year 1905 in Korean history) or not; who is ‘pappuligat-i neulg-eun halmeoni’ (meaning a white-haired grandmother in Korean); what is the meaning of ‘dal-euldugo’ (meaning facing the month of giving birth in Korean) and who is the main character in the context; what is the poetic object by ‘Daechukkot’ (meaning jujube flower in Korean); what is the true mean of ‘palhal-i balam’ (meaning 80 percent is wind in Korean); and how to interpret the most abstruse part ‘ima u-e eonjhin si-eu iseul-eneun mechbang-ul-ui piga eonjena seokkyeo-iss-eo’ (meaning a few drops of blood were always mixed in the dews of poem formed on forehead in Korean). To gain persuasive power, the paper provided evidences from Suh’s reminiscence, his younger brother Suh, Jeong-Tae’s witness and his father Suh, Gwang-Han’s duplicate of family registration. Consequently, the paper could provide valid analysis on some part of the controversial lines in "A Self-portrait". However, the interpretation of one or two lines remains controversial and that is the imitation that the paper has.

An early poem of Suh, Jung-Ju (Suh), "A Self-portrait", is famous for its high quality in using straightforward narrative technique and symbolic poetic dictions. It even brought controversies to the academia in terms of interpretations. Regardless of its quality and academic importance, neither the original text nor the authentic text was introduced to the public. Moreover, although many scholars agreed that it is based on Suh’s biographic events, "A Self-portrait" has not been interpreted with the historical biographic approach. By acknowledging the fact that the interpretation method of using historical biographic approach is needed in providing objective ground for the uninterpreted part of the poem, this paper tried to embrace and criticize existing interpretations as well as accept the historical biographic approach. Previous to the detailed analysis, the paper tired to define and establish the authentic text of "A Self-portrait". The construction of the authentic text was needed because "A Self-portrait" in Sigeonseol was not the original text and also the poem in Hwasajip published two years later was not the authentic text. In analyzing "A Self-portrait", the paper focuses on several things including whether the disappearance of grandfather happened in ‘Ga-bonyeon’ (meaning the year 1905 in Korean history) or not; who is ‘pappuligat-i neulg-eun halmeoni’ (meaning a white-haired grandmother in Korean); what is the meaning of ‘dal-euldugo’ (meaning facing the month of giving birth in Korean) and who is the main character in the context; what is the poetic object by ‘Daechukkot’ (meaning jujube flower in Korean); what is the true mean of ‘palhal-i balam’ (meaning 80 percent is wind in Korean); and how to interpret the most abstruse part ‘ima u-e eonjhin si-eu iseul-eneun mechbang-ul-ui piga eonjena seokkyeo-iss-eo’ (meaning a few drops of blood were always mixed in the dews of poem formed on forehead in Korean). To gain persuasive power, the paper provided evidences from Suh’s reminiscence, his younger brother Suh, Jeong-Tae’s witness and his father Suh, Gwang-Han’s duplicate of family registration. Consequently, the paper could provide valid analysis on some part of the controversial lines in "A Self-portrait". However, the interpretation of one or two lines remains controversial and that is the imitation that the paper has.

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"A Self-portrait", original text, authentic text, historical biographic approach, ‘Ga-bonyeon’, ‘pappuligat-ineulg-eunhalmeoni’, ‘dal-euldugo’, ‘Daechukkot’, ‘palhal-ibalam’, ‘si-euiseul’, blood