earticle

영어

Those who used to have sovereign power of the nation are called influentials. Studies on influentials by region have been made nationwide, as they help understand how the ruling system during the Japanese rule controlled individual regions of Korea as a colony. However, few studies have been conducted so far on the influentials in Jeolla-do(province), even though it underwent drastic changes in its social situations, due to economic plunder by Japan earlier than any other region. Therefore, the author intended to examine what role the infuentials in Jeollabuk-do had during the Japanese rule of Korea, focusing on the case of Jong-cheol Hong, one of the influentials of Go-chang. To this end, previous literatures on influentials were looked into first, and in order to inquiry into his activities during the period, Records of investigation into Specific Activities Contrary to the Nation, Summary of Banks, Companies, and Associations of Chosun, Registry of Staff of the Chosun Governor General Office, and news articles from Dong-a Ilbo were used as reference. In addition, information on social situations in those days was collected from interviews with Go-chang Culture Center Director Gi-wha Lee and elders of Hyangsan-li, a village where many members of Nam Yang Hong family lived. In conclusion, although some influentials in this region during the Japanese rule were involved in politics, while others were not, those who were involved in politics like Jong-cheol Hong enjoyed extensive foundation for power, and for such foundation, social activities as influentials were also acutely affected by the change of colonial policies of Japan. Moreover, the study concluded that those influentials who participated in politics maintained such power even after the liberation of Korea from the Japanese rule. Nevertheless, it is hard to apply results of this study to all the influentials in Jeollabuk-do, since this study focused on Jong-cheol Hong of Go-chang, one of the influentials in Jeollabuk-do, which should be solved through further studies.