earticle

영어

Children and nature are not yet highly regarded in Korea because they are not the responsible
or acting agent unlike adult and technology. However, as the pure mirrors reflecting human
society interacting with nature, the sacrifice of children and their rebirth through water in
children’s literature such as Princess Bari, Sim Cheong and The Water Babies reveal both the
idealized value-laden ecosystem and some moral conflicts in human society. This study aims at
the recovery of the innocence of children and affinity with nature in our postindustrial society,
and argues that the sacrifice of children through water is commonly used in the texts as a
source of inspiration, implying the importance of ecocentric values in our efforts to recover
wholeness, along with the cultural differences of ecological and societal ethics. Overall, the
victimization of innocent children in these stories is the very process of kenotic ethics toward
great Love for all living and non-living things. By emptying our selves through the tears of
sacrificed children, we can come closest to the heart of the ecosystem. (Hannam University)