ScholarWorks@숙명여자대학교

초록

As discussions on care have been expanding in both Korea and Japan amid the background of low birthrates and an aging population, young carers have become socially visible. This study provides a current overview of young carers in both countries and examines their representations in literature, focusing on Young Adult (YA) fiction intended for adolescent readers. The novels analyzed in this study—Peppermint (2022) by Onyu Baek, With You (2020) by Kyoko Hamano, and The Opposite Shore (Mukōgishi, 2018) by Kana Yasuda—commonly feature young women who take care of their sick mothers as main characters. These stories illuminate various realities of caregiving such as the difficulties and crises young carers face, the conflict between developmental tasks and caregiving roles, and anxieties about the future. All of these narrative works show a young carer who moves from isolation toward solidarity through relationships with empathetic and understanding friends. Furthermore, the two Japanese novels, reflecting the didactic nature of the YA genre, characteristically include concrete depictions of welfare systems related to young carer support. The young carer novels discussed in this paper focus on the value of care, reflect on the crisis of caregiving, and explore an ethics of care aimed at transforming society toward one centered on mutual care networks. By participating in the broader human endeavor to conceptualize communities grounded in shared ethical responsibility and care, these novels demonstrate how literature can contribute to critical reflections on vulnerability and relationality.

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