ScholarWorks@숙명여자대학교

초록

This paper examinest the lived of experienceces of adolescents in 1950s Korea known as burang-ah (부랑아, 浮浪兒), a terms often translated as “vagrant children.” Challenging simplistisc categorizations of these youth as mere social problem or pathological subjects, this study reconstructs them as individuals with agency navigating the harsh realities of post-Korean War society. In the wake of the conflict, numerous childeren, orphaned and impoverished, were labeled variously as war orphans, delinquent boys, or working boys. They inhabited streets and shelters, forging survival strategies as part of the urban poor. The Syngman Rhee government’s approach to the burang-ah marked a departure from the Japanese colonial era’s policiesof arrest or neglect. Influenced by both inherited colonial-era social control mechanisms and collaborations with foreign aid organizations, the postwar government grappled with a dual perception of these youths: they were simultaneously viewed as the nation's future and a source of national shame, evoking a complex mixture of pity and fear. Concurrently, the introduction of American psychological and psychiatric paradigms led some experts to pathologize the children's behaviors, applying Western frameworks that often ill-suited the specific socio-economic context of postwar Korea. This paper argues that the burang-ah demonstrated significant autonomy and resilience. Functioning with adult-like responsibilities, they adhered to their own social codes and developed a keen understanding of societal structures, operating within them to survive. In the pervasive poverty of 1950s Korea, the burang-ah were not solely ostracized; they also elicited sympathy and compassion, often regarded as neighbors within shared impoverished communities rather than distant "others." Re-examining the lives of the burang-ah extends beyond historical rectification; it offers critical insights into contemporary societal issues. The mechanisms of marginalization and discrimination faced by these youths resonate with the experiences of vulnerable populations today, including the elderly, immigrants, and individuals with disabilities. Although the term burang-ah has faded from common usage, the societal tendency to ostracize and "other" vulnerable groups persists. This study underscores the importance of recognizing that the challenges faced by marginalized communities are, in fact, collective societal concerns.

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