The Perception of Joseon Dress of Japanese People Residing in Colonial Joseon Depicted in “Modern Japan Joseon Edition(モダン日本朝鮮版)”

This study examines the contents and characteristics of the Joseon dress and clothing habits of the late 1930s that were depicted in two editions of the “ Modern Japan Joseon Edition” to understand the perception of Joseon clothing held by Japanese people residing in Joseon during that period. The mass entertainment magazine, “ Modern Japan” was first printed in the 1930s when Japanese literature increased. In 1939 and 1940, two issues of “ Modern Japan Joseon Edition” were published as special editions to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the magazine. The articles in the two editions were categorized by genre, and the depictions of Joseon dress in each genre were comprehensively examined. The opinions, perspectives, and analyses that Japanese residing in Joseon had regarding Joseon dress were often expressed in the literature of various genres. This overall attention that Joseon dress received in various fields was highlighted mostly to continue the argument that the Joseon dress culture should be accepted as a local culture. Additionally, the subjects of this attention were mostly women, and especially concentrated on gisaeng. This study analyzes the perceptions of Japanese people residing in Joseon regarding Joseon dress. “ Modern Japan Joseon Edition” revealed the overall perception the Japanese re- siding in Joseon had regarding colonial Joseon and consistently supported the militarism and Naesun ilche policy of that time. Notably, several articles praised and analyzed Joseon dress, and displayed the nuance that under- standing and accepting Joseon dress culture as a “local” culture was a means to further develop Japanese culture as an aspect of the Naesun ilche policy. From this, it can be inferred that colonial Joseon was already recognized as an area in which the integration policy had been established and was to be accepted as a “local” area of Japan. Additionally, the perceptions of Japanese people residing in Joseon were limited to gisaeng and women’s’ clothing which demonstrates a superficially biased understanding of Joseon beauty.