The Significance of Gut in Yu Miri's The End of August

This paper analyzes Yu Miri's novel The End of August with a particular focus on the recurring motif of ‘gut’ (Korean shamanic rituals performed to solve problems between humans and spirits.). The novel interweaves the author's autobiographical memory with Korea's modern history, including Japanese colonial rule and the ideological conflicts surrounding the division of the Korean Peninsula. Among Yu Miri's works, this is the only novel that explicitly foregrounds the identity and historical consciousness of a ‘Zainichi Korean’ (Koreans who live in Japan). In this text, ‘gut’ operates not as a mere religious act but as a narrative device that restores the suppressed memories of the dead and connects them with the living. It dismantles the silenced stories of those who died unjustly under colonial oppression and reconfigures them within a broader collective memory. By analyzing the narrative function of ‘gut’ , this study sheds light on the literary significance of The End of August as a turning point in Yu Miri's oeuvre and reveals the background of her transition, towards literature that reconstructs collective memory and embodies a form of national writing.