Review: Invincible and Righteous Outlaw: The Korean Hero Hong Gildong in Literature, History, and Culture

Invincible and Righteous Outlaw: The Korean Hero Hong Gildong in Literature, History, and Culture by Minsoo Kang
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

At this point the story, author and meaning behind Hong Gildong are so accepted that the author finds himself in the situation of having to basically prove a negative. He has to prove that Heo Gyun did not - and could not - write the story, and has to go into detail as to all the reasons why, as well as how the story fits the literature and society of 19th century Korea so much more than 16th century Korea.

Still, I loved the deep dive in the story of this Korean Robin Hood. I'd say this is THE definitive work on research into the origins and effects of the Hong Gildong story.




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Review: The Story of Hong Gildong

The Story of Hong Gildong by Unknown
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

A fun story. Sort of a cross between Robin hood and Water Margin (水滸傳), with a Journey to the West feel to it.
While it's fun and quick, there isn't all that much more going for it. But it seems to be part of the canon of Korean literature, so still worth getting to know.

Also, I was kind of annoyed at how the whole premise of the story was that he, as the son of a concubine, couldn't "call his father his father and call his brother his brother", but then once he becomes ruler over his kingdom, he still gets concubines and treats their sons as lesser sons.

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