Abstract
This study analyses two Korean leftist novels from the 1930s, Kang Kyŏngae's
강경애 Ingan munje (인간문제, The Problem of Humankind) and Han Sŏrya's 한설야
Hwanghon (황혼, The Dusk). Both can be considered typical products of the era: they are published in serial form, introduce new male and female protagonists, and address social problems that are faced by the privileged and the underprivileged. Equally, both authors provide the reader with clear role models, ideals, and ideology. The novels enjoyed popularity after publication, yet later experienced both overvaluation and rejection, or even lengthy periods of obscurity. The present article focuses on the construction of the typical
"new hero" and the storyline. It specifically addresses how ideology was incorporated into the plot, and its remarkably fragmentary knowledge of such elementary leftist concepts as
"class struggle" and "revolution".