A Sad Tune

The director, Chang-dong Lee, is ranked as one of the most important directors in Korea though he has only directed four films. His works embodies the personal tragic experiences under the background of Korean modernization, which is praised highly by people.Although the form of director study is applied, the author develops the thesis from the theory of tragedy. Through the methods of induction, illustration and comparison, the author tries to explain how Chang-dong Lee combines the aesthetic principles of realism with tragedy in his works in the hope of restoring his identity as a realistic director through the study of the theory of tragedy. The thesis includes three parts: the form and content of Chang-dong Lee's tragic text, the construction and fulfillment of tragic images, the significance of the tragic films.The first part discusses the form and content of the tragic text of Chang-dong Lee's four films. The author analyzes the molding of character images from two perspectives: the type of the tragic characters and the source of their tragedy. His characters have some common characteristics: at the bottom of the society, physically handicapped, wishing for the good and the beautiful. Their tragic fate is closely connected with the influence of the society and their inner conflict.The second part focuses on tragic images in Chang-dong Lee's films. First, the author analyzes the style of images from the perspective of audiovisual language ontology. The analysis covers the application of long-take cinematography, the change of the style of the camera language, the tragedy in the sound and the sorrow reflected in the colors. These rhetoric methods play a very important role in the tragic narration. In addition, Chang-dong Lee is a master in applying symbolism and metaphors to reflect the prevailing social reality and the helplessness and sadness of the characters. Even his narration pattern has gone through a stylistic evolution, from a standard linear narration to complete flashback and then to a style featuring a lot of imagination. Besides, an overview of Chang-dong Lee's films tells us the existence of the binary oppositions of change and closure of space, imagination and reality.The last part dwells on the significance of the tragedy in Chang-dong Lee's films, his poetic treatment of realism, his facing the reality when most films are like pastoral songs and his influence on the present Korean film industry. This part is meant to restore Chang-dong Lee's identity as a realistic director.