Public Conception of the Yeongno
* Warning for Potential Machine-Translation-Induced Errors *
Hani Kim of Twitter writes:
To add some context, 영노 refers to an imaginary dragon, who, upon observing the misuse of power and domination by the aristocratic class (양반), descended from Heaven to Earth to punish the Yangban class (i.e. eat 100 Yangban before returning to Heaven). It symbolizes the yearning of the peasants and workers to be emancipated from their conditions, expressed in a comical satire.
(source, source)
Professor Lee’s Shinhwa Library on Egloos.zum.com states:
Yeongno is also called Bibi because it makes a whistling sound (It is said that they cry “beep-beep”, and when the Yeongno would come out during the mask play, they blew the pipe and made a real beep sound.) ... it has no limbs, it is said that it has horns on its head and resembles a dragon with blue scales. (It is said that it can fly in the sky.) There is also a saying that it is a variant of the Imugi as a yokai of the Imugi family.
Although it is not a dragon, it has received greater support from the people than a dragon, because one of the characteristics of Yeongno is that it eats corrupt yangbans. It is said that if it eats 100 yangbans, it will ascend to heaven, which means that yokai are a reflection of the people's resistance to the corrupt ruling class.
...
There is no need to worry, as it is a friend of the people who preys on the corrupt ruling class. (If you are concerned, your usual behavior is the problem.) They eat anything, but the people's resistance consciousness has turned into a monster, so no matter how hungry they are, it will not eat innocent people. I wish that he would appear in North Korea once and organize the ruling class.
How to use it in virtual media Since it is a monster of the Imugi Department, it would be good to use it together with Imugi and Gangcheori, and it would be good to write a story in conjunction with other characters in the mask dance. First of all, he's not an evil yokai, so it's better to play a good role rather than that of a villain. If you want to make it into a horror movie, I think it would be okay if Yeongno created a teamup with a cursed being created by the people's sorrow, and then made it in such a way that the bad rich people of today are serially murdered or disappearing. ...
(source)
The Encyclopedia of Korean Folk-Culture entry written by HeoMoyoung(許募永) states:
Yeongno is portrayed as an almighty being that preys on anything and defeats anyone, but its appearance and character becomes varied and complex depending on the type of masked dance-drama. In form, Yeongno plays a willow pipe and makes a threatening “bibi” sound.
... In particular, the red color that is painted on Yeongno’s mask in Dongnae Yaryu represents the color of yang (Kor. 양, Chin. 陽, lit. positive), which expels evil spirits. It can also be seen as the visual representation of the idea that noblemen are evil spirits to be driven away. ... Rather than the Yangban, who advocates Confucian ethics as a ruling ideology, Yeongno is the one to put Confucian virtues into action. It is ironic that the Confucian virtues shown by Yeongno are in stark contrast with the pathetic behavior of the Yangban, who uses every possible means to survive. That when the Yangban says, “I’m your great-great grandfather, ” Yeongno gives up eating him, paradoxically exemplifies that even in terms of moral and humanitarian criteria, the monster is superior to the nobleman. In short, Yeongno proves itself as a being that punishes the nobleman but is morally better than the nobleman. ... Then Yeongno promises the Yangban, who is in a life-threatening situation, that if a true nobleman tells him to go away he will do so. Suddenly, the Yangban boasts that he comes from a family of true noblemen and then tries to rule over Yeongno. In response, Yeongno proceeds to eat the nobleman, saying that he needs to feed on him to ascend to heaven. In short, the character of Yeongno, not found in any folktales, is the embodiment of pubic longing for the arrival of a being that challenges social inequality and oppression of the commoners.
(source)
In the Korean Folk Art Dictionary Namseong-jin writes:
Yeong-no is a superhuman being with the superior ability to compete with the yangban for wisdom and wit, eat anything, and win over anyone. In Yeonhuija's oral statement, Yeongno is an imaginary animal that is said to live in the sky and has the ability to eat everything in the world . It is also called 'bibi bird' because it puts a large part in the mouth and makes a sound like "bi~bi~".
...
In Dongrae Yaryu, a bibiyangban wearing a dog hair crown on his head, a white robe and holding a fan in his hand appears and dances around the Gutgeori rhythm . Next, Yeongno, wearing a black cloth covering his head, appears and follows the yangban. When Yeong-no says that if he eats ninety-nine yangbans and eats one more yangban, he will rise to the top, but he becomes frightened and the bibi yangban says he is not a yangban. A yangban surrounds himself with dung, dogs, pigs, cows, grass nettles, and snakes. When Yeong-no says he eats them better, the frightened Yangban drops the fan. When the yangban tries to pick up the fan, Yeong-no kicks him and eventually injures his fingers and toes. After Bibi-yangban barely grabs the fan, he and Yeong-no do a deotbaegi dance to the Gutgeori rhythm before leaving.
...
Yeongno is a character who rebukes the yangban, and is an animal with symbolism that materializes the latent power of the people. Therefore, the Yeongno Dance Madang can be said to be a social life pool that unleashes the social pain that annoys the people through Yeongno and realizes the people's prospects for a new world.
...
The Yeongno dance satirizes the hypocrisy and pretentiousness of the yangban, the ruling class of society in the late Joseon Dynasty, through anthropomorphic animals . Yeong-no appears as a judge against the yangban, shows his aggression by devouring his opponent, and also engages in extreme fights as a punisher.
(source)
Naver user kkameuw77 writes:
It is called Yeongno, an imaginary animal that appears. It is said that "Yeongno" was originally an Imugi. Originally, he ate a hundred yangbans. It's a monster said to ascend to heaven. As you can see from the story about eating the bad yangban, it is a character who punishes and satirizes the yangban.
...
There is a scene where Yeongno and Yangban meet. A yangban says he is not a yangban He replies that he can eat him even if he's not a yangban. The yangban says he is a ball of iron Yeongno says that he chews and eats iron balls. The yangban says he can’t as he is a shadow Yeongno said that the shadows are swallowed like water. The yangban asked Yeongno what he was afraid of. Yeongno replied that it was scary when a true yangban gave him a scold. Then, the yangban said that his ancestors, parents, and relatives Yeonguijeong, Leejopanseo, and Byeongjopanseo Bumadowi He scolded him loudly saying that he was a student of Hallym, Yeongno said that he should eat a yangban like you. The mask play ends by dragging the yangban out.
...
Overseas, the word yangban was paraphrased for this yeongno. Because it is translated as "rich" eating the pigs of capitalism It is said that he became a communist hero. If there was a real Yeong-no, all the Korean lawmakers would be eaten.
(source)
In the Korean Folk Art Dictionary entry for Ogwangdae, Tongyeong Park Jin-tae writes:
Yeongno is set to harm the yangban, the hostile force of the people, and reflects the people's desire to overthrow the yangban class. However, Dongnae Yaryu and Goseong Ogwangdae show the possibility of class reconciliation through reconciliation between Yangban and Yeongno, but Tongyeong Ogwangdae, like Suyeong Yaryu, ends in ruin where Yeongno eats the yangban, showing a radical tendency.
(source)
Naver user 월도마왕 writes:
Yeongno is a monster classified as a type of Imugi and appears in various clown plays in Gyeongsang Province. ... Its gluttony is beyond imagination, and it devours living creatures as well as inanimate objects such as trees, rocks, and cast iron.
...
Yeongno competes for wisdom and wit against the yangban, and the act of eating anything including the yangban shows resentment towards the ruling class and the spirit of resistance.
(source)
The encykorea.aks.ac.kr entry on the Yeongno reads:
...Yeong-no is said to be a superhuman being with the superior ability to compete with the yangban for wisdom and wit, and to eat anything and defeat anyone...
(source)
Chosun Media for Kids quotes Gon Lee’s Korean Fantasy Animal Encyclopedia:
When the yangban meets Yeongno, he lies and tries to run away, but Yeongno is a witty and wise animal, so he is not deceived. The people made Yeongno to punish the yangban in this way and called it 'Youngnotal'. This is how it relieved the resentment accumulated by the nobles who tormented the commoners.
...
Youngno eats almost anything. There is nothing it can't eat, such as iron balls, shadows, poop, pigs, tadpoles, frogs, and snakes. Among them, its favorite food is yangban. Because if it kills 100 yangbans, it can ascend to heaven.
...
How not to get eaten by Yeongno
Even if you are caught by the fearsome Yeongno, you can survive if you stay alert. Although Yeongno is omnivorous, and also eats humans, it does not eat its own parents, grandparents, and ancestors. It is an animal that knows how to keep the three rivers and five circles (三綱五倫, the moral code taught in Confucianism that humans must follow). When you meet Yeong-no, you can live by shouting “I am your ancestor!”
(source)
In short, the Yeongno is well regarded for its strength, power, and character. It is known as a friend of the people and an enemy of the oppressor.
