Greenroom

The Tale of Heungbu

Anonymous, 1800 · Original title: 흥부전

Nolbu and Heungbu are brothers born of the same parents, but they could hardly be more different. Greedy Nolbu keeps the family fortune for himself, while kind-hearted Heungbu struggles to feed his large family. Then, one spring, a swallow builds its nest under Heungbu's eaves.

Kindness rewarded, greed punishedBrotherly duty and family loveThe gap between rich and poor in late JoseonHumour as a way of facing hardship

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Public domain: an anonymous classic from around 1800. Everything written here is our own; no modern edition is copied.

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Characters

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  • 흥부 Heungbu A kind-hearted younger brother struggling to feed a big, hungry family. Main character Appears in part 1
  • 놀부 Nolbu A rich, greedy elder brother famous for his spite. Main character Appears in part 1
  • 흥부 아내 Heungbu's Wife Heungbu's hard-working wife, who will take any job to feed her children. Appears in part 1
  • 놀부 아내 Nolbu's Wife Nolbu's wife, every bit as tight-fisted as her husband. Appears in part 1
  • 제비 The Swallow First appears in part 2. Read up to part 1 to meet them without spoilers.

Part by part

Part 1

처음 ~ 흥부가 가난 속에 고생하기까지

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Part 2

흥부가 제비 다리를 고쳐 주어 ~ 박을 타서 부자가 되기까지

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Part 3

놀부가 흥부를 찾아와 ~ 놀부가 박씨를 얻기까지

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Part 4

놀부가 박을 타기 시작하여 ~ 끝

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