＜St. Isaac's Cathedral＞ 유머와 통찰 - 윤동재 시인의 ＜이삭 성당＞

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St. Isaac’s Cathedral

by D.J. YOON

Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia

A guide who graduated from Seoul National University's Department of Russian Literature — currently pursuing a doctorate in Pushkin Literature at St. Petersburg University while explaining diligently without even wiping the sweat from his forehead

Forty thousand workers died to build St. Isaac's Cathedral!

At that, while listening to the explanation, one of the group blurts out a word.

Oh, thank you, thank you, King of Joseon! The Kings of Joseon did not kill hundreds of thousands of people to build one big building!

An old Russian couple claps their hands loudly, saying that's right.

German tourists who were looking around St. Isaac's Cathedral are all looking this way, surprised by what's going on.

이삭 성당

-윤동재

러시아 빼쩨르부르그에 있는 이삭 성당

서울대학교 노문과를 졸업하고

뻬쩨르부르그 대학에서

뿌쉬낀 문학으로 박사과정을 밟고 있다는

가이드가 이마의 땀도 닦지 않고

열심히 설명하고 있다

“이삭 성당을 세우는데

사십만 명의 일꾼이 죽었어요!”

그러자 설명을 듣다 말고

일행 가운데 한 사람이

한 마디 내 뱉는다

“아, 고맙고 고마워라 조선의 왕이여!

조선의 왕들은 큰 건물 하나 세우려고

수십만 명을 죽이지는 않았지!”

러시아 사람 늙은 부부가

그 말을 어떻게 알아들었는지

맞는 말이라며

손뼉을 크게 치고 있다

이삭 성당 안을 구경하던

독일 사람 관광객들이

무슨 일인가 놀라서

모두 이쪽을 보고 있다

Appreciation Review 感想

This poem uses humor and sharp ideas to make us think about history and its costs.

It starts with a guide explaining facts about St. Isaac’s Cathedral, but the tourist’s funny comment brings out the sad truth about how many lives were lost to build it.

The poem’s descriptions, like the sweating guide, clapping Russians, and surprised German tourists, make the scene feel real and lively.

By comparing the past in a clever way, the poem shows how societies often value big buildings over human lives.

It’s both funny and meaningful, making readers reflect while enjoying the story.

St. Isaac’s Cathedral

It is a Russian Orthodox cathedral and landmark of the city of Saint Petersburg, Russia. The cathedral is named after one of the Orthodox saints, Saint Isaac of Dalmatia. The dedication of Saint Isaac's Cathedral was held on May 30, 1858, in honor of Saint Isaac of Dalmatia and the birthday of Peter the Great on May 30 (Julian calendar), with the participation of Alexander II (АлександрⅡ, 1818–1881) and the royal family. With a height of 101.5 m, an internal area of ​​4,000 m2, and a maximum seating capacity of 14,000, Saint Isaac's Cathedral was the largest cathedral in Russia at the time of its completion in 1858. It was built in the late classical style and was designed and supervised by French architect Auguste Montferrand (1786-1858). Construction began in 1818 and took 40 years to complete, with 500,000 people mobilized for its construction. Since the area where the current city of St. Petersburg is located was a swamp before the city was built, 24,000 piles were driven into the land to solidify the ground to withstand the weight of the large-scale structure, St. Isaac's Cathedral. The exterior of the cathedral consists of five golden domes, including the large central dome, and 72 large stone pillars surrounding the cathedral, and is decorated with approximately 350 sculptures. More than 100 kg of gold was used to complete the golden dome, and there is an anecdote that the golden dome was painted gray to avoid being targeted by the German army during World War II. The observation deck offers a panoramic view of the city of St. Petersburg from a height of 43 meters. Inside, there are three altars, and various marbles including Italian marble in blue, red, yellow, white, and black, as well as mosaic frescoes, 103 iconographic frescoes, 52 canvas paintings, and stained glass windows. It has been operated as a museum since 1928, and extensive restoration work was carried out in the 1950s and 1960s.

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