Author: Tayida Phanich<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Editor: Lina Gallo<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A faint orange hue illuminated the once pitch-black forest, cutting a path for the lone traveler. Instinctively, he walked towards the light source, taking careful steps in an attempt not to injure himself on stray pebbles or twigs. Pak Munsu had been warned about the creatures that roamed the forest at night, but with no other options, the lost man conceded to its enamor. Captivated, he moved deeper and deeper into the forest following the soft glow as it grew brighter and brighter. Until finally, he was met with the yellow shimmer of a burning candle, its flame housed in a lantern. Munsu\u2019s gaze shifted upwards, his eyes landing on the obscure figure of the lantern\u2019s owner. As his eyes adjusted to the brightness, he sucked in a breath, completely stunned. Before him stood a beautiful woman, her long black hair rustling slightly in the breeze, brushing across her face. A face of which was blessed with alluring brown eyes, its orbs glistening in the light of the fire, plump lips whose corners tugged itself up into a smirk. A silk hanbok was wrapped around her figure, and although they were in the forest, it was oddly clean.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/em>\u201cHello there. Are you lost?\u201d Her voice was low and bewitching, and yet it sent shivers down Munsu\u2019s spine. He gulped.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/em>As they conversed, he felt an odd feeling bubbling in his chest. The longer he stared at her, the worst it got. Her orbs were enchanting, but when he looked past her eyes, he noticed oddities. Her nose was sharp, almost like a snout, her hair flashed shades of orange and brown, and he could\u2019ve sworn he saw something pointy peeking out from the top of her head. Shaking his head, the images went away immediately, gaining reason to believe he was hallucinating. Was he that tired? <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOk, follow along.\u201d She said.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/em>Silence fell in the shrouded forest as the two walked as if it was holding its breath. Dazed, Pak Munsu followed the mysterious girl, cautiously trailing her every step. As they headed deeper and deeper, a tingling sensation grew along his back. Munsu\u2019s eyes gazed at her figure, the cloth of her dress swaying as she walked. His eyes caught sight of fur protruding from herself. He looked away, but it was still there. And that\u2019s when he remembered.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/em>As if sensing he had stopped, the girl turned her head to see his frozen figure, a small smirk lighting up her face. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/em>\u201cYou\u2019re a\u2026..\u201d He trailed off, unsure of what to say, his fear only bringing her amusement. Her grin widened further until a malicious smirk graced her face.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/em>\u201cRun.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n This short excerpt is inspired by the Korean myth of Pak Munsu and the Kumiho<\/em>, featuring a creature in Korean literature and folklore, the Gumiho (\uad6c\ubbf8\ud638). If you have never heard of this relatively popular character, the Gumiho, whose translation means \u201cnine-tailed fox\u201d, is \u201ca fox that can freely transform into, among other things, a bewitching girl that seduces men.\u201d (Shure). Its appearance across various Korean oral tales depicts the creature as a demoness, whose goals are power and death. It is believed that a fox turns into a gumiho after living for 1000 years, and gumihos are the only foxes to kill humans with their bare hands. Unlike its related counterparts, the kitsune in Japan, and the huli jing in China, gumihos are usually always depicted as purely evil, especially in more modern myths. They hunt down their prey and eat their heart or their liver (depending on the myth) as it is believed to be the life force or energy of the human. To achieve this goal, many foxes transform into humans, in particular, a woman to lure unsuspecting humans (although there is one tale, The Maiden who Discovered a Kumiho through a Chinese Poem, where the kumiho transforms into a man to trick a maiden). However, these transformations are never entirely perfect, with something persistently fox-like about the person. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Uniquely, the most distinct feature of a gumiho is the existence of a yeowu guseul (\uc5ec\uc6b0\uad6c\uc2ac), which is a \u201cfox marble\u201d that is believed to hold the knowledge and power of the gumiho, and they use this to absorb human energy. However, if someone else manages to get hold of the yeowu guseul, they gain knowledge and power over the gumiho it came from. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While many of these myths were passed on orally, some of them were written down. These legends can be found in the Compendium of Korean Oral Literature<\/em>, which actually contains some pretty interesting stories. One of which was mentioned before, Pak Munsu and the Kumiho<\/em>. This tale follows a man, Pak Munsu, <\/em>who encounters a fox-like girl living in the woods. Some other well-known myths include Transformation of the Kumiho, <\/em>where a gumiho \u201ccrashes\u201d a wedding by transforming into a bride, The King, and the Kumiho, <\/em>which follows a king as he meets a girl in the woods and agrees to save her indebted father, as well as The Maiden who Discovered a Kumiho through a Chinese Poem, <\/em>a story of a gumiho who changes into a man as an attempt to lure a maiden but was revealed when a dog caught its scent and attacked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But where did this mythical creature come from? And how was it passed down through hundreds of generations of oral myths?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although we aren\u2019t completely sure, the gumiho seems to have originated in Chinese myths, appearing in the old Chinese text, Classic of Mountains and Seas<\/em>. This is why gumihos are so similar to other Asian foxes like the kitsune and the huli jing, they all were derived from the same ancient myths. These Chinese gumihos however, were often depicted as friendly and helpful creatures. In the Goryeo dynasty, more gumihos were written with negative images, however, people in the Silla kingdom believed that foxes were sacred beings. It is suspected by many that the unified view of evil gumihos arose during the Japanese occupation of Korea, and with that, brings us to the modern tales of gumihos that are so popular in video games, comics, and tv dramas that we know and love today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Works Cited<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Bojalad, Alec. \u201cLovecraft Country: What is a Kumiho?\u201d Den of Geek<\/em>, 21 September 2020, https:\/\/www.denofgeek.com\/tv\/lovecraft-country-what-is-a-kumiho\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Doctor Fox Sister. \u201cMonster of the week: Kumiho.\u201d The Supernatural Fox Sisters<\/em>, 3 June 2015, https:\/\/thesupernaturalfoxsisters.com\/2015\/06\/03\/monster-of-the-week-kumiho\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Foxes Wiki. \u201cKumiho.\u201d Fandom<\/em>, https:\/\/foxes.fandom.com\/wiki\/Kumiho<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Kwon, Youngmin and Fulton, Bruce. \u201cWhat is Korean Literature?\u201d Korean Research Monograph 37<\/em>, March 2020, pp. 85 https:\/\/ieas.directfrompublisher.com\/sites\/ieas.directfrompublisher.com\/files\/previews\/KwonFulton%20KRM%2037%20sample%20pages.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Marshall & Gibson Lawyers. \u201cKorean Folklore Fox.\u201d Marshall & Gibson Lawyers<\/em>, 6 November, https:\/\/marshallgibson.com.au\/docs\/mjkky.php?773252=korean-folklore-fox<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Mrs. Strider. \u201cKorean Mythology.\u201d Unsolved Mysteries<\/em>, 21 August 2002, http:\/\/www.unsolvedmysteries.com\/usm290032.html<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Shure, Charles La. \u201ckumiho.\u201d Encyclopedia Mythica<\/em>, 21 April 2001, https:\/\/pantheon.org\/articles\/k\/kumiho.html#c2<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Tales of Korea. \u201cThe Fox Sister.\u201d Tales of Korea,<\/em> https:\/\/koreanmythtales.weebly.com\/nine-tails.html<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n