“Exploring the Secrets of ‘Ogamdo’: The Science Behind Lee Sang’s Poetry”

Have you ever seen this picture?

Chosun JoongAng Ilbo, July 28, 1934, morning edition, p. 3.

This image showcases a poem from Yi Sang’s Ogamdo. This image defies the typical structure of poetry by using sequences of inverted numbers instead of traditional text. The unconventional format challenges readers to question the nature of meaning, order, and interpretation in art. Why did Yi Sang choose to present his thoughts through this strange arrangement of numbers? How can we interpret the poem and decode its underlying message?

A recent study analyzed its meaning in a novel way. A South Korean research team has used physics to offer a new interpretation of the notoriously difficult poem “Ogamdo” by Korean poet Yi Sang. By applying principles like Stokes’ theorem, the team transformed the poem’s puzzling numeric sequences into a diagnostic tool analogous to MRI technology for examining societal issues. The colonial situation in Korea. This approach marks a fresh perspective on Yi Sang’s work, revealing its connection to physics and societal diagnosis.

Yi Sang (1910–1937) was a poet, architect, and one of the most significant figures in modern Korean literature. He grew up during Japanese colonial rule, which deeply influenced his works. His writing, especially in Ogamdo (Crow’s-Eye View), often explored themes of disorientation, existential anxiety, and the fragmentation of modern identity. Ogamdo, a collection of experimental poems, is filled with abstract imagery and numerical symbols, breaking traditional forms of poetry. Yi Sang’s works reflect both personal psychological struggles and the chaotic social conditions of his time.

His ideology was shaped by modernist ideas, blending art, science, and architecture to reflect human perception and the alienation of the individual in a rapidly changing world. He was fascinated by mathematical and physical concepts, evident in Ogamdo, which showcases his belief that art could serve as a tool for diagnosing and critiquing society. [1]

Going back to the study of the poem, the study employed concepts from electromagnetism to decode the hidden structure in Yi Sang’s Ogamdo Poem No. 4. By transforming the flat number sequence into a three-dimensional cylindrical or toroidal shape, the researchers applied principles similar to those used in electromagnetic field theory, particularly Stokes’ theorem, to reveal an orderly sequence. The numbers, which appear reversed, are akin to field lines in a torus, wrapping spirally around the surface. This interpretation likens Yi Sang to an MRI machine, using surface data to diagnose the “internal state” of the colonial society. [2] 

In conclusion, Lee Sang’s “Ogamdo” captures the depths of human emotion while reflecting the Korean identity struggles during Japanese colonization, demonstrating art’s power to transcend adversity.

[1] 이상(李箱)의 시와 시대적 저항성, emunhak.com/chart/61_kimhs.pdf. Accessed 22 Oct. 2024. 

[2] 이태균, 임혁준, 이수정 "「오감도 시제4호」에 구현된 내부 진단의 전자기학적 원리" 한국시학연구 79 pp.241-272 (2024) : 241.