허버트 앨런 자일스의 청대 법률 해석 고찰- 『 Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio(聊齋志異)』주석을 중심으로

The This study examines how Herbert Allen Giles—renowned as one of Britain’s three leading sinologists—interprets Qing dynasty law through his annotations in Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio (Liaozhaizhiyi). Pu Songling’s Liaozhaizhiyi was compiled in the Qing era and, since the nineteenth century, has been translated into multiple languages and widely disseminated in the West. Among these translations, Giles’s edition is particularly notable for its extensive commentary—amounting to some 700 marginal and footnotes— covering politics, economics, law, history, religion, and social customs, with legal notes forming a substantial proportion. Rather than merely introducing the structure of Chinese law, Giles sought to interpret it for Western readers by placing legal principles in their broader cultural context. This study first analyzes the social background and significance of Giles’s decision to insert so many legal annotations into Liaozhaizhiyi, thereby uncovering his underlying objectives. It then undertakes an in depth analysis of three core themes within Giles’s legal commentary: the relationship between confession and torture, the reflection of traditional notions in law, and the problem of official corruption. Through this analysis, we assess whether Giles viewed confession and torture as intrinsically linked, how he believed traditional notions had informed Qing low, and how he understood the corruption of local officials. This study goes beyond merely cataloguing Giles’s legal notes, it interrogates the ways in which he culturally contextualized and conveyed the Chinese legal system for a Western audience. In so doing, we demonstrate that Giles sought not only to explain Qing law institutionally but also to interpret it in light of Chinese cultural values, thereby challenging Western misconceptions and helping to bridge the cultural and legal divide between East and West.