• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.35
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• pp.35-58
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• 2014

This article aims to explain the 'people-image' of Bakhtin's works in the light of "Transgredience" and "Transition." According to Bakhtin, the real core of every culture is the people. But he did try to answer the question "what is the people?" I think, the secret of Bakhtinian thought is located in the people-image, because it is the one of the territories that have not been explained. For this purpose, we have to examine four images represented by Bakhtin, - rogue, clown, fool, thief. These images are the concrete and individualized images of people, who can characterize the power of transgredience and transition. They commonly act for changing ordinary borders of identities formulated with nationality, property, status, classes, sex and so forth. In this sense, Bakhtin thinks that the masks are the real nature which can show the mutational power of Being. That is the kernel of Bakhtin's people-image that makes and changes every cultural world. When we accept and practise this perspective positively, we will realize that Bakhtin's position is close to the cultural politics, because a practical power of thought cannot help but being political. That's why we have to investigate Bakhtin's people-image from a vantage point of "Transgredience" and "Transition."