본 논문은 최근 국제결혼의 이혼이 급증하고 있는 현상에 주목하여, 중국 한족 결혼 이주 여성들의 이혼 현상에 대해 고찰한다. 즉, ``국제결혼 이주 여성은 영구적으로 한국에 거주할 사람``이라는 국가의 전제가 무너졌을 때 국가가 이들을 어떻게 관리하고 대응하는지, 그리고 여성들은 이에 어떻게 대처하는지를 살펴보려는 시도이다. 본 연구의 주된 문제의식은 두 가지이다. 첫째, 중국한족 결혼 이주 여성들이 왜 이혼에 이르는가에 대해 문제를 제기하고, 이들의 이주, 결혼, 이혼과정을 분석해 그에 대한 해답을 찾는다. 연구자는 특히 여성들이 결혼에 대한 어떠한 인식과 동기를 가지고 한국에 들어오며, 어떠한 상황에서 갈등을 겪고 이혼을 선택하는지에 주목했다. 여성들의 이러한 궤적은 제약이 주어진 환경 속에서도 삶에 대처해나가는 능력이 있었기 때문에 가능했다. 둘째, 한국 정부는 국제결혼 이주 여성들을 한국에 적응해서 살아야 한다고 여기고 국민으로 동화시키려는 노력을 해 왔다. 이때 이혼이라는 예외 상황이 발생하면, 국가의 여성들에 대한 대응이 변화한다. 본 논문은 이러한 국가의 변화를``국가-사회관계``의 틀 속에서 파악한다. 진행중인 이 현상에 대한 분석을 통해 이혼한 한족 결혼 이주 여성들과 국가의 관계는 상호작용을 거쳐 변화함을 고찰한다.

This study seeks to understand how the Korean government characterizes divorces between Korean men and Han Chinese women and how it resolves the problems caused by these divorces. The main target of this study is divorced Han-Chinese women in Korea who hold residency status (F-2-1) and who at the time of this study were attending "C" church. They are originally from rural areas in northeastern China. Most were between 30 to 40 years of age and most had been divorced in China. After graduating from middle school, these women moved to urban areas and earned money for their families. Their moving process was motivated by their own volition. This experience of moving about in their own country affected their decision to migrate from China to Korea. The difference between the expectations of Korean husbands and wives causes tension over who gets to hold the "purse strings" in the home. As the conflict intensifies, the Han-Chinese wives often choose to run away from their homes. The experience of "easy" divorce in China has an influence on the women`s decision to escape by divorcing in Korea. The Korean government has a duty to encourage naturalization for "marriage migrants" and has made an effort to execute that duty. However, when the problem is viewed from the state-and-society framework, the divorces among marriage migrants are shown to create an exceptional and unexpected situation for the government. There is tension, competition and interaction between the state and society, as well as between the state and the divorced women. The state imposes rules on these divorced women and judges them according to the standard of a "righteous citizen." The women take advantage of these rules to maintain their status as lawful residents of Korea. However, the women occasionally violate the law, so the state has changed its portrayal of these divorced women and has begun to characterize them as law-breakers. Against these negative views, however, Han-Chinese women regard themselves as messengers between Korea and China and they try to make known the importance of their role to Korean people and Korean society.