Chongbŏp

The Chŏsen Dynasty (1392-1897) saw the emergence of a male-oriented moral system governing family relations known as Chongbŏp [Korean: 총봅]. The Chŏsen Dynasty was characterized by its strict Confucian social hierarchy and emphasis on patriarchal values. This period significantly influenced various aspects of everyday life in Korean, including this system.

In Chongbŏp, all male members of the family lineage were considered equally valuable in continuing the family line (Lim, 94); first-born, second-born, etc... did not matter. All male members of the family were expected to uphold and transmit moral values, maintain their family honor and contribute to the stability and governance of society.

Chongbŏp also affected the lives of Korean women, who had assumed an increasingly subordinate role within the family. Women’s living quarters [English: anchae; Korean: 안채] were separated from the men’s [English: sarangchae; Korean: 사랑채] by a fence. This resulting idea that women had to be separated from men beginning at a young age contributed to the idea that men were superior to women. The system also made it so that women did not have the right to get remarried, in accordance with the Confucian principle that a woman should remain loyal to one man her entire life (Han, 152). Additionally, the descendants of woman who had gotten remarried were prohibited from working within the government. This emphasized the severity of gender discrimination that was prominent in Korea during this period.

References

Han, Hee-sook. “Women’s Life during the Choson Dynasty.” International Journal of Korean History, vol. 6, Dec. 2004, https://ijkh.khistory.org/upload/pdf/6_05.pdf

Jung, Ji-Young. "Widows' Position and Agency in the Late Chŏsen Dynasty." Journal of Korean Studies, vol. 14 no. 1, 2009, p. 61-82. Project MUSE, https://doi.org/10.1353/jks.2009.0006.

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