한문만세[漢文萬歲]

This is a blog that I will be dedicating to exploring 한문[漢文] and most especially, it will primarily focus on the literary works done by Koreans.  I hope that you will find it useful as well.  So first of all, what is 한문[漢文] ?

한문[漢文] is basically a written language using 한자[漢字] which originated in China.  In China, it is usually referred to as Classical Chinese[고문 / 古文] if the works were done prior to the end of the Han dynasty[한조 / 漢朝] (around 220 A.D.), and as Literary Chinese[문언문 / 文言文] from 220 A.D. onwards up to the 20^th century, when it will eventually be replaced by the vernacular written language.  한문[漢文] is called “kanbun” in Japan and “Hán Văn” in Vietnam.

Due to the influence of China in the Middle Ages in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, Literary Chinese has been adopted as a form of writing system in these countries in different periods.  One advantage that this had for these countries was that written communication between them was possible “without translation” because even though the written text would be pronounced differently by the different countries, the meaning would still be the same.  This was possible because the 한자[漢字] were logographic in nature.  

한자[漢字] was introduced into Korea through contact with the Chinese between 108 B.C. and 313 A.D., when the Han dynasty established several commanderies in northern Korea.  Another major influence towards the spread of 한자[漢字] in Korea was the “Thousand Character Classic”[천자문 / 千字文], a major text that contained a thousand unique Chinese characters.  From thereon, Chinese culture influenced Korean culture substantially and 한문[漢文] has been used as a form of written language.

During the 고려[高麗] dynasty of Korea (918 – 1392 A.D.), several native writing systems were developed.  These were the 이두[吏讀], 향찰[鄕札], and 구결[口訣].  However, 한문[漢文] wasn’t abandoned.  During the 조선[朝鮮] dynasty (1392 – 1897 A.D.), Neo-Confucianism ideology and philosophy became widespread and 한문[漢文] was used by the majority of the literate class, despite the promulgation of the Korean script 훈민정음[訓民正音] in 1446 by King Sejong the Great.  One of the reasons why 한문[漢文] was dominant during the 조선[朝鮮] dynasty was because of the influence of the upper-classes, the 양반[兩班].  The native Korean script was seen as inferior at that time and only suitable for the lower-classes, women, and children.  Furthermore, there was a belief that Confucian ideas could only be expressed using 한자[漢字] and thus the native Korean script was regarded as “unrefined” and “vulgar” script.  

After the fall of 조선[朝鮮], the Korean Empire was established 대한제국[大韓帝國] and then afterwards Korea was annexed by Japan from 1910 – 1945.  At this time, 한문[漢文] was largely replaced by the written Korean style, mixed-script using 한자[漢字] and 한글[韓글], only to be suppressed by the Japanese.  Shortly after the liberation from the Japanese in 1945, the Korean War broke out in June 25, 1950 and ended with an Armistice in July 27, 1953.

With the establishment of The Republic of South Korea, Koreans at first sought to bring back their sense of nationalism.  Among these things, Koreans sought to distinguish what can be classified as “Korean literature”.  Owing to the bitterness, pain, and hardship brought about by the recent Japanese occupation and the Korean War, the Korean sentiment tended towards the exclusion of all material not written in 한글[韓글] from Korean literature.  This was reasonable since 한문[漢文] and 한자[漢字] was viewed as “foreign literature” and “foreign characters” which undermines the Korean spirit of self-expression, freedom, and nationalism.  Hence, the written-style of the Korean language slowly and gradually evolved from mixed-script to mainly 한글[韓글] in the 1980’s with a few exceptions of using한자[漢字] extensively for scholarly works and research and Korean legal documents.  From this point, it was decided that Korean schools would still teach some basic 한자[漢字] but 한글[韓글] should be the de facto script of the country.

As to the status of 한문[漢文] in Korean literature, things have easened up since then.  Nowadays, it is generally agreed by the scholars and the academic community (is it surprising?) that 한문[漢文] shouldn’t be excluded from Korean classical literature.  It can be argued that 한문[漢文] developed into a common literary style in East Asia and hence shouldn’t be seen as foreign literature.  It can be argued that 한문[漢文] is merely a form of various literary styles available, but if the authorship of the work is Korean, then it should be considered as Korean literature.  If not, then we would be excluding a large amount of literary work done by the 한문[漢文]-literate class written especially during the 조선[朝鮮] dynasty.  Hence, with this gradual acceptance of 한문[漢文] as part of Korean classical literature, 한문[漢文] research and education has been revitalized in today’s young generation.

Recently, there has been a call from Koreans doing research in 한문[漢文]-related fields for the normalization of 한문교육[漢文敎育] and its continued presence as part of the College Entrance Exams [수능 / 修能].  In the past, from 1982 – 1993, 한문[漢文] has been included as part of the 국어[國語] portion of the exam, but now it is grouped with the 외국어[外國語] portion of the exam.  Below are some pictures from this rally.

From what can be seen in these pictures, we can clearly infer that there are Koreans who support 한문교육[漢文敎育], which is a sign of the recent revitalization of한문[漢文] in Korean society.  This also gives an indication of the gradual and ongoing process of Koreans’ acceptance of 한문[漢文] as part of Korean Classical Literature.  If you have a keen eye, you will find that what is even more surprising is the fact that the majority of the participants in the rally seem to be…female[여성 / 女性]!  Women are now playing a vital role in 한문교육[漢文敎育] revitalization.  Let us go back to the 조선[朝鮮] dynasty to see a contrast and to know more information.

During the조선[朝鮮] dynasty, we already know that it is primarily a Neo-Confucian society.  Hence, some Confucian ideology were in effect such as 남존여비[男尊女卑], that is to say, males are treated with respect and superiority and females were regarded as inferior.  However, in today’s Korean society, ever since Western ideas about gender equality-남녀동권[男女同權] came to be recognized, women’s rights were expanded in the constitution and there are now henpecked husbands-엄처시하[嚴妻侍下] among Korean households.  To say that the reverse is now happening among some Korean households-여존남비[女尊男卑] might not be an over exaggeration.

The 조선[朝鮮] dynasty saw the flourishing of numerous male literary scholars and saw females saddled at home doing housework and serving their household.  Even the daughters 양반[兩班] were not spared from this and most females weren’t allowed to be educated in 한문[漢文] let alone participate in political affairs.  However, that is not to say that there weren’t any famous and prolific female literary characters during this time.  In fact, you might know some already and I’ll just mention a few, and their life and works will be mentioned in detail in separate posts.  

朝鮮의 유명했던 기생 - 황진이[黃眞伊]

50,000圓 주인공 - 심사임당[申師任堂]

“immortal maiden” - 허난설헌[許蘭雪軒]

They are just some of the women personalities during the 조선[朝鮮] dynasty.  Before I end this post, I’ll share a short story about 오효원[吳孝媛], who wrote a simple 한문[漢文]-style literature in the form of a poem[한시 / 漢詩] when she was young.  This poem will also illustrate the Korean female’s sentiment during the 조선[朝鮮] dynasty.

오효원[吳孝媛] was born at 의성 경상북도 in 1889 during the enlightenment period of the 조선[朝鮮] dynasty, when the country developed into a modern form of state.  She was a diplomat, activist, and a literary person.  When she was young, at the age of 9, she wanted to attend school but she was rejected for the reason that she was female.  Hence, she dressed up in male clothes and was finally able to attend a private school that taught 한자[漢字].  Back then, such schools were commonly referred to as 서당[書堂].  Having learned the characters, she felt happy, but on the other hand she was also unsatisfied.  She wrote what she felt in a simple 5-character, 4-line poem.

國俗自何時	국속자하시
重男不重女	중남부중녀
一篇千字文	일편천자문
九歲學於序	구세학어서

[國 – country][俗 – customs][自 – from][何 – some][時 – time]

[重 – important][男 – male][不 – not][重 – important][女 – female]

[一 – one][篇 – book][千 – thousand][字 – character][文 – literature/writing]

[九 – nine][歲 – years of age][學 – learn][於 – from][序 – school/서당]

The country’s customs from some time ago

Regard as important the males and not regard as important the females

One book called the “Thousand Character Classic”

Only upon turning 9 years old will you be able to learn this from school