Joseon History Through Eyes of Commoners

The Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910) survived more than 500 years, a long period in world history, leaving a legacy on the modern face of Korea. “Behead the King” written by historian Baek Ji-won living in the United States unveils the unknown, mostly ugly side of Joseon history through the eyes of commoners. / Korae Times

By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter

The Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910) survived more than 500 years, a long period in world history, leaving a legacy on the modern face of Korea. But how much do Koreans know about the history of Joseon, and what they inherited from the Confucian state?

History depends on the eye of the beholder but it is mostly the records from the winners and the rulers. But ``Behead the King'' written by historian Baek Ji-won living in the United States unveils the unknown, mostly ugly side of Joseon history through the eyes of commoners.

Striking with the provocative title, the two-volume book probes 27 kings and historical incidents with his personal poignant and sarcastic comments.

The author asks the question, ``Why did the Joseon Kingdom collapse?'' and then puts the conclusions first ― Joseon fell because of the strong entrenchment of Neo-Confucian ideals and doctrines, and the factional strife they engendered causing the killing sprees that took the lives of countless scholars and politicians.

He says that Neo-Confucianism whose metaphysical concepts were not related to the practical lives of people blocked productive ways of thinking that could have improved the quality of the lives of the people. It also created class discrimination.

The book describes the Joseon hierarchy system as ``the worst in the world,'' along with India's castes.

Joseon was a state for only about 10 percent of the population, the ``yangban,'' or the noble and literati class who continuously exploited the lower classes.

It was inevitable that those who specialized in the study of Neo-Confucianism would assume leading roles in government affairs. The required study subjects included literature, history and philosophy, along with liberal arts instruction in poetry, calligraphy and painting, which were not actually related to the real lives of the people.

The rest or 90 percent of the population were slaves, farmers, merchants, traders and others with lowly jobs such as butchers.

Slavery was hereditary as well as a form of legal punishment. He says, under its slavery system, the value of human beings was placed lower than that of animals.

According to the book, the price of a horse was equivalent to the price of three slaves in 1398, while after wars the price rose to the equivalent of 10 slaves.

People obeyed the rigid hierarchy system until the 17th century, but commercial and agricultural development enabled lower-class people to get out of the structure.

So the slave population dramatically dropped and the proportion of yangban reached as high as 30 percent by 1800 as merchants and workers bought the status of yangban by forfeiting their genealogy in the late Joseon Kingdom mainly to avoid military duty, which was one of the privileges of that status.

The yangban acquired most of the traits of a hereditary nobility, except that status was based on a unique mixture of family position, the results of a Confucian-style competitive examination and a civil service system.

He said that Joseon's hierarchy system was harsher than that of Goryeo in that children of concubines of yangban were banned from applying for the civil services until King Jeongjo (1752-1800) abolished the rule.

The yangban were not supposed to engage in any type of labor including working in homes, farms or merchandising, which made the kingdom a backward country, he said. After the fall of the Joseon Kingdom, the yangban didn't know how to work for a living without slaves. This can be found in the current male-oriented society, the author argues.

Also, factional disputes erupted in the 16th century between the Eastern Faction (Dongin) and Western Faction (Seoin) over royal successions or recommendations for government positions. Since then, internal strife gripped Joseon for 200 years until the end of the 18th century.

``Joseon couldn't get out of the factional divide and the nasty power struggles every day and night while the world was rapidly changing. Joseon fell into prey to colonization by Japan while turning a deaf ear to reform and change outside because of internal factional conflicts,'' the book says.

The book says that Joseon only flourished for 100 years and then began to wane without any change after wars with Japan and China. ``The Joseon Kingdom survived for about 500 years, a rare case in the world history. But it's because Joseon easily lived under the umbrella of China's Ming Dynasty and didn't have to be competitive. There was no need for the rulers to have reformative minds and the state without aspiring for progress was on the road to collapse,'' the book says.

He also blasted the Korean fantasy of ``minjok,'' based on the perception of a one-blooded nation, saying that Korean ethnic roots can be traced back to a mixture of various tribes such as Kitans, Malgal, Mongolian, Han and Yemaek.

Concerning the kings, except the two great kings ― Sejong and Jeongjo ― only seven kings narrowly saved face and 18 kings were stupid and unable.

Among others, Seonjo and Injo were the most incompetent rulers in Joseon history who sought their individual safety without considering the people and the state.

Through the book, the author finds the major ills of present Korean society lying in historical factors left from the Joseon Kingdom.

He argues that he still finds current society's struggle for an influential position is a reflection of the power struggle in the factional conflicts that haunted the kingdom for about 200 years.

The author commented that both historians and the public turn deaf ears on telling the truth of history. ``Historians conceal the disgraceful facts of history, while the public don't want to look into their shameful past. But by exploring the past, we can see the way of the future and not repeat the same mistakes,'' he said.

chungay@koreatimes.co.kr