Chosŏn society was a society in which the patriarchal family order was imposed on the basis of Confucian ideology. After the 15th century, women faced more social constraints as Neo-Confucianism, which emphasized even more rigid Confucian ideals, emerged as the sole dominant system of social governance. In particular, King Sŏngjong promulgated the Widows' Remarriage Law of 1477, which prohibited women from remarrying once their spouse died and excluded their sons from public office if they remarried. When the ban on female remarriage was proclaimed, people considered widow remarriage a sin for which their descendants should be punished and disadvantaged, and the majority of widows did not remarry. However, during the following 6th century, historians had different interpretations of the women of the Chosŏn dynasty. They argued that although on the surface women appeared to conform to neo-Confucian ideals, they were in reality active beings who expressed their opinions in their own ways against patriarchal social systems. This article will compare and contrast different perspectives on women under Confucianism between people of the 14th and 18th centuries of the Chosôn period and historians of the modern era, and provide an analysis of the possible causes of the difference. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay Korea's traditional living standards and values ​​come from Confucianism, the foundation of East Asian culture and the most represented ideology in Chinese history. Confucian ideas and systems began to take serious root on the Korean Peninsula as Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla developed into ancient kingdoms. However, the most widespread period of Confucianism in Korea was during the Chosôn dynasty, which ruled Korea from 1392 to 1897. The new Chosôn ruling class, led by Neo-Confucian intellectuals, declared Neo-Confucianism as the sole governing ideology of the nation and attempted to transform the way of life of the commoners as well as the ruling class into neo-Confucian. The Neo-Confucian reform of the early Choson era also had a major influence on changing the status of women. During the Chosôn period, women were expected to obey the Three Obediences, which constituted the most fundamental moral principles and social code of conduct for young girls and married women, in accordance with the trend toward worship of Neo-Confucianism as a tradition. national and the strong practice of neo-Confucianism. he. According to the Three Obediences, women must obey the father before marriage, the husband after marriage and the son in the case of widows. In other words, Chosôn women were held to rigorous standards of feminine modesty and chastity and were treated as if they were brutes. Thus, Confucianism, which has had a strong influence on family, politics, education, marriage, social system and customs for more than five hundred years since the Chosôn period, has been criticized as patriarchal and misogynistic. In 1477, King Sŏngjong, the ninth king of the Chosôn dynasty who completed the Gyeongguk Daejeon, a comprehensive law code and foundation of Chosôn society, promulgated the Widow Remarriage Law, which strengthened the social constraints of women by barring the sons and grandsons of widows who defied the ban from taking civil service exams and becoming university civil servants. This event has an important significance inKorean history. Before King Sŏngjong's reign, remarriage of women was considered natural and social constraints on widow remarriage did not exist, as illustrated by King Taejong's remark, "why men and women who lost their spouse should they not be allowed to remarry.” However, the Widows' Remarriage Act of 1477 sparked conservative and negative views on women's rights and freedom. Despite the fall of the later Chosôn dynasty and the abolition of widows' remarriage law, there have been negative views of widow remarriage within Korean society until relatively recently. In 1930, for example, Kim, a widow, described her life and feelings as a widow in the Korean women's magazine "The Modern Woman." She admitted that at one point she wanted to remarry, but had to give it up because her mother told her that she would break off all relations with her if she remarried. This case shows the reality of Korean society: even the woman's parents reject her if she does not respect her chastity. Although Confucianism has declined in modern Korea, its influence continues to the present day in Korean society in various ways. The majority of people, since the proclamation of the Widow Remarriage Law, view remarried women as immoral and sinful women who are not only promiscuous but also defiled which tarnishes Confucian teachings. Chosŏn Wangjo Silk, which is the true record of the Chosŏn dynasty, contains records of members of the highest authority discussing the ban on widow remarriage under the orders of King Sôngjong. According to Sôngjong sill ok, Wŏnjun Im, Sixth State Councilor, argued that "starving to death is a small matter for women compared to the loss of their integrity." Master Heng‑ch'ü Chang actively supported Im's opinion, asserting that if a man accepts as a companion a woman who has lost her integrity, it is tantamount to him having lost his integrity. In traditional society, women were seen as victims of male-dominated social norms. These examples reflect the fact that respect for chastity by women was considered a nobler value than anything else at the time. In 1528, during the reign of King Jungjong, a central government official named Yu Jung was fired after his widowed young daughter remarried. Until then, the justice code only stipulated that descendants of remarried women should not be allowed to take civil service exams and become university civil servants. However, Jung was punished for letting his daughter remarry another man and for disrupting court customs. This shows that social discrimination against women intensified from mid to late Chosŏn. Additionally, every year the government cited the “virtuous wife” or Yeol-nyeo, usually called an unmarried widow, to encourage women to stay. their chaste by following the neo-Confucian ideology. It was considered a great honor and privilege to have a virtuous woman in the family. This practice later increased in Chosŏn because the principle of chastity became so widespread and so deeply rooted that it became an absolute and unquestionable duty to preserve chastity towards women. Many widows committed suicide to follow their husbands into death, but this seemed to be taken for granted by people. On the other hand, vehement opposition was also expressed towards the law on widow remarriage. The majority of officials agreed that women should maintain their integrity, but they proposedto prohibit women from marrying only a third time. Censor General Howon Park and others have argued that the ban on remarriage for widows constitutes harsh treatment because widows who have lost their spouses lack the capacity to fend for themselves and their children. Although the debate ultimately concluded that a majority opposed the enactment of the law, King Sôngjong upheld the minority view that "losing chastity is a more serious problem than starving to death." Most officials involved in the debate opposed the law because they were born into the Yangban classes, an upper noble class wielding enormous power, and men from relatively higher classes had more opportunities to apply for positions. higher-level government positions than the working class. But King Songjong considered it shameful that the sons of women who did not keep their chastity were placed in high official positions. There were some differences of opinion on widow remarriage, but the majority of opinions tended to believe that widow remarriage was inevitable in order to earn a living. Currently, six centuries after the proclamation of the Widow Remarriage Law, modern historians have different views on Chosŏn women. Youngmin Kim and Michael.J.Pettid, the authors of the book “Women and Confucianism in Chosŏn Korea: New Perspectives” published in 2010, describe Confucian women not only as victims of patriarchal systems, but as wise beings who have rather used various strategies to maintain their rights. They recognized and highly appreciated active and progressive women, for example for their constructive life attitude, their management of their property and their economic sense. Furthermore, they understood women's desire and hope and positively described women's second marriage after the death of their husbands, the flexibility of fidelity, and the pursuit of happiness. Although the Widows' Remarriage Act was enacted in the mid-15th century, it should be noted that it was not entirely impossible for widows to remarry. Preserving chastity was primarily an obligation of upper-class women during the Chosŏn period. For common and lower class women, remarriage was considered one of the means of livelihood for lower class widows as they were unable to make ends meet on their own after losing their husbands to a society dominated by men. Some lower-class widows threw away their babies because they had no way to raise them on their own. Marduk is an example of a woman who chose to remarry after the death of her first husband. According to an "unofficial version of a historical tale of Hyobin", written by Sangan Ko in the 16th century, there was a maid named Marduk, who lived in the southern provinces of Gyeongsang. She was married nine times, unfortunately the men who married her are all dead. The reason she was able to marry nine times was due to her lower status: her children were less likely to hold official government positions, unlike the Yangban class. In response, Kim and Pettit explain her positively as an active female figure who freely expresses her desire despite the critical social climate during the widow's remarriage. While people in traditional Chosŏn society perceived women under the ideology of Confucianism as a repressed and repressed group, modern historian perceives Chosŏn women as a courageous group seeking their free will despite the conservative social atmosphere. In Chosŏn society, the ban on remarriage of women and.