HELLO from KOREA

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Sejong the Great (1397 ~ 1450) Only one king in Korean history has ever been deemed worthy enough to have been accorded the title “the Great.” He was the fourth king of the Joseon Dynasty, King Sejong, who is universally regarded as the wisest and most gifted ruler in Korean history. The long list of accomplishments during his reign is astonishing, to say the least, and probably no other time in Korean history was quite so creative and productive. As a child, Sejong was a quiet, studious boy who showed an avid love of learning. King Taejong, Se-jong’s father, abdicated in favor of his 21-year-old son in 1418, and a renaissance in art, literature and science began. A patron of the arts and sciences, he attracted around him the very best minds of his day. He estab-lished the Jiphyeonjeon or a Hall of Worthies early in his reign. The best scholars in the land gathered there to pursue research and to study, and many of the notable achievements during Sejong’s reign are attributed to the close cooperation between them and Sejong. Sejong was a practical person, who took a keen interest in the day-to-day affairs of government, and sought ways to improve the lives of his citizens. He reformed the tax system and constantly tried to refine the government. During his reign, major progress was made in virtually every field: agriculture, astronomy, defense, diplomacy, geography, literature, medicine, printing, science; you name it. King Sejong’s greatest accomplishment however, is the creation of Hangeul, the Korean alphabet. Aware that the general public needed a writing system besides the complicated system of writing in Chinese characters, the king and his Hall of Worthies devised a simple alphabet that could be easily learned. Originally called Hunminjeongeum or "corrects sounds for the instruction of the people," hangeul consisted of 28 letters (now only 24) which were modeled after the shape of the vocal organs. It has been widely praised as one of the most scientific alphabets in the world and still remains a source of great pride for Koreans. This was not the only important invention of his reign. A new calendar, a pluviometer, an instrument to measure rainfall, an anemo-scope, an instrument to measure wind speed and direction, sun dials, water clocks, models and instruments to study heavenly bodies, astronomy charts, atlases, new printing types—the list goes on and on. In these ways and many others, King Sejong strengthened and brought to the nation peace and cultural vitality, which is more than anyone could ask of even a king. He helped shape Korean society and culture into what they are today, and his influence on politics, ethics, history, music, literature, and the sciences, and especially the language, is still felt today. He died on the 17th day of the Second Moon in 1450, after having ruled the nation for 32 of its most glorious years. 25 _ History tested people on Chinese classics. Confucianism also determined the rigid social structure. The society in general valued academic learning highly while disdaining commerce and
26 _ HELLO from KOREA manufacturing. At the top was the yangban or scholar-aristocrat class who dominated government, the military, and society. Next came the jungin or "middle people" consisting of professionals like government functionaries, doctors, lawyers, and artists. Below them were the sangmin or commoners, who made up most of the population. They were mainly peasants who were given land to farm. Merchants and artisans were also in this class. At the bottom were the cheonmin, the serfs, servants or slaves who were considered low-born or outcasts. It is generally believed that the Joseon Dynasty had its golden days under the rule of King Sejong (r.1418-50), Joseon's fourth monarch. During his reign Korea enjoyed an unprecedented flowering of culture and the arts. In the late 16 th century, however, a horde of Japanese invaders led by the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi overran most of Joseon, on its way to invading China. Most of the peninsula was devastated, and numerous cultural treasures and artifacts were pillaged. In addition, many Korean artisans, particularly potters, were forcibly taken to Japan, where they contributed much to the development of the Japanese ceramic industry. Korean patriots mounted spirited resistance, and thanks to heroes like Admiral Yi Sun-sin, they were able to cut off the Japanese supply lines. The Japanese began to withdraw with the death of Hideyoshi and the war ended in 1598, after having had a disastrous impact upon Korea. Korea was again invaded in 1627 and 1636 by the Manchus, who eventually conquered the Ming in China and established the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Around this time, a movement known as the Silhak or School of Practical Learning began to gain considerable momentum among liberal-minded scholar-officials as a way to build a modern nation state. They strongly recommended agricultural and industrial modernization and sweeping reforms in land distribution. Unfortunately, these intellectuals were not in power, and the conservative government failed to adopt their ideas. Thus Korea remained a hermit kingdom adamantly opposed to the West and its ideas, technology, diplomacy and trade. Subsequently, Korea wasn't prepared to deal with the rapid change of events at the turn of the
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