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Even now, many people of all backgrounds see an Asian person and automatically
assume that they are Chinese or Japanese. Fact is, not many people know much
about South Korea. Some people don't even know where and what South Korea is!
This is why I have written this report, to inform everyone about not only the
hardships, but also the joys that Korea has faced. This is a long article, but
please, at least skim through it. :)
South Korea has had a long history. Therefore, not unlike other countries, it
has experienced a lot of bloodshed. There have been wars, and several countries
and powerful people have conquered it throughout the years. However, South Korea
has endured those experiences, and has become a world power with an excellent
government and economy.
Several years ago, this was not the case. The people did not have this much
freedom. In the years up to the 1950s, everything was different.
The government has changed tremendously over the years. Starting from before the
1st Century A.D. until the Japanese Invasion, Korea had been ruled by kings.
Everyone had to respect the king. Otherwise, the punishment could be death.
Men could become king by conquering land or if the people of the land all agreed
to put them on the throne. Then the line of rulers would all continue from
there. The king's eldest son would usually be next in line. Otherwise, it would
be the king's brother. Obviously, the current government is a lot fairer than it
used to be.
Unfortunately, everyone was not equal back then. The kings controlled everything
and were above everyone; under them, four different social strata existed. There
were the Yang-ban, Joong-in, Sang-min and Chun-min, from the highest class to
the lowest.
Yang-ban were mostly scholar-officials. Jung-in were mostly technicians and
subordinate to Yang-ban. Sang-min were usually just commoners, and Chun-min were
the people at the bottom class, usually servants who spent their whole lives
working. When children were born, they immediately became the same class as
their parents. This way, many children did not have the opportunities that
children in Korea have today.
The religions in Korea have basically stayed the same throughout history.
Christianity was not introduced for a long while. Therefore, starting in the 4th
and 5th Centuries, Buddhism became the main religion practiced in the peninsula.
Buddhists believe that existence was a continuing cycle of death and rebirth.
Confucianism has also had an incredibly strong influence in Korea, and still is,
although it is more of a philosophy than a religion. It teaches children to have
respect for their elders, and to honor their ancestors.
Korean cultural values often emphasize that kind people are rewarded. Other
lessons usually taught is that cruel people are almost always punished for their
bad deeds, and that people can change for the better. An example of some of
these values appears in "The Korean Cinderella", a popular folktale still told
by people of all ages.
Most Korean folktales have beautiful people as the protagonists and
unpleasant-looking people as the antagonists, because kind people are supposedly
always smiling and happy, which gives them a more pleasant look, while the
others have sour appearances due to their frowns.
In the past, most Koreans were farmers. The daily wear was a hanbok.
Hanboks are clothing made of colorful silk. It consists of a small jacket-like
top. Women wear a long skirt, while men wear pants. Hanboks are still worn
today, but only on special occasions. When working, the workers would wear black
and white hanboks. The stores were outside. They would open only for 24 hours
every 5 days, more or less. Obviously, everything was different back then!
Until marriage, both women and men (and girls and boys) wore their hair down in
a long braid. Afterwards, however, men wound their hair up into a topknot, and
women did their hair up into a chignon. Upper-class men usually wore traditional
hats, while male peasants tied white cloth strips around their heads. Everybody
could know one another's station in life and if they were wedded or not by their
appearances. That's not so true today.
Children were treated in similar ways. Unwedded people wore their hair in a long
braid down their backs, so children obviously styled their hair that way.
Parents enjoyed dressing their children up in brightly colored hanboks. Boys
went to school, but girls had to stay at home and get as much education as they
could from their mothers. Some things were not fair for children in Korea's
past.
In the last century B.C., the state of Koguryo was formed in the northeastern
part of the Korea, while Paekche was formed in the southwest and Silla in the
southeast. These three states are now sometimes known as The Three Kingdoms.
During the 6th and 7th Century (500 to 600 A.D.), the Three Kingdoms fought for
control over Korea. Eventually, the kingdom of Silla took control of most of the peninsula by
conquering Paekche and Koguryo in the 660s. Rebel leaders caused Silla to lose
control over the territories in the 800s, however, and by 932, Wang Kon, a
general, had reunited Silla, which he renamed Koryo.
Though Mongol tribes conquered Koryo in 1259, it reclaimed its freedom in 1368,
and General Yi became king 1392.
Eventually, Japan took over Korea. After WWII, when Japan was defeated, the same
kind of power struggle that later created North and South Vietnam transformed
Korea. The northern part of the peninsula became Communist, supported by the
Soviet Union and their closest allies, and the south side remained
non-Communist, supported by the U.S. and their closest allies. The Korean War
began on June 25, 1950 when the north side attacked the south side of Korea.
There was never a real peace treaty, but a cease-fire was signed a few years
later.
South Korea is now a powerful nation, but it took a long time to get here. Many
people went through a lot of sadness to have gotten this far. The journey was
long and at times painful.
Not everything was as fair as they are today. Girls and peasants were not always
treated respectfully. Some people were extremely greedy and cruel, although the
cultural values of their time taught them to be exactly the opposite.
Korea certainly has a diverse history. I hope that this article has helped you
to understand a bit more about this country, and realize there is so much more
than I could write about here!
Maybe this will help some people realize they shouldn't assume things the next
time they see an Asian person. ^_^
~Ultrachic
Editor's Note: Very informative, Ultrachic! If you could,
we'd love to see where you got this info from for your article -- I'm sure a lot
of folks would like to be able to learn more about Korea!
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