Social Order

The Confucian social order is based upon the five human relationships (oryun) and it is this concept that has long dictated Korean behavior to a large extent. The importance of the Confucian social order in Korea can be observed especially on New Year's Day when, after the usual memorial services for ancestors, family members bow to grandparents, parents, older brothers, relatives, and so on in accordance with age. Young people may even seek out the village elders to pay their due respect by bowing to them, even though they are not related.

At meetings, social gatherings, or drinking parties, social order becomes an immediate question: who should greet whom first, who should sit where, who should sit down first, who should pour wine for whom first. Among close friends, those born earlier are treated as elder brothers and sisters. Among acquaintances, one is expected to use honorifics to those 10 years older than oneself. However, if the difference is less than 10 years, people address one another as equals.



Social Relations

Under Confucianism, the proper relationship between the genders was also based on one of the five human relationships, oryun. This system does not aim to subordinate women to men, but merely holds that both men and women have certain separate duties to perform and a set of ethics to observe vis-a-vis the other. In its practical application, this ideal, learned from an early age, affected not just husband and wife, but virtually all relations between the genders.

From early childhood, children played and grew up segregated by gender as illustrated in the adage: "Boys and girls at the age of seven should not be allowed to sit in the same room."

The strict application of these rules resulted in severe restrictions on women, while relative freedom was allowed for men. Women's behavior was dictated by the law of the three obediences: obeisance to the father before marriage, to the husband upon marriage, and to the son after the husband's death. Female submission to male authority was not due to the perception of innate female weakness or inadequacy; rather, it had to do with the strict separation of social spheres in the organization of society. The woman's role was "within," that is, within the home which was her domain to control. The man's role was "outside," and his concern was limited to the affairs of the state and life beyond the confines of the home.

It was the woman's duty to care for the children, to help her husband with the farm work, to prepare family meals, to make the family's clothes, and to create an atmosphere of peace so as to better enable her husband to concentrate on the larger issues of society. The female role was firmly established within the confines of the home and women were expected to adhere strictly to that role.

Although strict observance of Confucian-inspired ideals is now a rarity, Korean men and women are still conscious of their positions as expressed not only in their behavior but in their speech as well. Love and affection between man and woman is rarely expressed openly, not even between husband and wife. Likewise, just as there are special words and honorifics for use between family members and friends, so there are a special set of words used just between husband and wife as well.



Cooperative Organization

Gye, meaning agreement or bond, is a social organization based upon the principle of mutual cooperation and aid with a specific objective. Although there are many different types of gye, all of them collect dues and manage funds. One old type of gye is the wichin-gye, literally meaning gye for parents. This gye is organized by those who have aged parents in order to provide for their hwan-gap or 60th birthday celebration. This is a special celebration for Koreans as few people in the past lived to be 60. With the increased longevity in recent years, the 70th birthday anniversary is also often observed. Children must honor their parents at this time with a large party. As it usually involves many guests, food and entertainment, it is quite costly. In order to prepare for this expensive event, money or rice is collected, either monthly or annually, to help each member to defray the cost of the celebration.

Traditionally, people prepared splendid funerals as expressions of their filial piety, and these also tended to be costly. To prepare for a parent's funeral, some people have formed a sangjogye. In such a gye, not only are there monetary benefits, but gye members also all pitch in to carry the bier, to serve as messengers, to dig the grave, etc.

Weddings also are expensive events as they not only entail the exchange of gifts and dowry, including bedding, furniture and household utensils, but also several large parties to entertain guests. This is often more than one household can afford so the wedding gye is popular.

The village gye is characterized by the admission of all villagers. It collects an agreed-upon sum of money from each family and sometimes raises funds through collective work such as "dure" (cooperative farming). The village gye has no specific purpose other than helping villagers through unexpected times of need or building and repairing facilities for the community.

Lately, gye characterized by monetary interests are becoming very popular among housewives in large cities as they not only provide extra cash but also opportunities for getting together, exchanging gossip and partying. The conventional gye, however, is based on mutual aid and cooperation, with each member performing his duties as if it were his own business. It is difficult to maintain a gye; if some members do not pay their dues or renege on their duties, the gye will eventually fall apart. As such, for a gye work, solidarity is a must.

Besides the gye, there are other cooperative activities - rice transplanting, the building of bridges and roads, the digging of wells, shamanistic rites, etc. Whatever the case, people participate with a spirit of cooperation and cheerfulness. The dure farm work by collective labor appeared as far back as the Silla Kingdom. In Silla villages, women and girls would gather on moonlit nights in groups and compete in weaving.

With the development of the textile industry, dure weaving disappeared, but in rural areas the custom still exists and is associated with such tasks as the transplanting of seedlings, weeding and rice harvesting. As this work needs to be done quickly and within a certain time frame, village leaders must prioritize projects and the composition of the dure. When the dure is underway, pennants and banners planted around the field to identify the work area. Music, the rhythm aiding in the collective movements of the workers, usually accompanies transplanting and weeding. Going to and from the fields is accompanied by much singing and often a farmers' band.

When the communal work is completed, the total man-days and amount of work are calculated and payment is made by the landowners. With this payment, a sum of money is added to the village welfare fund, and a certain amount is usually set aside for a day of drinking and relaxing.

Some of these funds, as well as donations, may be used for the financing of shamanistic rites as it is believed that certain gods control certain functions of the community. It is most important that all villagers take part in these rites, whether through actual performances or observance. In some ceremonies, such as the rain rite, all the adults participate; in others, only selected members of the community who are regarded as ritually clean perform the rites.

Highly illustrative of the Korean spirit of cooperation are games and dances, such as Ganggangsuwollae, mask dances, and tug of war, performed at festivals and on special occasions. Another game is the Chajeonnori or "juggernaut battle," in which wooden vehicles are used for people to ride in and be pushed about. The preparations that go into these events are extensive, particularly as much labor is required to cut, carve and build the wooden vehicles.

Another popular event is the tug of war game, requiring the participation of entire villages. Each village or township must make a straw rope of a prescribed thickness and length. On the day of the contest, the team representatives, sometimes numbering as many as a hundred, bring the rope to the chosen site. All of the ropes are then connected and the tug of war begins. One side of the rope is considered female and the other side male. It is hoped that the female side will win as it is symbolic of a good harvest.

Although many of these customs are disappearing, or revived solely for their recreational or aesthetic value, they are representative of the Korean people, their customs and values.



Annual Customs

For thousands of years, Koreans have reckoned time according to the lunar calendar. Contrary to common belief, the lunar calendar has always been adjusted to correspond to the solar year by adding a whole lunar month, to the lunar year twice every five years. This can be demonstrated by the fact that the solar calendar is divided into 24 equal portions (or called jeolgi) of which the equinoxes and solstices are used as fixed points. Even before the solar calendar was introduced to Asia, the lunar calendar recognized these jeol or seasonal nodes, as they are important dates for agricultural communities. Give or take one or two days, these nodes fall more or less on the same day by the solar calendar; this, however, is not the case with the lunar calendar. The most important jeolgi are of course the equinoxes and solstices, but ipchun (the advent of spring) is given more weight than others because it is the first node of the year and marks the approach of spring. Several special holidays are reckoned by the lunar calendar even today.

The first day of the first month, New Year's Day, or Seol, is one of the biggest holidays of the year. On this day, people traditionally dress their best, take off from work and gather with family to observe the ancestral ceremonies. A feast is spread and the younger members of the family make the New Year's bow to their elders. These youths then go around the neighborhood to offer New Year's greetings to their older relatives and acquaintances.



Another important date by the lunar calendar is Chuseok, or the Harvest Moon Festival, which falls on the 15th day of the eighth month, usually in September or October by the solar calendar. As this date marks the harvest time, it is celebrated as enthusiastically as New Year's Day.

There are a few other important days in the lunar year. The 15th day of the first month is regarded as important since it is the first full moon of the year. People crack various kinds of nuts and set off firecrackers to exorcise harmful spirits, insects and animals. In the evening, a variety of traditional games are played under the moonlight. Tug of war, stone fights and mock fights with torches are a few examples of the games held between neighboring villages. These are staged by youths and middle-aged men before hundreds of spectators who come from far and near. These games are played to win, and tradition has it that the winning village will be blessed with bumper crops.

Some time during the second or third month is a day called hansik. This is the 105th day after the winter solstice, falling about the fifth of April by the solar calendar. On this day, ancestor rites are performed early in the morning when the whole family visits the tombs of their ancestors to pay respects. This usually includes tidying up the tombs.

The fifth day of the fifth lunar month is called dano, which is another big holiday. According to ancient records, people on this day rested from work, dressed up in their best, and feasted just as they did on New Year's Day. Special events usually planned for the day include wrestling matches for men in which the champion receives a bull as a prize. Likewise, women participate in swinging competitions; the winner of this event goes home with a gold ring.



The 10th month is the time for gimjang. During this month kimchi or pickled vegetables must be prepared for the upcoming three months of winter. Every household was therefore busy preparing this important work. A popular greeting during these time of year was "Have you finished gimjang?" The 12th month, called seotdal, is a time when people traditionally got their affairs in proper order, including the settling of debts, to prepare for the new year. An honorable man is not supposed to carry his debts over to the next year. Ancient records tell us that in the old days, the court held exorcising ceremonies, called narye, to expel evil spirits. In rural areas, a musical performance of nong-ak or farmers' music is also used to expel evil spirits and usher in good fortune.

Another important event is Buddha's Birthday, which falls on the eighth day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar, or April or May in the solar calendar. Buddha's Birthday designated as a national holiday in 1975.