Transcription
[Music] [Music] Hello viewers, this is Ham Jae-bong's Birth of Koreans. Last time, we looked at how Joseon people were made and how they differed from Goryeo people. Originally, the term "Korean," which originates from Goryeo people, meant that when those Koreans got married, the man went to live at the woman's house. That is, he only got married. We discussed how this changed with the introduction of Confucianism and the patriarchal system, transforming into the Joseon people we know today, where the woman goes to the man's house. We then discussed the process of change from Goryeo people to Joseon people. Today, we will talk about the social conditions of Joseon as it was collapsing, the lives of Joseon people, and why they abandoned Joseon, eventually leading to the creation of a different nation and the birth of Koreans. We will discuss the social landscape of 19th-century Joseon and the lives of its common people. Last time, I mentioned that when Joseon fell, the Joseon people were sad about losing their country but not about Joseon disappearing. This is a difficult proposition to accept and, in a way, hard to understand. However, I believe that even though these are difficult things to accept, we must face them directly if we are to truly understand Joseon history and our own history. So, did the Joseon people truly not mourn the disappearance of Joseon? I believe we can see this clearly by looking at the social history of Joseon as it was disappearing in the 19th century. When we look at the lives of the common people of Joseon in the 19th century, as Joseon was declining, people talk about "Hell Joseon" these days. But this was truly a hellish existence, a living hell, and a scene of utter chaos. So today, we will focus on how the Joseon people lived in the 19th century. The first piece of evidence I will present for calling it "Hell Joseon" is a poem called "Aejeol-yang." This is a very famous poem that you can find anywhere. It was written by the renowned Dasan Jeong Yak-yong in 1802. In 1802, Dasan was in exile in Gangjin. King Jeongjo, whom Dasan cherished so much, passed away in 1800. Dasan was exiled, and while passing through a village during his exile, he saw a woman weeping and lamenting her fate. So, Dasan went to ask what was wrong, and after hearing her story, he turned it into a poem, which he titled "Aejeol-yang." The title itself, "Aejeol-yang," means "lamenting the self-mutilation of the male genitalia." Do you know what "jeol-yang" means? "Jeol" means to cut, and "yang" refers to male genitalia. So, the woman was crying out that a married woman had cut off her own male genitalia. Let's read the beginning of this poem together. In the village of Nojeon, a young woman's ceaseless wails. Heading towards the heavens, she cries out to the sky. Though a husband gone to war may not return, never have I heard of a man cutting off his own. My father-in-law died three years ago, and my child is still wet with birth fluids, yet three generations are forced to serve the military. Though I plead, the official is a tiger, the tax collector roars like a beast, driving away the oxen. He sharpened his knife and entered the room, and the mat was full of blood. She cut herself in sorrow for bearing children. Here, a young woman in the village of Nojeon is weeping incessantly. When asked why, she says: You've heard of husbands gone to war and not returning, haven't you? But have you ever heard of a man cutting off his own genitalia? she pleads to Jeong. Why, she asks, my father-in-law died three years ago, my child is still wet with birth fluids, yet three generations—grandfather, father, and grandson—are all forced to serve the military. What does this mean? In those days, if common people wanted to avoid military service, they had to pay a tax. To avoid this tax, women had to weave cloth. It took a year or several months for a woman to sit at a loom and weave cloth. They had to weave an enormous amount of cloth to pay as a substitute for military service. It was incredibly difficult to make even one piece, but now they are demanding payment for three generations, including the father-in-law who died three years ago, and even for the newborn child! The woman continues: Though I plead, the official is a tiger, the tax collector roars like a beast, driving away the oxen. They couldn't pay the tax for three generations. How many oxen could they have had? It was their only property. What could they do? He sharpened his knife and entered the room, and the mat was full of blood. She cut herself in sorrow for bearing children. You see, this was in 1802. We talk about the Yeongjo-Jeongjo era as a period of prosperity for Joseon. This was just two years after King Jeongjo's death. If this was the life of ordinary people, then honestly, I don't know how well the Joseon people lived even during the Yeongjo-Jeongjo era. But looking at this alone, it was a desperate life. This is what we learned in history as the "Samjeong-ui Mullam" (the three great abuses of the government). Let's look at another record from that time. This is a petition from a 16-year-old daughter of Yu Dong-yeol in Namji-dong, believed to be in present-day Changwon, in 1831. She submitted a petition to the local magistrate. The petition reads: I am now 16 years old, orphaned at a young age, with no family to rely on or property to my name, only my old father, whose condition pains my heart. This spring, a severe famine struck, and we wandered from place to place, begging for food to sustain my father's nearly dying life. However, this spring's famine is even worse, and we are on the verge of starving to death. I often lament my own worthless life, which is prone to swelling and illness, and fear that we will become starving ghosts in the street. As it is not as good as saving my father, I wish to sell myself into servitude to another household. However, the person suspected that I would betray them. Here, the character "자매" (jamae) does not mean brother and sister, but rather "selling oneself." She wanted to sell herself to feed her father and herself. But when she went to ask to be sold, the person didn't believe her. They thought, "What if she sells me and then denies it later?" So they didn't trust her. Therefore, having no way to support my old father, I am filled with sorrow and pity. I humbly request that you issue a document for me to sell myself and save my father, so that I may not die of starvation. So, she wanted to sell herself, to be a slave, but the potential buyer, who had money, didn't believe she would actually sell herself. So she asked the government to issue an official document. She came to the magistrate and said, "I truly want to sell myself to this person, so please issue a document." The magistrate replied: I have heard your story and find it deeply pitiable. The act of selling oneself to save one's parents is not without precedent, so it is understandable to be concerned. This document should serve as proof. Selling oneself is a common occurrence, so why worry? We will provide you with proof. The government issued an official document, a "Certificate of Sale." The contents read: This document certifies that due to the severe famine this year, I am unable to support my parents and have decided to sell myself for 300 bags of tribute rice to save my parents, and then to be legally bound to the person who buys me, along with any future offspring. If any of my descendants in the future speak ill of this matter, this document should be presented to the authorities for judgment. Dated February 26, 1837, the 3rd year of King Heonjong. She sells herself for 300 bags of tribute rice. And she sells all her descendants for all eternity. I don't know if you've heard this story before, but have you heard the story of the daughter who sold herself for 300 bags of tribute rice to save her starving father? It's the famous story of Shim Cheong. In the story of Shim Cheong, she sells herself for 300 bags of tribute rice and drowns herself in the Imdangsu to calm the storm. But why do you think this story came about? Do you think it was born from the author's great imagination? No. It was a common occurrence in Joseon at the time. There were so many stories like the one about Yu Dong-yeol's daughter. So, in the novel, Shim Cheong is saved by a turtle and marries the Dragon King, and her father regains his sight, a happy ending. But that's just a novel. At the time, there were so many people in Joseon who had to sell themselves to survive. This was the reality of Joseon at the time. In a country that reached such a state, what were the rulers, the kings, the ministers, the scholars who passed the civil service exams, doing? The ignorance of the Joseon court at the time was astonishing. One example is the issue of the circulation of Cheongjeon (Qing dynasty coins). Let's briefly look at this issue. The Cheongjeon issue occurred in 1874. This was when King Gojong ascended the throne in 1864. For the first ten years, his father, the Heungseon Daewongun, acted as regent. In 1874, Gojong began his personal rule, and his first policy as king was the prohibition of Cheongjeon circulation. At that time, Joseon could not mint its own coins and imported coins from Qing China. The problem with Qing coins was that the amount of copper in a small coin was only half that of Joseon's Sangpyeong Tongbo, but the face value was the same. So, imagine this: when people paid taxes, they would pay with Sangpyeong Tongbo or Cheongjeon, as they were considered equivalent. Then, when officials received these coins as their salary, would they take Sangpyeong Tongbo or Cheongjeon? They would take Sangpyeong Tongbo. So, Cheongjeon piled up in the government treasury. Then, when Gojong took power, his first policy was: "This is causing inflation and is very wrong, so we will prohibit the circulation of Cheongjeon." He issued a decree to prohibit Cheongjeon circulation overnight. What was astonishing was that at that time, Cheongjeon constituted two-thirds of the royal treasury. So, one-third of the treasury disappeared overnight. Joseon's economy never recovered from this point. The Joseon court never recovered financially. So, there was this prohibition decree. It was said that the circulation of Cheongjeon was unavoidable at first, but now the depreciation of money is worsening day by day, and it is unsustainable. Considering the people's situation, even food and rice are not easily obtained, so it must be dealt with immediately, and it is also unavoidable. From now on, the circulation of Cheongjeon will be completely abolished and enforced in all eight provinces and four regions. So, the prohibition was issued overnight. What happened? The coins became unusable. As I mentioned, two-thirds of the treasury disappeared. So, when they wanted to use money, they needed Sangpyeong Tongbo. But there was none. So, the court was in a panic. Finally, after a few days, Gojong said: The king inquired, "What is the amount of our coins held by the Ministry of Finance, the Seonhye청, and various other government offices? How much money does the state have left?" He was asking about the remaining money in the treasury. There was hardly any money left. Then Yi Won-ik, the Chief State Councilor, replied: I have heard that the Ministry of Finance has 8,000 yang, but I know nothing beyond that. Kim Se-gyun, the Minister of Finance, said: Of the remaining funds in the Ministry of Finance, there are no Sangpyeong Tongbo coins set aside separately. Of the remaining funds, after deducting 11,500 yang that were received a while ago and are a bit old, only about 800 yang of Sangpyeong Tongbo remain. The king and the Chief State Councilor and the Minister of Finance were discussing how little money was in the treasury. At this time, while discussing the abolition of Cheongjeon, Gojong and the Chief State Councilor had a conversation. After discussing the abolition of Cheongjeon, Gojong suddenly asked if China, a very large country, had any provinces larger than Joseon, with more population. The Chief State Councilor replied: There are large and small provinces, so it is difficult to compare. I cannot know the details of the provinces. This is a typical evasive answer from someone who doesn't know. The Chief State Councilor doesn't know this. He doesn't know the population of China or if there are provinces larger than Joseon. This is not about Western countries like England or Germany. It's about China, which Joseon revered, to which they sent envoys, to which they constantly sent delegations to learn, and from which they adopted everything. Yet, the king and the Chief State Councilor of Joseon are having this conversation, not even knowing the population of China, let alone whether a single province is larger than Joseon. The ignorance of the Joseon ruling class was astonishing. Let me add one more thing. Hwaseo Yi Hang-no, one of the greatest scholars of the late Joseon period, who created the ideology of "Wijeong Cheoksa" (defending orthodoxy and rejecting heterodoxy). His disciple was Myeonam Choi Ik-hyeon. He was the greatest scholar of his time. The Wijeong Cheoksa ideology advocated for the unconditional rejection and expulsion of Western powers. But I was curious: Confucianism has the strength that anyone can be taught. We are superior, so we can teach everyone. Confucianism teaches everything and civilizes them, making them accept our civilization and educating them. But why did they advocate for rejecting the West from the very beginning? China had already opened its doors after the Opium Wars starting in 1848, and Japan began to open up after the Treaty of Amity and Commerce with the United States in 1853, and then underwent modernization with the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Yet, why did the greatest scholar of Joseon think that the West should be rejected? So, I looked for Hwaseo's collected works. I found a passage in Hwaseo Yi Hang-no's collected works that accurately describes his thoughts on the West. Let's read it: In terms of the grand trend of heaven and earth, the West is like the barbarian tribes of the western regions, and their people are like shellfish and crustaceans. So, looking at the map, the West is at the western edge, like the barbarian tribes of the water country. What are "water country people"? They are shellfish, crabs, clams, and other crustaceans. So, these people live in the water, and when they come out of the water to dry their fins on a raft, they see only the vast sky. That's why they constantly say "God, God." Because of this, their nature is to value life lightly and enjoy death, their emotions are to love profit and be blind to righteousness, and their drinking is to rejoice in superficiality and dislike the proper way. The northern barbarians are like the Yi (barbarians). China is like that. So, China is in the center, and the Dongyi (Eastern barbarians) are to the east. We usually refer to them as Dongyi, Xirong, Nanman, Beiji (Eastern barbarians, Western barbarians, Southern barbarians, Northern barbarians). These barbarians surrounding China are considered more savage the further they are from China. This is the so-called Huayi order, the Huayi view. But Hwaseo says: Even the Xiongnu to the north are barbarians, like us Dongyi. These are barbarians who came and went near China. They have some knowledge, so they can be taught. But the West? They are like fish. They cannot be taught. Therefore, they must be rejected. This was how the greatest scholar of Joseon at the time understood the West. The economic chaos caused by the prohibition of Cheongjeon circulation, the king and the chief state councilor who had no concept of economics, and the intellectuals who thought of the West as mere beasts, like crustaceans in a water country. The people living under them, the common people, that was the Joseon people. In the first part, we discussed Dasan Jeong Yak-yong's poem and Yu Dong-yeol's daughter's certificate of sale. However, I believe the most important and invaluable source for understanding how the Joseon people lived in the 19th century is the reports from missionaries who were in Korea at the time. Especially in the early 19th century, only Catholic priests were present. As I mentioned last time, Yi Seung-hun received baptism in China in 1784 and Catholicism began to spread. In the West, in the late 1790s, Father Choung Mo-moon came and was martyred. Then, the Paris Foreign Missions Society decided to take charge of missionary work in Joseon. So, the Paris Foreign Missions Society began sending priests in earnest from the 1800s, dispatching dozens of them. These were the sons of the highest families in France, who received the best education and became priests. They secretly entered Joseon and ministered to the poorest people. Imagine this: they learned Korean, went to the poorest, most persecuted people, and evangelized them in Korean, converting them, educating them, and even treating them when they were sick. When these priests came, they had to write daily reports. They would write these reports and send them to the headquarters in Paris. How did they send them? They would write them down and give them to a Catholic layman, who would take them to the west coast, give them to a fisherman who was a Catholic, and then take them to Macau or Hong Kong to be delivered to Paris. So, the reports piled up at the headquarters of the Paris Foreign Missions Society. A priest named Dallet, who had never actually been to Joseon, found these materials and thought, "What a treasure!" He organized them and wrote a book, which is now published in three volumes as the History of the Catholic Church in Korea. This book by Father Dallet. I believe that the priests who lived in hiding at that time were like special correspondents. There are no other correspondents like them. They knew the local language perfectly, understood the customs, and recorded the reality of the situation in detail. Let me show you one example. This is from Bishop Imbert. [Music] This is from Bishop Imbert, born in 1888. He came to Joseon in 1846, so he was in his early twenties. He was martyred during the Byeongin Persecution in 1866, at the age of 48. Here is one of his reports: Honest officials are an almost unknown entity in Joseon. The poor live miserable lives. They are not only exploited by officials, smugglers, police, and soldiers, but every winter and spring, they are also preyed upon by bandits. You see, it's not just anyone saying this, but a Catholic priest who came here. He's not saying the Joseon people are lazy. He's saying, why don't the Joseon people work? Because their property rights are not guaranteed, why would people work? As you saw in "Aejeol-yang," even if they work hard, what happens? It's all taken away. So, who would work? It's better to become a bandit or a mountain thief than to work diligently. That's how they could feed their families more reliably. So, they are lazy. Throughout the 19th century, and even into the early 20th century, foreigners who came to Korea always said that the Joseon people were lazy. Is it because of the Joseon people's DNA or their ethnic nature? I don't think so. There's no such thing. It's not about ethnic nature or DNA. It's about what kind of system you create, what kind of environment you create. The same people can become incredibly lazy and idle, or incredibly diligent. If property rights are clearly guaranteed, it is human instinct to work hard and feed one's family. If that is prevented, people become lazy. Catholic priests accurately pointed this out. Let me read one more passage. Bureaucracy is rampant in the provinces. Not only are there countless abuses of power, but the entire central government system is a core department of abuse of power, a bottomless sea of corruption, and merely an instrument of exploitation that drains the vitality from all industries. Offices and judicial rulings are bought and sold like commodities, and as the government is rapidly declining, bribery is the only principle that can survive. The Joseon government was merely a device for stealing. You see, taxes are like this: they are what you pay after you have secured your food, clothing, and shelter, have money for your children's education, can buy medicine when you are sick, and have money for travel. But in "Aejeol-yang," they are forced to pay taxes when they cannot even secure food, clothing, and shelter. That's not a tax. It's called a tax, but what is it? It's exploitation. No matter what you call it, if you take from the people who cannot secure food, clothing, and shelter, it is theft. So, this is precisely what the reports from the priests, who acted as special correspondents at the time, accurately point out. Do you know how the Joseon people lived at that time? This next passage is from Isabella Bird, a woman who came in 1894, about 40 years after Father Dallet. She came around the time of the Gabo Reform. She wrote a famous book called "Korea and Her Neighbors" after traveling through Korea and Manchuria. This is what she wrote after seeing Seoul at that time. Narrow, dirty alleys were surrounded by low mud-walled houses with thatched roofs made of straw or reeds. There were no houses of more than one story, so people often said that Hanyang looked like a giant mushroom colony. If you look at the photos from that time, apart from a few tiled roofs like Gyeongbokgung Palace, everything else was thatched. Even in the heart of Seoul, it looked like a mushroom colony from afar. Most houses have only one room, with a small window used as a kitchen. These houses usually have no windows, or if they do, only a very small one. The windows and doors are covered with paper, not glass. These doors are usually very low and narrow, so even a small woman has to bend down to enter. And even inside the room, except for the highest point in the center of the ceiling, you cannot stand up straight. Needless to say, everything related to these houses is frighteningly unhygienic, and most of them are dirty and infested with pests. All sewage is dumped into indescribably dirty ditches dug along the sides of the roads. The so-called royal palaces in Joseon are humble dwellings that even a retired person living comfortably in Paris would not want to live in. And foreigners who came to Seoul and Hanyang were shocked. When we think of a city, what is a city? It has parks, libraries, and in all Korean cities today, there are walking trails in the mountains, beautiful paths, riverside promenades, and bike paths. That is a city. But have you ever heard of such things in Hanyang, the capital of Joseon? There were no theaters, libraries, or parks. In Isabella Bird's book, "Korea and Her Neighbors," there is a passage that says: Hanyang has no works of art, few antiques, and no parks. Apart from the king's residence, there is nothing worth seeing, and no theaters. So, the king's procession was the only spectacle. Hanyang has no charm that other cities possess. Hanyang is a historic city, but it has no relics, no libraries, no literature, and recently, indifference to religion is greater than ever, so few temples remain. On the other hand, superstitions that still grip the Joseon people mean that not even a single tombstone remains. So, unlike in the West, where there are tombs of famous writers and poets, or Roman ruins, in Joseon, due to superstitions, there were no tombstones. There was no sign of a modern city. So, where did the citizens of Hanyang go? There was nowhere to go for leisure. They worked themselves to death and lived in these sewer-like conditions. This is the accurate reality of Joseon. This is 19th-century Joseon, 19th-century Hell Joseon. Now, do you understand why the Joseon people did not mourn the fall of Joseon? What I have said today is only a small fraction of the available data. There is so much more. However, for some reason, we do not study these things, nor are they taught. But if you look a little closer, you will see how tragic the Joseon era was. For the Joseon people, perhaps the royal family and a few powerful families thought it was a good world, perhaps because they could treat over 90% of the population like their hands and feet. But for the remaining 90% of the Joseon people, it was undoubtedly a hellish world. At that time, foreigners also commented on the educational environment of Joseon. How was education being conducted? This is also from Bird's account. Let's read it. Joseon's education has so far failed to cultivate patriotic scholars, wise thinkers, and honest people. The education has proceeded as follows: In typical Joseon schools, students sit on the floor with Chinese books in front of them, swaying their upper bodies violently from side to side or back and forth, reciting Chinese classics at the top of their voices from morning till night, writing Chinese characters, and filling their heads with the myths and legends of Chinese sages. The arrogant, bespectacled teacher, holding a stick, places a book in front of him and occasionally utters a word of correction in a powerful voice. This educational system does nothing to cultivate the students' thinking abilities or help them understand the world they live in. Narrow-mindedness, ingrained arrogance, vanity, disdain for honest labor, false pride, selfish individualism that destroys generous public spirit and social trust, a narrow intellectual horizon bound by 2,000-year-old customs and traditions, shallow morality, and a contemptible view of women – these are the products of Joseon education, according to Westerners. This is 19th-century Joseon. They only received Hanmun education, learned Chinese literature, and learned about Chinese sages. The Four Books and Five Classics are Chinese. Toegye, Yulgok, and Dasan all wrote in Chinese. Their philosophy is Chinese philosophy. So, what was Joseon literature? It was like Shim Cheongjeon, just folk tales passed down orally. Were there people who studied it? Were there people who made it into books and taught it? No. So, when Western missionaries and others came and observed the situation in Joseon, they saw that although there was a Joseon language, all official documents, all records, and all books read by intellectuals were written in Chinese. When they were drunk and in a good mood, they would write poems that were entirely in Chinese. It was all Chinese. So, where was Joseon's own culture? There was none. So, from their perspective, it was clearly visible. There was nothing Joseon-specific, only Chinese. Let me quote one passage on this point and move on. Strictly speaking, there is no unique Joseon literature. Except for a few folk songs, old tales, and novels for women and children, everything is expressed in Chinese characters, within the framework of Chinese thought. Learning or education is a concept unrelated to the Korean language. The Korean language remains at a primitive level. Famous writers and poets did not use their own language. There are said to be two bookstores in Hanyang, but they only sell Chinese books. Printed materials in Korean cannot be found. They did not use Korean, which we called Eonmun at the time, and later called Hangeul, the Hunminjeongeum created by King Sejong. Throughout the Joseon dynasty, it was not used. This is because those who were considered learned regarded anything written in Joseon's unique script as inferior. Such people were generally immersed in Chinese education and ignorant of their country's writing system. They did not use Eonmun. What was the medical situation at the time? What was the medical situation in Hell Joseon? This is from Scranton, a doctor who entered Korea in 1885. His mother, Mary Scranton, who founded Ewha Hakdang (Ewha University), also came with him. His son was a doctor. He wrote about the medical situation at the time as he began treating Joseon people. In Joseon, it is considered a great misfortune if someone cannot die at home. However, if servants become incurably ill or contract an infectious disease, they are banished outside the city walls and left to live alone in a makeshift hut. These unfortunate patients are not even provided with a house. It is certain that their mortality rate increases because they are abandoned in this way. There are almost no charitable institutions in Joseon to care for such patients, so their chances of survival are slim. Outside the gates of Hanyang, you can always find hundreds of such abandoned patients. So, they came and established Gwanghyewon, Bogu Yeogwan, and hospitals, including Dongdaemun Hospital. The government was asked to provide buildings, and they said they didn't need medical fees or salaries, just the buildings, and they would care for these poor, abandoned people. Because the wealthy and the aristocracy could have doctors make house calls. But these people were abandoned, and thus began the establishment of modern hospitals in our country. Especially for Joseon women, we have the aristocracy, the middle class, military officials, scholars, commoners, and all the discriminated people, including the lower class and women. They faced discrimination beyond imagination. When Isabella Bird, a pastor's wife, and many other Western women doctors and nurses came, they saw how tragic and sad the situation of Joseon women was. Let me read this: As in other Asian countries, customs in Joseon are terribly corrupt, and as a necessary consequence, the ordinary condition of women is deplorably low and inferior. Women are not companions to men, but slaves, mere instruments of pleasure or labor, and laws and customs grant women no rights, and, as it were, recognize no spiritual existence. Any woman not under the control of her husband or parents becomes the property of whoever takes her first, like a masterless beast, and this is a widely recognized principle, even in court, and no one who disputes it is considered. You see, what does this mean? This is "bossam." When they say they are going to "bossam" a woman. If there is a widow, they take her. If there is a woman, and she has no husband or parents, anyone can take her and live with her. When I was young, I thought "bossam" was a beautiful custom, like something made into a drama. No, it just means they take her and live with her. If you report it to the government, they say, "Well, what can you do?" Westerners saw this as unacceptable. There is also this story: The happiness of the family cannot be achieved by the wife. Joseon people have houses, but not homes. Husbands separate from their wives to enjoy themselves. There is no relationship like friendship or expression of affection between husband and wife. A man's pleasure is obtained through his girlfriends or courtesans. "We marry our wives, but we love our concubines," is a brief summary of their marital relations by Joseon gentlemen. This was the situation of women at the time. If you look at this photo, the woman holding the child is, in my opinion, less than 20 years old. The old men standing barefoot are, in my opinion, less than 50 years old. What was the average life expectancy in Joseon? Many people think that Joseon people lived to be around 40. But no. The average life expectancy of Joseon people in the 19th century was even lower. The life expectancy of Joseon aristocrats in the 19th century was 25. If someone survived until the age of 20, how much longer do you think they lived? In the 18th century, the life expectancy for those who survived to 20 was 35. There was the custom of early marriage, wasn't there? My maternal grandmother and grandfather were probably married when he was 15 and she was 16 or 17. Why was this custom prevalent? Because they only lived until they were 23. They married early, had four or five children, and then half of the children died. In those days, were there postpartum care centers? Were there medicines? When a woman gave birth to one, two, or three children, without vitamins, without anything, without even vitamins, toothbrushes, or soap, and then had three or four children, her teeth would fall out, her hair would fall out. After working hard like that, they would die at 23 or 25. There were 28 kings in Joseon. What was the average life expectancy of Joseon kings? It was 45 years old. Even though they lived in the best houses, wore the best clothes, ate the best food, and received treatment from the most skilled doctors, they only lived to be 45. If anything, it was thanks to King Yeongjo, who lived to be 80, that the average was raised. Yeongjo's mother was of low birth, so he inherited healthy DNA and lived longer. This was the clear reality of Joseon's tragic life. Now, do you understand why the Joseon people did not mourn the fall of Joseon? A country that had existed for 500 years collapsed, and yet, in the March 1st Movement, which occurred only nine years after the country's fall, no one called for the restoration of the country or the return of sovereignty, but no one called for the re-establishment of Joseon. There was no one in the Provisional Government either. Since the country fell in 1910, there has been no one calling for the re-establishment of Joseon. So, the problem is that from then on, a unique Korean consciousness emerged. That is, "We will eventually regain our country." So, when we regain it, what kind of country will we build? Since it will not be Joseon, what kind of country will we build? Will it be a Christian nation? A Soviet nation? A modern Japanese-style nation? A modern Chinese-style nation? By searching for these answers, they began to embark on the journey of finding Koreans. This was the first step in the journey of finding Koreans. Today, we have examined the reality of life and the social landscape of the Joseon people in the 19th century. I don't know how you felt about it. It was a truly tragic era, and I believe that only by understanding this part can we understand why we moved on to the next stage and why we sought to find Koreans and the nation of Korea. That is why I spoke about this. Next time, we will discuss the policy of seclusion. Why did people like Hwaseo Yi Hang-no try to close the country? How did they see the world, how did history unfold, and why were they forced to do so? China had already opened up, and Japan had also opened up, but Joseon remained closed until the end, missing the period of enlightenment and modernization, and inevitably heading towards ruin. To understand this, we must understand why Joseon pursued a policy of seclusion. We will discuss that next time. Ham Jae-bong's Birth of Koreans, exploring Korean identity through historical events and figures. Thank you for watching. See you next time. Thank you. [Music] [Music] C [Music]