Abstract
This paper seeks to delineate and explain changing public perceptions towards those who suffered from deafness, blindness, or intellectual disability in Joseon Korea. In the fifteenth century, the Great Code of State Administration (경국대전, 經國大典 Gyeongguk Daejeon) prohibited discrimination against the disabled. The deaf and blind in particular even enjoyed favorable attention. The state provided such economic benefits as exemption from taxes as a way to compensate them for their impaired abilities, thereby fostering a rather favorable social climate towards persons with disabilities. Some blind persons were even believed to have such special talent as fortune telling. In the eighteenth century, however, negative perceptions towards the disabled began to gain strength. Increasing frequency of documented references to disability as an object of mockery suggests that the state and the society alike viewed the disabled as ‘useless people’ (폐인). Mainly utilizing court histories, literary anthologies, army rosters (군적), and military division (군영) records, this paper argues that overall change in the Joseon economy fueled discrimination against the disabled. In particular, changes in the military defense system and its associated military tax (군포) significantly contributed to the negative portrayal, as the new practice tended to divide the population into households collectively responsible for tax levies. By the nineteenth century, the state’s harsher treatment of the disabled set the stage for outright discrimination against disabled in modern Korea, exacerbated by the introduction of the Western notion of eugenics.
References
An, Ok-sun (안옥선). 1999. 불교의 몸 (Bulgyo-ui mom; The understanding of the human body from the perspective of buddhism). 전통과 현대 (Jeontong-gwa hyeondae; Traditional and Modernity), 8: 57–100.
Eum, Heung-seop (엄흥섭). 1937. 실명 (Silmyeong). In: 한국근대단편소설대계 14 (Hanguk geundae danpyeonsoseol daegye 14), ed. Eum, Heung-seop (엄흥섭), 745–746. 서울: 태학사 (Seoul: Taehaksa).
Jeon, Kyung Wook (전경욱). 1993. 민속극 (Minsog-geuk; Folklore Songs). 서울: 고려대 민족문화연구원 (Seoul: Koryo-dae Minjog Munhwa Yeonguweon).
Jung, Chang kwon (정창권). 2005. 세상에 버릴 사람은 없다 (Sesang-e beoril saram-eun eobda; Disabled is nothing). 서울: 문학동네 (Seoul: Munhak dongne).
Lee, Pil-Young (이필영). 2000. 개인의 피부병에 대한 마을공동체의 치병의례 (Gaein-ui pibu byeong-e daehan maeul gongdongche-ui chibyeong uirye; How a personal disease was dealt with in a premodern Korea). 민속학연구 (Minsoghak yeongu; The Journal of Korean Folklore), vol. 7: 197–223.
Miguel, Edward. 2005. Poverty and Witch Killing. Review of Economics Studies, vol. 72: 1153–1172. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/0034-6527.00365
Oxford Living Dictionaries. https://en.oxforddictionaries.com. (Accessed 15 June 2023).
Turner, Bryan S. 1984. The Body and Society. UK: Basil Blackwell.
Yang, Jin-Suk (양진석). 1989. 18-19세기 환곡에 관한 연구 (18-19-segi hwangog-e gwanhan yeongu: A Study of 18th and 19th centuries granary system in Korea). 한국사론 (Hanguksaron; History of Korea), 21: 371–458.
Yi, Hun-sang (이훈상). 1990. 조선후기의 향리 (Joseon hugi-ui hyangri; Clerks in Joseon dynasty). 서울: 일조각 (Seoul: Iljogak).
Yi, Ok (이옥). 2001. 장봉사전 (Jangbongsajeon; Park, A visually impaired fortune teller). In: 역주 이옥 전집 2 (Yeogju Yi Ok jeonjib 2), trans. by Silhakhaksa The Society for Practical Studies (실학학사고전문학연구회; Silhak hagsa gojeon munhag yeonguweon), 47–55. 서울: 소명출판사(Seoul: Somyeong chulpansa).
삼국사기 온달열전 (Samgug sagi Ondal Yeoljeon). https://db.history.go.kr/item/level.do?sort=levelId&dir=ASC&start=1&limit=20&page=1&pre_page=1&setId=19&totalCount=19&prevPage=0&prevLimit=&itemId=sg&types=r&synonym=off&chinessChar=on&brokerPagingInfo=&levelId=sg_045r_0100&position=15 (Accessed 9 Sep. 2023).
세종실록 (Sejong sillok; Annals of King Sejong) https://sillok.history.go.kr/id/kda_10502004_002 (Accessed 9 Sep. 2023).
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Hyun Jae Yoo
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en
When submitting a paper the author agrees to the following publishing agreement and processing personal data.
PUBLICATION AGREEMENT, COPYRIGHT LICENSE, PERSONAL DATA PROCESSING CONSENT
This is a publication agreement and copyright license (“Agreement”) regarding a written manuscript currently submitted via Pressto Platform
(“Article”) to be published in International Journal of Korean Humanities and Social Sciences (“Journal”).
The parties to this Agreement are:
the Author or Authors of the submitted article (individually, or if more than one author, collectively, “Author”) and International Journal of Korean Humanities and Social Sciences (“Publisher”), address al. Niepodległości 4, 61-874 Poznań, represented by its editor in chief Oh Kyong-Geun.
- 1. LICENSE OF COPYRIGHT
- a) The Author and the Publisher agree that the Author grants a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which is incorporated herein by reference and is further specified at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en copyright license in the Article to the general public.
- b) The Author grants to the Publisher a royalty-free, worldwide nonexclusive license to publish, reproduce, display, distribute, translate and use the Article in any form, either separately or as part of a collective work, including but not limited to a nonexclusive license to publish the Article in an issue of the Journal, copy and distribute individual reprints of the Article, authorize reproduction of the entire Article in another publication, and authorize reproduction and distribution of the Article or an abstract thereof by means of computerized retrieval systems (such as Westlaw, Lexis and SSRN). The Author retains ownership of all rights under copyright in the Article, and all rights not expressly granted in this Agreement.
- c) The Author grants to the Publisher the power to assign, sublicense or otherwise transfer any and all licenses expressly granted to the Publisher under this Agreement.
- d) Republication. The Author agrees to require that the Publisher be given credit as the original publisher in any republication of the Article authorized by the Author. If the Publisher authorizes any other party to republish the Article under the terms of paragraphs 1c and 1 of this Agreement, the Publisher shall require such party to ensure that the Author is credited as the Author.
- 2. EDITING OF THE ARTICLE
- a) The Author agrees that the Publisher may edit the Article as suitable for publication in the Journal. To the extent that the Publisher’s edits amount to copyrightable works of authorship, the Publisher hereby assigns all right, title, and interest in such edits to the Author.
- 3. WARRANTIES
- a) The Author represents and warrants that to the best of the Author’s knowledge the Article does not defame any person, does not invade the privacy of any person, and does not in any other manner infringe upon the rights of any person. The Author agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Publisher against all such claims.
- b) The Author represents and warrants that the Author has full power and authority to enter into this Agreement and to grant the licenses granted in this Agreement.
- c) The Author represents and warrants that the Article furnished to the Publisher has not been published previously. For purposes of this paragraph, making a copy of the Article accessible over the Internet, including, but not limited to, posting the Article to a database accessible over the Internet, does not constitute prior publication so long as the as such copy indicates that the Article is not in final form, such as by designating such copy to be a “draft,” a “working paper,” or “work-in-progress”. The Author agrees to hold harmless the Publisher, its licensees and distributees, from any claim, action, or proceeding alleging facts that constitute a breach of any warranty enumerated in this paragraph.
- 4. TERM
- a) The agreement was concluded for an unspecified time.
- 5. PAYMENT
- a) The Author agrees and acknowledges that the Author will receive no payment from the Publisher for use of the Article or the licenses granted in this Agreement.
- b) The Publisher agrees and acknowledges that the Publisher will not receive any payment from the Author for publication by the Publisher.
- 6. ENTIRE AGREEMENT
- a) This Agreement supersedes any and all other agreements, either oral or in writing, between the Author and the Publisher with respect to the subject of this Agreement. This Agreement contains all of the warranties and agreements between the parties with respect to the Article, and each party acknowledges that no representations, inducements, promises, or agreements have been made by or on behalf of any party except those warranties and agreements embodied in this Agreement.
- b) In all cases not regulated by this Agreement, legal provisions of Polish Copyright Act and Polish Civil Code shall apply.
- c) Any disputes arising from the enforcement of obligations connected with this Agreement shall be resolved by a court competent for the headquarters of the Publisher.
- d) Any amendments or additions to the Agreement must be made in writing and signed by authorised representative of both parties, otherwise being ineffective.
- e) This Agreement is signed electronically and the submission of the article via the PRESSto platform is considered as the conclusion of the Agreement by the Author and the Publisher.
- f) Clause for consent to the processing of personal data - general
- g) The Author shall give his or her consent to the processing of their personal data in accordance with the Act of 10 May 2018 on the protection of personal data and Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of persons physical in connection with the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46 / EC (General Data Protection Regulation) for the purpose and in connection with making publications available on the PRESSto scientific journals platform, guaranteeing the security of services rendered, and improving them.
I HAVE READ AND AGREE FULLY WITH THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT.
The Author The Publisher