KOREAN PATTERNS

Paul S. Crane

THE AUTHOR $4.00

Dr. Paul Shields Crane has spent most of his life in Korea, first as the son of missionary parents and, since 1947, as a surgeon at the Presbyterian Medical Center in Chŏnju, North Chŏlla Province. His broad, sympathetic understanding and appreciation for the Korean people has grown out of many years of close and friendly associations.

Dr. Crane attended the Pyongyang Foreign School, in north Korea, prior to World War II. He received his undergraduate degree from Davidson College and his M.D. degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and is certified by the American Board of Surgery and a fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He served as a Major in the Medical Corps of the U.S. Army for two years in Korea. He was recalled to active duty to serve as the official interpreter for President John F. Kennedy in 196l, and for President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 on the occasion of ROK President Park Chung-hee's two visits to Washington, D.C., as well as for President Johnson during his state visit to Korea in 1966.

Dr. Crane has served with distinction in a wide variety of activities in Korea, including those of advisor to the Surgeon General, ROK Army; and a member of the Board of Directors of Yonsei University and of the Council of the Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch. He is an accomplished writer, and is uniquely qualified to interpret the attitudes and thought patterns of the people with whom he has lived and served most of his life.

In Korea

W800 or $3.00

Jacket design: Sandra Mallulli

THIS BOOK, as the first in a new series of popular handbooks on Korea, marks another milestone in the publication of books on Korea in the English language. This new series, published under the auspices of the Korea Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, is dedicated to the objective of bringing increased understanding of Korean history, culture and people. Subsequent volumes by Korean and non-Korean authors will be published periodically.

Other Royal Asiatic Society Publications:

MONOGRAPH SERIES

1. The Korean Political Tradition and Law by Professor Hahm Pyong-choon, 1967.

2. Korea and Christianity by Dr. Spencer J. Palmer, 1967.

RAS TRANSACTIONS – 42 VOLUMES, 1900-1967.

The list of contributors to the published Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch, 1900-1967, contains the names of all the great pioneers in the field of Korean studies — Gale, Hulbert, Underwood, Bishop Trollope, Paik, McCune and many others.

In its revitalized publishing program, the Society will publish at least two transactions per year, with emphasis on the contributions of the increasing numbers of able Korean scholars. Volume 43, containing a series of five articles by Korean and Western authorities, on "The New Religions of Korea," will be published in September, 1967.

For further information about the RAS, Korea Branch, and its publications, please write to: The Corresponding Secretary, Royal Asiatic Society, Box 255, CPO, Seoul, Korea.

PRINTED IN KOREA

KOREAN PATTERNS

KOREAN PATTERNS

Paul S. Crane

Copyright 1967 by Royal Asiatic Society

Korea Branch

Published by Hollym Corporation: Publishers.

11-1 Kwanch'ol Dong, Chong No Ku

Seoul, Korea

First Printing, September, 1967

Second Printing, October, 1967

All rights reserved. No part of

this book may be reproduced in

any form except for brief quota-

tion in a review, without written

permission from the Royal Asiatic

Society, Korea Branch.

Layout and Illustrations

by Sandra Mattielli

To

my Wife,

Sophie

PREFACE

The modern medical practitioner is trained to look at the human condition in toto. He then examines it part by part and system by system so that he may arrange his findings in an orderly manner, to be able to understand better any symptoms and signs that may be warning signals of future trouble for the patient. The doctor then makes a rough working diagnosis and develops a rational approach to therapy. Often the patient does not fully understand or recognize his own problems, and he may even misinterpret his own signs and symptoms without the objective evaluation of an impersonal doctor. This analogy may be pushed too far, but in one sense the victory of World War II placed the United States of America in the unenviable position of the reluctant doctor who has been asked to render assistance to many newly liberated nations around the world. Very few of these new states ask for non-technical or philosophical assistance, but often without non-material aid and a basic change in core values, the material and technical assistance ends up being of relatively little real help in the country's development.

To use the medical analogy again, some patients resent and resist being examined. Some do not believe that they can ever be understood by a foreigner or an outsider. These can receive little help even from the most well-meaning and skillful physician. Only when the patient has had a thorough examination is there hope of making a proper diagnosis and prescribing any therapy that may be helpful. Of course, the doctor may be in error, and thus it is well to check his observations with those of other qualified and careful observers.

This book is written quite frankly as a handbook of orientation for those Westerners who come to Korea to work. Some foreigners come from very provincial backgrounds, and have difficulty understanding anyone with a different heritage and an unfamiliar set of ground-rules for doing business. Many tend to compare and criticize customs and methods found in Korea from within the limits of their own narrow home environment. This book is written in the popular idiom of the middle-class American frame of reference. In order to gain insights beneath the surface of things, words are used as they are generally understood by educated Americans. This book is not written for those who do not have a broad grasp of English, but must keep to the narrow confines of the Concise English Dictionary for their understanding of words.

One is tempted to list all the charming, attractive, laudable, winsome, and lovable qualities found in most Koreans and let it go at that. Such a book would be better prepared by the tourist agencies. Such a book would have little practical value for the serious student of Korea who, in an all-too-short tour of duty, must adjust and quickly learn to work in a different frame of reference from his own. With a better understanding of the traditional systems, one should then have more appreciation of and be able to work more effectively with allies, neighbors, and comrades-in-arms. There is an emphasis in the book on problem areas, for it is chiefly the problem areas that need more understanding, study, and effort to solve.

To try to delineate the national character of Korea definitively is a large order, and to attempt it may be considered presumptuous. This has been more or less successfully attempted by others for the United States, Japan, England, and Burma, to mention just a few. This book is mainly concerned with traditional patterns of Korea. In these traditional patterns there are enough basic differences in attitudes and thought patterns from those familiar to the American for one to draw a portrait, composite though it may be, which will give at least some guidelines to those trying to reach an understanding with Korean co-workers and new-found friends. A portrait rarely satisfies the subject, for the artist must emphasize sharp areas of light and shadow in order to show character and personality rather than a washed-out photographic likeness. A portrait must be recognizable and positive enough to distinguish it from other subjects. Koreans, being a fairly homogenous race of people, enable this composite likeness to have some chance of being fairly accurate.

In this discussion of attitudes and behavior patterns, it must be understood as one of the rules of the game that one is speaking in the composite, and what is described often in rather candid terms does not apply to any single individual or group of persons in every respect. Generalizations must not be pushed beyond the fact that they are generalizations, and there are many exceptions and types that will vary widely from the composite picture. Examples given try to sharpen the lines, so that the differences may be emphasized.

There are some who will no doubt resent the fact that anyone dares to write such a book. Some may take exception to anything that is less than glowing approval of Korean traditional manners and customs. These, I believe, are not necessarily the true friends of Korea. The Koreans have a long tradition and a strong, viable system that can stand up to close inspection by a foreigner. The Korean image in the world is good, and improving all the time; it will be even better if it is better understood. If some Korean writer had come forward with an objective appraisal to explain his countrymen to foreigners, there would be no need for this book, but as yet this has not been done in a manner that is understandable to foreigners. This book gives, I believe, a total image of a strong, attractive people who are working hard to solve their problems, and to achieve modernization.

Korea's developing problems seem to include a need for modernization in the economic, educational, administrative, scientific, philosophical, and spiritual areas. Many highly trained and dedicated foreigners have come to Korea to offer their experience and skills to cooperate with Koreans in mutually working out some of these basic problems.

The gap between Koreans over thirty years of age and those younger is a real source of tension, for the younger generation is shedding many of the old, less productive ways, and is battling hard to modify some traditional attitudes and behavior patterns that have been historically nonproductive for Korea. The gap between material development and cultural change is widening, and also makes for tension in the society. The development and modernization of Korea rest largely on the younger leaders and intellectuals who are reaching maturity and are bringing in a new day in Korea. This book is written with deep respect and appreciation for this new generation, which might be interested in an outsider's evaluation of traditional patterns.

It is also written from a lifetime of love and respect for those of the older generation who have been my teachers and friends through the years. They have taught me about Korean attitudes and behavior patterns, and have given me the opportunity to adjust and work with these without always adopting or going along with some of them. Lest criticism of this effort reflect on those wise teachers and friends, I have purposely avoided mentioning their names. My heartfelt gratitude and respect is for them.

A book is seldom the product of one individual effort. This book is no exception. Without the request to write it in the first place, no attempt would have been made. Many have taken the time to give frank criticisms, corrections, and suggestions that have been gratefully incorporated. I realize that even writing on this subject may offend some sensitive souls. To them I offer my sincere apologies in advance.

I am especially indebted to the members of the Royal Asiatic Society Council, Bishop Richard Rutt, Mr. David Steinberg, Dr. George Paik, Mr. Robert Kinney, and Mr. James Wade; and my chief critic and supporter, my wife.

The illustrations by Sandra Mattielli lend a light touch to counterpoint the text. The human being is a fascinating, perplexing, at times inspiring, and often amusing subject, regardless of his race, color, or creed. Mrs. Mattielli's drawings point up the amusing side of life, to gain a smile with, not at our fellow man. It is hoped that they will entice the casual page-flipper to explore the text. For hers and others' stimulating help, my humble thanks.

Paui Shields Crane, M.D.

Presbyterian Medical Center

Chŏnju, Korea, 1967

CONTENTS

PREFACE

INTRODUCTION

I. KOREAN IDEALS

II. THE IMPORTANCE OF KIBUN

III. INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS

1. IMPORTANCE OF RELATIONSHIPS

2. FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS

3. DEFERENCE TO ELDERS

4. SEX AND MARRIAGE

5. SCHOOLS AND CLASSMATES

IV. ETIQUETTE

6. IMPORTANCE OF ETIQUETTE

7. INTRODUCTIONS

8. NAMES AND TITLES

9. PRIVACY AND PROPRIETY

10. TABLE MANNERS

11. PARTIES

12. THE PROBLEM OF GIFTS

V. PUBLIC RELATIONSHIPS

13. TRADITIONAL ATTITUDES TOWARD GOVERNMENT

14. ATTITUDES TOWARD THE PROVINCES

15. IMPORTANCE OF CEREMONY

16. KOREAN SELF-CONFIDENCE

17. ATTITUDES TOWARD CRIME AND CRIMINALS

18. ATTITUDES WHILE UNDER DURESS

19. BUSINESS ATTITUDES

VI. HAN YAK. THE PRACTICE OF ANCIENT MEDICINE

VII. MODERNIZED KOREANS

20. KOREANS TODAY

21. IMPACT OF STUDY AND TRAVEL ON KOREAN ATTITUDES

22. IMPRINT OF JAPANESE OCCUPATION ON KOREAN PATTERNS

23. REACTIONS TO AMERICAN FORCES

24. CHRISTIANITY IN KOREA

25. IMPACT OF CHRISTIANITY ON TRADITIONAL KOREAN ATTITUDES

26. SOME ATTITUDES OF KOREAN CHRISTIANS

27. THE WESTERNER WORKING IN KOREA

VIII. CONCLUSION

APPENDIX

KOREAN PROVERBS

THE LUNAR CALENDAR

A SIXTY-YEAR CYCLE

FORTUNE TELLING

SPECIAL DAYS OF THE LUNAR CALENDAR

OFFICIAL KOREAN COMMEMORATIVE DAYS AND OFFICIAL HOLIDAYS

TERMS USED TO DENOTE FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS

KOREAN WILD FLOWERS USED IN HAN YAK PRESCRIPTIONS

THE HANGŬL ALPHABET

McCUNE-REISCHAUER SYSTEM FOR THE ROMANIZATION OF KOREAN

INTRODUCTION

"What makes a Korean tick?" This question has intrigued Westerners since their first contacts with Koreans early in the nineteenth century. For Westerners living in Korea or concerned with Korean problems, it is important to understand the workings of the Korean mind, how their thought-philosophical-value system functions. This is necessary if one is to develop rapport, have meaningful communication, exchange ideas, and develop trade with these people who are in the "take-off" stage of development in many fields.

"What do the Koreans really think?" The Oriental has had a distorted reputation for being inscrutable and impossible for the Westerner to understand. Harold Isaacs has written that the "Oriental (whatever that means, since there is no one pattern) was called 'inscrutable' because Westerners were too lazy to try to find out what he thinks or why." The difficulty is most acute for those who have not done their homework, and have arrived on the scene without a background in Oriental philosophy, history, religions, sociology, and anthropology. These "foolish virgins" often try to make judgements in the limited context of their Western preconceptions of Dr. Fu Manchu, the fictional Oriental arch-fiend.

First of all, a Korean is very human. His raw humanity generates the same raw feelings we all share. Westerners have had to learn to cover up or sublimate these feelings in order to be accepted in their own culture. For Koreans the cover-up is different. A Korean exhibits human nature without the modifications of centuries of Greco-Roman, Judeo-Christian, Anglo-Saxon heritage. His modifications may be built on a Shamanistic base, or are Buddhist, Confucian, Chinese, and Japanese, with a recent exposure to Christianity and Americanization. The emphasis on what things are important to cover up varies in degree as well as in substance from patterns common in the West.

Many Koreans, however, are surprisingly like Westerners-only more so. One can match patient for patient in a hospital in Korea with those in a hospital in Baltimore, Maryland in the way they react to pain, suffering, disappointment, and death. The inner fears, hopes, drives, loves, jealousies, insecurities, inferiority complexes, and frustrations common to most men are easily recognized in the people of Korea.

The incidence of neuroses and psychoses is very similar in Korea and America. There is less juvenile behavior disturbance seen among children in Korea, perhaps. The hallucinations and thought patterns of Koreans when they are neurotic or psychotic are somewhat different. It can safely be said that a wealthy neurotic Korean woman can be as neurotic as any neurotic woman on earth. The manner of expressing this neurosis may be qualitatively different, due to its base built on the concepts of Oriental medicine. Behavior patterns in Koreans seem to show a slightly different priority for things that are important compared to those in the mythical middle-class American.

The Korean language is one of the chief barriers to foreigners' understanding of Koreans. It is rated by some linguists as one of the most difficult languages in the world for Occidentals to master. For those planning long periods of work in Korea in the fields of missionary activity, education, and medicine, experience has shown that three years spent in intensive language study gives a good foundation. Others will have to limp along with interpreters. For the serious worker, time spent in language study pays rich dividends in opening doors and creating acceptance. Language ability offers an unfettered sharing of ideas, plus enjoyment of the rich cultural and linguistic delights that Koreans relish as one of their major sources of identity and national pride.

Korean is a complex language. First, it is built up of Korean words and Chinese equivalents. The more educated one becomes, the more one tends to use the Chinese derivatives in his speech. Second, the language reflects the levels of society by the use of different vocabulary and grammatical endings. The relative degree of intimacy or familiarity between people is clearly reflected in the language forms. In order to speak it correctly, one must develop the ability to think like a Korean and shift mental gears to be able to ad just to the relatively higher, equal, or lower degree of personal intimacy of the conversants. To speak Korean correctly, it is essential to know the basic rules of social intercourse. This makes learning it no simple matter.

The following example illustrates how this works. A young doctor applies to a hospital for a position. He and the Chief, both being educated persons, converse using the highest forms of politeness. As soon as the doctor is accepted on the staff as a junior member, the relationship and language change. The new, closer, more intimate relationship calls for the Chief to speak down to him, while he continues to show his respect for authority by speaking up to the Chief. If the young doctor should do poorly and need a "dressing down," the Chief may drop to an even lower form of speech to let him know that he la being rebuked. If the fault is beyond repair and the young man must be discharged, the Chief may shift again to the original impersonal high forms of language and the young man knows that the relationship is broken. By changing the verb endings, many of the niceties of relationships are clearly expressed. For a Korean to misuse an ending could thus have serious consequences. For a beginner in the language, it is safer to use the high forms, but, eventually, this is too stiff and formal and cold for intimate associations, especially when speaking to children, younger people, employees, or friends.

This book attempts to portray some of the mental attitudes and reactions held by traditionally minded Koreans. Since the majority of Koreans are still rural farmers or first-generation city dwellers, their attitudes often remain traditional and classical. City dwellers and those working closely with foreigners have recently shed some of these attitudes. Some of these Koreans may be somewhat dislocated in their thought patterns, and may at times act rather unevenly as they find their way through the newly widened streets of modern Korea.

The fast-vanishing dignified Korean gentleman with his long white robe and horse-hair hat is the embodiment of Confucian culture. He walks as though his feet were heavy and his eyes were viewing the distant hills. He has a ready, earthy wit and is a born actor and comic, as well as a philosopher and autocrat. He demands respect (and he usually receives it) from those whom he meets. He is used to periods of tremendous work and long periods of unhurried quiet. He has, above all else, learned to endure. Of all the people on this globe, he is second to none in ability to suffer and survive in the face of impossible odds. He somehow eases through, and has been doing this under oppression, corrupt governments, and foreign invasions for thousands of years. He is like the tides, slow of motion but impossible to stop. I know of few Americans who could survive in an average Korean' s shoes. My heart and my mind salute with sincere respect the patient, resourceful, cheerful people of Korea. Korea's greatest national resource is her people.

In the first part of this book, basic traditional attitudes are presented. Following this is a discussion of how these attitudes and behavior patterns have been and are now being modified by the impact of Western culture since the latter half of the nineteenth century. This period of Korea's history covers the advent of Christian missionary activity, the forty years of Japanese occupation, and the presence of large numbers of American or other United Nations military, diplomatic, and foreign aid personnel since the end of World War II and the Korean War of 1950-53. The experiences of study and travel abroad are then discussed as a major factor in remolding traditional patterns, since more and more young people have been trained abroad and are returning to assume leadership in their own land. My conclusions and advice for Westerners working in Korea end the book.

It is hoped that this primer for foreigners coming to Korea will help to increase understanding and mutual respect, and will save some from the pitfalls that have turned too many, in the recent past, into bitter critics of Korea. Lack of understanding has tended to create misconceptions about Korea in some parts of the world. Perhaps this discussion will stimulate others to take a fresh look at traditional Korean attitudes and test their own experiences in Korea against those presented, and thus, hopefully, clarify the insights into the Korean temperament for the mutual enlightenment of all concerned. It may even be useful for modern Koreans to see how their traditional patterns may look to some concerned and friendly foreigners.

Koreans, because of their historical and ethnic isolation, are an interesting group of people to study as a basic type of Asian. World events demand that Westerners achieve a clearer appreciation of "what makes Asians tick." Many Korean thought patterns and attitudes will be found in China and Japan, as well as in other Far Eastern lands. Modern Korea is now advancing on the world scene with increasing diplomatic contacts, formidable military power, and rapidly expanding foreign trade. Korea needs to be better understood.

If this book can have a small part in contributing to such understanding, it will have fulfilled a purpose which, though modest, is far from being simple.

I. KOREAN IDEALS

One way to understand a people better is to take a look at their traditional ideals, their historical goals, and the pithy proverbs that they use as markers to gauge their actions and train their children. The historical development of ideals in Korea has been placed in order by the studies of Dr. George Paik. He emphasizes that each period contributed certain ideals which make up the sum total of the heritage of modern Koreans.

As in the case of Japan, Korea claims a supernatural origin from the union of a heavenly being, Hwan Ung, with a bear. This union between heaven and earth produced the mythical Tangun, the founder of Korea over four thousand years ago. Thus Koreans have traditionally felt that they have a heavenly father and an earthly mother, and are bound to both heaven and earth.

Confucian ethics were introduced into Korea from China during the Three Kingdoms Period (57 B.C. to 668 A.D.). Buddhist missionaries arrived from India via China during this same period. Buddhism developed rapidly and became the court religion of the Koryo dynasty (918 A.D.–1392 A.D.), but was discredited during the following Yi dynasty (1392 A.D.–1910 A. D. ). Confucian teaching remains the bible for the traditional Korean to this day.

Some of the basic concepts and codes of interpersonal relationships of Confucian ethics are listed to refresh the memory.

1. The king is the mainstay of the state.

2. The father is the mainstay of the son.

3. The husband is the mainstay of the wife.

The attitudes that must exist between people is listed in the following codes:

1. Between friends, trust.

2. Between elder and younger, respect.

3. Between husband and wife, distinction in position.

4. Between father and son, intimacy.

5. Between king and ministers, loyalty.

One of the great concepts of Confucianism is the seeking of the middle way, the golden mean. This concept of balancing opposites to form the perfect circle is expressed in the symbol of the ŭm and the yang (see Chapter VI).

Buddhism introduced the concepts of reverence for life, no righteousness in war, and the importance of doing good works to attain salvation. From the concept of no righteousness in war developed the youth corps of the Silla kingdom known as the "Flowering Youth," or Hwa Rang. This corps developed a code of military chivalry, loyalty, morality, and truth as their main ideals. In the modern Korean army one speaks of a soldier killed in action as a "Falling Flower."

Yi Taijo, the founder of the Yi dynasty, then a general in the Koryo army, led a revolt against the decadent and corrupt court. He easily overthrew this dynasty and founded his own. Buddhism was replaced at the court by Confucianism. The early Yi period emphasized the idea of developing one's self in order to go out and influence others. One was taught to memorize the classics and study the lives of great men; thus prepared, one could go out to rule others.

Later in the Yi dynasty there developed the concept that the king, the teacher, and the parents were all coequal in authority and honor. Dr. Paik has stated that this concept led in Japan to absolute authority vested in the state, supported by the teachers and the parents. In Korea this authority has remained more equally shared by the government, the teachers, and the parents; militarism has never developed.

Syngman Rhee during his earlier years of exile tried to keep alive the spirit of nationalism for Korea. He tried to persuade his followers to adopt a spirit of national enlightenment based on the U.S. Bill of Rights and President Wilson's Fourteen Points at the Paris Peace Conference of 1919. He wished to see Korea modernize along Western lines.

The 1919 demonstrations against the Japanese occupation of Korea were based in large measure on the nonviolent resistance teachings of Ghandi in India. The leaders of these demonstrations proclaimed the Righteousness of the People, the Humanity of the People, the Dignity of the People, the Freedom of the People, the Non- Violence and Morality of the People, and the Independence of the People. Government should derive its authority from the request of the people. It was hoped that these demonstrations would focus world attention on Korea and help free her from the Japanese.

There is a general belief that leaders should be virtuous. Corruption in government is condemned because it shows a lack of virtue. All claim to be looking for a virtuous leader. It is believed that such a leader will bring the greatest service for the good of humanity. A leader should also practice austerity.

It will be seen from this brief summary of some of the dominant historical ideals that Korea has traditional ideals that still influence the behavior of many. Although, as in every society, there is a gap between ideals and reality, the ideals remain, and can be appealed to and will usually receive a sympathetic hearing by almost any audience. To go against the ideals of the society is to invite criticism and trouble.

(Some of the more common proverbs and epigrams are listed in the appendix.)

II. THE IMPORTANCE OF KIBUN

Perhaps the most important thing to an individual Korean is recognition of his ''selfhood." The state of his inner feelings, his prestige, his awareness of being recognized as a person, the deference he receives from his fellows — all these factors determine his morale, his face, or self-esteem, essentially his state of mind, which may be expressed in Korean by the word kibun. This rich word has no true English equivalent. "Mood" may come close, but much more is involved. When the kibun is good, one "feels like a million dollars," when bad, one "feels like eating worms.

Kibun is one of the most important factors influencing conduct and relations with others. One's bodily functions are largely dependent on the state of one's kibun. If the kibun is good, then one functions smoothly and with ease. If the kibun is upset, then functions may come to a complete halt.

In interpersonal relationships, keeping the kibun in good order often takes precedence over other considerations. It is felt by many to be more important to feel right than to be right, if a choice must be made. One tries, by all means, to operate in a manner that will improve the kibun both in oneself and in those with whom one has dealings. To damage someone's kibun may effectively cut off relationships and create an enemy. Thus one does everything in his power to preserve the kibun, for once the kibun is injured, future contacts may be difficult. One naturally does not like to associate with those who have damaged one's kibun.

This emphasis on feelings and appearance often makes it seem that, in the minds of many, it is more important to have things appear well than that they actually be well. In a certain sense, it may be considered sinful to upset a person's feelings. If necessary, it is sometimes considered better to keep one from the truth if that truth might cause disturbance of the kibun, with pain or embarrassment.

The wise man is often considered to be one who can make things appear in such a way that all will feel at peace, comfortable and secure. This is emphasized in the usual Korean greeting, "Are you in peace?" and the farewells, "Go in peace" and "Remain in peace" which all refer to the supreme importance of the inner feelings or kibun. (One should especially avoid upsetting the kibun by giving bad news in the forenoon.)

It is often more important the way you do something, than what you actually do or say. This is a universal characteristic not limited to Korea, of course, but in Korea a special importance is placed on mood and atmosphere that is quite in excess of what is considered normal in Western cultures.

Most of the disturbance of kibun has to do with lower persons disturbing higher persons. There seems to be less feeling about higher persons disturbing lower persons. Thus a teacher can scold a student or his class (or a prominent person can criticize an audience of lesser persons collectively) and no one individual feels hurt or his kibun especially disturbed.

In direct personal contacts between individuals, however, one is often considered a barbarian or an evil person if he persists in upsetting his superior by pointing out the cold facts, or by insisting on blunt truth and literal performance. Such a person is a disturber of the peace, and thus almost a public enemy. In personal relationships, it would often seem that appearance is of more importance than substance.

Truth is welcome when it also brings joy and peace of mind and increases self-esteem. The Western concept of "letting the chips fall where they may" or "calling a spade a spade" is relatively new and modern to the cultured Korean.

The prevailing Korean attitude about people is not usually democratic or individualistic. It tends to be more feudalistic and paternalistic. Koreans accept and believe in the stratification of society, and feel that the kibun and consideration of it is a privilege of "persons" and cultured aristocrats. People of the "lower classes" have less face or kibun to worry about, so that they may be pushed about with relatively little sense of strain or concern by Koreans. Any foreigner trying the same tactics would immediately be set upon by the same upper-crust Koreans, with an intense feeling that the foreigner was somehow "looking down" on Koreans in general. This is not tolerated, and is a point of great sensitivity in Korea. A foreigner cannot "get away" with the same type of conduct that a Korean can, and does, every day in his relationships.

Examples of the lengths to which people have gone in the past to avoid injury to the kibun were shown in the dark days of the Pusan Perimeter during the early part of the Korean War. Thousands of refugees jammed into Pusan and created living conditions that were very poor, to say the least. In order to keep visiting officials from having their kibun upset, a high board fence was built with extremely scarce lumber along a part of the highway leading from the Pusan airport into the city, so that prominent visitors and foreigners would not see the miserable conditions of the refugees living in hovels behind the fence. Everyone felt better hiding these poor refugees from the view of visitors who drove to and from the airport. Appearance here was certainly considered more important than using the lumber to help build urgently needed housing for these refugees.

Another example of the type of thing that may injure the kibun is to have a party which is simple and cost-conscious and reminds the guests that the host is poor or miserly. Korean families often go deeply into debt and mortgage homes and farms in order to put on a lavish feast for a wedding, a funeral, or to entertain guests. Many are generous to their own hurt rather than run the risk of injury to someone's kibun. Not observing proper etiquette and ceremony is damaging to the kibun of all concerned.

A common example of the effect of kibun can be seen at a repair shop when one asks for the time of completion. When one arrives at the appointed time to find the work far from completion, one is tempted to demand why this unrealistic estimate was promised. The bland reply may be that it might have made you unhappy if a longer period had been mentioned. Thus to help your kibun for that moment, a short time span was given. It never seems to occur to the repairman that the second visit, only to find the work not yet completed, can be very damaging to the kibun of the time-conscious, impatient foreigner.

This emphasis on the feeling of the moment brings on many of the difficulties in Korean society and keeps many from having to face up realistically to their situation. One of the greatest errors that a foreigner commits is the lack of recognition and appreciation of the kibun in dealing with Koreans. Happy is the man who can always act in such a manner as to keep the kibun purring.

III. INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS

1 | Importance of Relationships

Proper relationships are all-important in Korea. There is little concept of equality among Koreans. Relationships tend to be almost entirely vertical rather than horizontal; all are in relatively higher or lower positions. Even in a family all are in a vertical relationship one to another: older brother to younger brother, older sister to younger sister. Even twins are not equal; the first one to show his face is senior and superior in position to the later one out.

It is essential for one to know the levels of society. One must always remember one's own place in the scheme of things. It is necessary to appear to be lowering oneself In selfless humility, giving to others the honor. One must assume an attitude of self-negation and self-effacement in social and business contacts. To put oneself boldly forward is considered uncouth, brutish, and worthy of scorn.

For example, seating at a meal or a meeting is considered important. As Jesus also taught many years ago in Palestine, one should always go to the lowest place, then allow oneself to be escorted reluctantly by the host to a place of higher honor (near the hot spot on the ondol floor).

Protocol is tremendously important to Koreans. If in a meeting others do not appreciate one's actual position and give it due recognition, then one might as well withdraw on some pretext and try to avoid future contacts with those who have misjudged one's true being. A person sent as representative of another person or group at a meeting is treated with even more care, for the substitute may be very sensitive to slights, either real or imagined, and report back to his fellows.

A person who fails to observe the basic rules of social intercourse is, in fact, not even a "person." He is an "unperson,"* a sangnom. [* S. J. Whitwell quotes Orwell, "Europeans were unpersons, and their doings were of no concern to the well-bred Korean." Transactions of the Korea Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1964, Vol. XLI, "Britons in Korea," page 5.] He was not born; he just happened. Only when he has become a "dragon" (powerful) is he worth noticing if he were born in a ditch, otherwise he is beneath considering. An "unperson" is outside the human group — somewhere between man and ape.

A beggar, a prostitute, a criminal, a butcher, and in a certain sense, a foreigner, is an "unperson." The traditional order of social rank lists the scholar at the top, then the student, the official, the farmer, the artisan, the merchant, the military man, the kisaeng, musicians and dancers, and finally the butchers. Even among butchers there is rank. The beef butcher is highest, then comes the pork butcher, and finally, the lowest man on the totem pole, the dog butcher.

The stories of two sangnom who tried to pass as aristocrats, or yangban, illustrates the fine distinctions of class. One butcher, who had acquired considerable wealth and had schooled himself in the manners and customs of the upper classes whom he served, traveled from Chŏlla Province to Ch'ungch'ŏng Province and asked to be put up in the home of a yangban. He was accepted and spent the night in the guest room. In the morning he went out to wash his face and was observed by the servant. The host then rushed out, grabbed him by the neck, and began to beat him for impersonating an aristocrat. When he finally confessed his low origin, he asked how he had been detected. The servant reported that after he washed, he sniffed his hands to see if they still smelled of meat. Thus he was exposed by this slip of the wrist.

The second sangnom, a musician, tried to pass himself off in a similar manner. He was exposed because when he tied up his top knot, he shook his head several times to see if it was tied securely. This was necessary for a musician, whose top knot might become undone as he oscillated his head to the beat of his music. This fellow also received his come-uppance with a sound beating by his outraged host. The cleavage between the sangnom and yangban is still preserved in the attitudes of many people.

In recent years, foreigners have been placed in a special class where they are hardly considered in the Korean order of things. They live almost above the law. Among Koreans, however, some consider this "untouchable" foreigner to be a kind of "unperson." "Can they really see through their blue eyes?" Foreigners, not knowing Korean customs, manners, or language, seem to many Koreans unlearned, uncultured, and uncivilized. Xenophobia is a common attitude found beneath the surface in many Koreans.

Many people show little concern for an "unperson's" feelings; his comfort, whether he lives or dies, is not worthy of much consideration. To disturb the sleep of a learned doctor to treat a beggar girl is too difficult to think about. In the eyes of some, his sleep may be worth more than her proper care. One naturally attempts to avoid or minimize contacts with "unpersons."

Once polite relationships are broken, some people tend to go wild and resort to violence. In Korea, every effort must be made to remain within the framework of polite relationships. Between strangers and "unpersons" this same restraint is not necessary. To make an enemy is very serious, for not only the individual but the entire family and clan may be enemies from then on, and will seek every opportunity for revenge or attack.

A plot of revenge, or moryak, is a difficult problem for Koreans. When a group gangs up on someone to dislodge him from his position in an institution, there seems no limit to the lies, collusion, and deceit that may be used to discredit and undermine the victim. Every trick and stratagem may be used to effect his downfall. Finally the victim has no recourse but to leave the area in order to survive, unless he can summon powerful forces which can help him reverse the attack. To give a downed man an even chance is not a common attitude. Western-type ideas of sportsmanship and fair play are not traditionally native to Korea.

In a tight little country surrounded by water and a hostile boundary to the north, there is no place to escape from the wrath of an enemy. For most people, this means that they must endure when they are under attack, or go and hide until the heat subsides; then they may try to rebuild relationships. Rarely does a foreigner get more than a peep into the seething, bubbling cauldron of hates and fears and subtle attacks that pressure the average person in Korea, who lacks the mobility of most Americans. Some families have cultivated hate for each other for generations.

Because of the pressure of over-crowding and lack of space or privacy, the preserving of interpersonal relationships takes on major importance for Koreans. Only in this context is it possible for foreigners to begin to understand why it is that Koreans are so very sensitive to relationships and politeness, and shy away from major conflicts with others. One must always leave a "rat-hole" for escape, for once the conflict has come to the surface, division is the only solution, and there is little hope of reconciliation in the Korean scheme of things.

2 | Family Relationships

Society is traditionally centered around the family unit. The family connection is still the basic and most important unit in Korea. Of the five relationships described by Confucius — king-minister, father-son, husband-wife, older-younger, and friend to friend — three deal with family relationships. Everyone outside the family is potentially someone to be treated with caution and a bit of suspicion. The family unit is the area of true security. In the inner confines of the family one can relax and find trust, love, comfort, obedience, and gaiety.

The father is traditionally the respected and unquestioned head of the family, and he rules with almost absolute power if he so desires. He has full responsibility to feed the family, to find work for the members, to approve all moves, marriages, and the future life of the younger members of the family.

A wise man will see that his family members find places in business or government in his own office, so that he will have a group of supporters and agents to help preserve his position against the other groups in the establishment. In this context, nepotism is the only wise course, and most Koreans feel that foreigners who worry about nepotism in Korea do not appreciate this fact of life or truly understand the realities of society.

Within the family, loyalties are first and foremost to the immediate family, then to the blood relatives, and finally to the clan. The senior male's loyalty is first to his own father and mother, then to elder brothers in the order of their ages, to younger brothers, sons, wife, and finally daughters.

The daughters are the lowest members of the family, and are of the least importance, since when they are married off, they leave the family and join the husband's family and clan. For the traditional girl, to marry is to leave one's own home permanently. In the recent past, once a daughter left her own home to go to her husband's home she was not supposed to cross her father's door-step again. If her husband threw her out, she was without a place to go, for her former family would not accept her back.

The Western concept of "running home to mother" when the first marital tiff occurs is foreign to traditionally-minded Koreans. A bride is expected to fit into her husband's family or perish. Family courts today, however, are full of modern young wives who have learned to ''run home to mother."

In Christian families and among modern emancipated women in large cities, this strict rule is greatly modified, but it still represents the norm for most Koreans. Thus, when a daughter is born, there is little joy. No celebrations are held for her as for the birth of a son. A man seldom mentions the fact when a girl-baby is born. For a girl, being born in an unlucky year according to the zodiac cycle is very unfortunate, since she may have trouble finding a good husband.

During the lifetime of the parents, the eldest son must submit to their desires and advice. He must regard his own plans and desires as secondary and subject to parental approval. Usually the oldest son is expected to live with or near his parents and wait on them hand and foot until they die. In olden times, a filial son would even live beside the parents' graves during the three years of mourning. Only after this filial duty was discharged was a first son free to go abroad to study, or do as he wished as the new head of the family. The eldest son inherits the family property. Modern girls are said to hesitate to marry a "first son" because of his absorption in filial duties. She would also be expected to act as the servant of her mother-in-law.

To marry against the desires of the parents is a great offense; only in modern urban areas, among modern types, is this rule ignored. To be a filial son is the most important duty of every boy. The ties of family are strong and controlling. When threatened, the family unites to meet a hostile world. The family name and welfare are more important than individual wants or needs. If one member of the family is sick and the cost of his treatment would undermine the family finances, it is better for him to go untreated and die than to cause the whole family financial distress. This is the mentality of survival.

At stated times during the year, the family will gather from great distances to meet and pay respects before the graves of the ancestors. The Lunar New Year and the fall festival of Ch'usŏk (the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month) are two of these times. While in mourning for a parent (three years), the family members wear hempen mourning dress for the ceremony, which consists of prostrating themselves three or more times before the grave and offering wine and dainties to the spirits of the departed. Later this ceremony is performed annually without wearing the traditional dress. After the ceremony, the family usually enjoys a pleasant picnic at the grave site.

At the Lunar New Year, children are expected to return to their parents' home and offer a New Year's obeisance, sebae, before their parents, bowing the head to the ground in a touching ceremony.

The Lunar New Year is also a happy time because everyone has a birthday on that day, regardless of his actual age. An infant born the day before New Year's day is two years old on that day. He is a year old at birth, since the period of his intrauterine life is reckoned as part of his life. If one observes the ceremonies and does the special things required at each holiday and anniversary, he will have a happy and lucky year ahead. To neglect these traditional customs is to flirt with disaster. Many modern folk choose this unlucky way.

The "big house" is where the parents live. The "small house" is where the sons live. One considers his ancestral home, or kohyang, to be where the family roots began. Although an individual may never have lived there, when asked where his family is from he will nearly always name his kohyang. Where he now resides is his pon. People are proud of their family origins. For example, a person is proud to claim to be a Chŏnju Yi, or a Kyŏngju Kim.

A small wooden box, with a front panel that can be removed by sliding it upwards, contains the names of each ancestor written on a wooden tablet. This tablet box is usually kept in the home of the family elder. Here is where the spirit of the dead remains. Unless one dies at home, his spirit will wander and remain restless outside the home. Thus it becomes very important for many to rush their relatives home from a hospital so that they may die in peace at home. Ceremonial bows are offered before these tablets at stated times during the year.

The dead hand of tradition and respect for the past has given a backward look to many people and has often acted as a barrier to change and modernization. To change the old ways is interpreted by some as disrespect for the family ancestors, implying that they might have done things poorly.

Farmers in Korea, like farmers around the world, tend to be very conservative and reluctant to accept change, especially in their attitudes towards the family and its relationships. The modern urban break-down of this conservatism, which has been hastened by the dislocation of refugees during the Korean War and the rapid industrialization in the cities, is robbing many young people of their sense of security and awareness of their past. The rise of juvenile delinquency and gangs of hooligans in the cities would be unthinkable where strict family-centered control survives.

3 | Deference to Elders

Elders must always be honored. They must be pampered and appeased: A pleasant example of this is seen at an archery meet, where it is the custom for young dancing girls to sing and dance around each archer whenever he hits the target. An elderly archer almost invariably receives this gracious honor, even though his ancient limbs can only send his arrow halfway down the five hundred-foot range. White hair carries its own honor. To be called a grandfather, or a grandmother, is a sign of respect.

To engender the anger of an elder means serious danger for, merely because of his age, he can usually swing public opinion to his side, regardless of rights and wrongs. In the presence of an elder, one remains at attention. One does not smoke or drink. If smoking when an older person comes into the area, one discreetly hides the cigarette behind one's back. One may be granted leave to finish one's smoke by the largesse of the elder. To sit relaxed and to cross one's legs while sitting in a chair before an elder or an important person is impolite. The proper sitting position in a chair in the presence of elders is to plant both feet on the floor, with legs and knees together. To wear glasses, especially dark sun glasses, in the presence of an elder or superior is considered impolite. As a sign of reverence, ministers usually remove their glasses when they pray to God.

Like children, elders must be given special delicacies at meals, and their every wish catered to whenever possible. The manner in which elderly people are sometimes shunted aside in the United States or sent to old peoples' homes is considered barbarous and shocking in the extreme to Koreans. Every home in Korea, no matter how poor, allots the best room in the house to the honored grandfather or grandmother.

The normal life cycle is considered to be sixty years. On the occasion of the 61st birthday, or hwangap — which means return to the first character of the cycle (see appendix, The Lunar Calendar) — elders are honored by their family and friends, who bow and offer formal obeisance before them. The elders sit in state behind a table loaded with many kinds of cakes and goodies. Each person when he makes his bow then offers a congratulatory cup of wine to be drunk by the elder. After the elder has thus completed his life cycle, he is expected to retire and be supported by his sons. Korea is a lovely place for people as they grow older.

From a medical point of view, it is intriguing to ponder why it is that most older Koreans escape several of the degenerative diseases common to elderly people in Western countries. Arteriosclerosis is rare in Korea, and senility is very unusual. Coronary heart disease is also very rare among Koreans. Varicose veins are also uncommon, and the varicose leg ulcers and arteriosclerotic gangrene which plague so many elderly people in the West are practically unheard of in Korea. On the debit side is the high frequency of cerebral vascular accidents (strokes) among Koreans of relatively young age, with the resulting paralysis of half of the body. This condition is one of the major causes of death among the elderly. Stomach cancer is a major cause of death among men. Lung cancer, breast cancer, and colon cancer are relatively rare in Korea, in contrast to their frequency in the United States.

The fact of the matter is that there is a relatively small proportion of the population that is over the age of sixty-five. The life expectancy in Korea is somewhere in the neighborhood of fifty, as contrasted with over seventy years of age in America. Almost half the population of Korea is under twenty years of age.

Many very blond foreigners are chagrined to find that their light hair makes them seem like very old people in Korean eyes. This is especially hard on the young platinum blonde.

4 | Sex and Marriage

A wife is a very private person in Korea. A wife's company is not to be shared. She is almost an "unperson" until she produces a son. She has a subordinate position until she becomes a mother-in-law. Then she emerges as a power in the family. One of the words for wife is "inside person," anae, which means that she was once expected to remain within the confines of the family compound. A wall surrounds almost every Korean home, and the wife stayed out of sight inside the wall.

In olden days, women were allowed outside the wall only at night. In some areas, city gates were closed at sunset and reopened after dark so that women could come and go unseen. An upper-class grandmother of Seoul once remarked that she had never seen a train or a rice field until she fled with her family to Pusan during the Korean war.

A shopkeeper has an unlucky day if his first customer in the morning is a woman. A husband refers to his wife in the lowest terms.

Love is expected to come after marriage, and one does find that there is genuine affection and love in most Korean marriages without, however, much togetherness. The modern marriage based on mutual love and respect with companionship is referred to as a "sweet home" marriage. Divorce is unusual and a modern innovation among people of average means. If a wife is childless, shows disrespect to her in-laws, or shares her affections with another man, she may be sent away. In the past, the system of taking concubines made it unnecessary for a man who could afford them to discard his first wife. For the poor man who could not afford more than one at a time, the unsatisfactory wife might be thrown out of her home.

One never speaks of one's family and love-life outside the home. Public display of affection is ridiculous and amusing, to say the least, and deserves public scorn among traditional folk. A traditional Korean wife never rushes to embrace her husband at an airport or railway station, and never kisses her husband in public.

Modern young couples have been rapidly adopting Western dating practices since 1960. Traditionally, girls were separated from boys at the age of seven. They were not supposed to play together afterwards.

Women are almost never sexually attacked in Korea. Rape is practically unheard of. Women, as long as they dress and conduct themselves discreetly, are perfectly safe on any street at any time of the day or night, except perhaps, in areas around foreign army camps and where gangs of thieves and hoodlums congregate.

Love-matches are strictly modern and urban, except for a few classic exceptions, and are generally looked upon with suspicion by traditionally minded people. Go-betweens still arrange most marriages as a contract between families. It is the responsibility of the parents to make a good match for their sons and daughters. In a matter as important to the family as marriage, the young are considered too immature and foolish to make such a decision. The go-between may be a professional who carries his book of photographs around with him (or her), a relative, or a friend who has been asked to serve in this capacity. Horoscopes and divination, from a complicated system based on the time of birth of the two parties, are of ten consulted in making the final decision as to suitability (see appendix). A dutiful son, if attracted to someone, may ask his father to arrange the marriage through a go-between. College girls, according to one survey, still prefer arranged marriages, as long as they are allowed the veto power.

An engagement ceremony is usually held in the home of the girl, where the contracting families meet with the go-between to formalize the agreement. At this ceremony, the young couple is formally introduced, with proper bows and discreet silence on their part. The girl is supposed to wear pink, a gift must be exchanged, and a picture is made to record the happy event. Close friends may be invited to this ceremony, where wine and cakes are served. After the engagement, the couple may be allowed by their parents to be seen together in public. In the recent past, the couple did not appear together till after the wedding ceremony.

A bride must go with full equipment and household supplies to her husband's home. Her wedding often throws a poor family into debt. For this reason, the birth of daughters is not very welcome. Daughters will be a financial burden while growing up, and will be lost to the family when they marry. They do nothing to carry on the family line, and cannot perform the filial duties and ceremonies of ancestor worship.

On the day of the wedding, after they return from a brief taxi ride to some nearby scenic spot to have their pictures taken with their attendants, the bride sits demurely beside the bridegroom all day, receiving guests. The couple is given no privacy until the last tiresome guest has departed and the last ribald jokes have been told.

If the bride smiles on her wedding day, she will give birth to daughters. To win the affection of her new family and her husband she must produce sons. Since the principal role of woman is procreation, a woman who is not able to have a son has failed in the reason for which she was brought to her husband's home. A sterility problem for a young woman is a serious matter. A sterile woman will consult many herb practitioners and doctors, and visit all kinds of shrines hoping to have a son. If all this fails, she may even counsel her husband to have a child with a servant girl or someone selected for the occasion. It is not too uncommon for men who can afford it to have several concubines, all trying to bear sons.

Modern urban young people are trying hard to free themselves from these patterns of strict sexual mores, but as yet have not found completely satisfactory limits to the new freedoms which the large cities have afforded them.

This breakdown in the traditional moral patterns is lamented by many older Koreans. The American army and American movies are often blamed for degenerate modern trends. The public holding of hands and dating is shocking to many older Koreans, and gives them substance for scorning Westerners as barbaric in their lax family customs.

Husbands and wives outside of the city of Seoul do not normally attend social functions together. The entertainment of couples is often embarrassing and a strain on the man. He will be on edge lest his previously protected wife will make some faux pas which will cause him to lose face. Prominent figures have been known to solve this problem by having a "little wife" whom they take to cocktail parties and Western functions. The first wife could then remain protected at home with the children. Often it is the second wife who is the love partner, and who is more modern in dress and fluent in foreign languages.

In order to reduce the contact between boys and girls, and the attendant temptations, as well as for economic reasons, all students since Japanese days have been required to wear uniforms as long as they attend schools. The middle and high school girls have their hair cut in a square bob, and are not allowed to use make-up. Only when she is through school and is ready for marriage does the girl suddenly blossom from her drab school uniform into the lovely brocades and modern hair-do of a young woman.

Until very recently, young women have always kept their breasts strapped down so as to appear formless. Breasts have not been considered a sex symbol in Korea. In the last few years, young women have begun to wear brassieres. Most older women do not wear them. The nape of the neck and the up-turned big toe are considered much more provocative.

Young girls and women are usually painfully shy and modest in public. Any girl who does not assume this modest pose runs the risk of being considered a prostitute and thus an "unperson." A girl who practices Western dating customs must do so discreetly or run the risk of being a social outcast. It may be difficult for her to find a good husband.

Modern urban life is changing these customs with amazing rapidity but, outside of the Seoul area, the old prejudices and opinions remain in force to a large extent. In the avant-garde cocktail circuit of the international set in Seoul, Western manners and customs of entertaining have become more or less accepted. Many who have traveled abroad try to ignore strict Korean standards of social intercourse, but they often feel that they must apologize for their deviations when with their families or older Koreans.

Women and men traditionally do not walk side by side on the street. A wife's place is two paces' behind her husband. There is no "ladies first" custom in Korea's traditions. Only among the modern younger couples will men and women walk side by side in public.

Young women have very little mixed social life. Older women have some social life with other women. They laugh together, shop, get drunk, and dance together at parties and picnics. Just as men are often seen walking holding hands with men friends, women feel most free with their women friends. An unmarried woman is in a status hardly even considered, unless she is a nun. She is referred to as a "big baby." She receives little regard, and little sympathy or understanding, from the rest of society. Unmarried males are also treated as children, unless they are priests. A widow almost never remarries. This custom remains in force. She has only her dead husband's long-stem pipe to console her.

A Korean mother-in-law can top all Western notions of a domestic tyrant. She has suffered herself through young womanhood, and has served uncomplaining under her own mother-in-law. Once her day .finally arrives, she usually takes full advantage of her new power position in the family, and orders her son's wife about as a menial servant who must cater to her every whim. Many young women attempt to commit suicide each year by drinking lye. The mother-in-law, or sometimes even the sister-inlaw, may be given as the reason for their wanting to end it all. A proper daughter-in-law suffers in silence, waiting for her turn to play the dominant role in the family.

Puritanical sexual morality has been one of the strong forces in Korea that has protected the Korean woman for thousands of years. It has preserved the family system, and has given the Korean woman full opportunity to raise her children and do the heavy chores of the house, including the shopping, without fear of being molested. This concept has been reinforced by the lack of individual privacy in the home, and the feeling that sexual morality is a family affair and not left to the freedom of individual actions, as far as the women of the family are concerned. Men live by a different standard and may roam at will in the kisaeng house circuit.

5 | Schools and Classmates

Second in importance to family loyalty is the school tie. A schoolmate or classmate must look after his fellows when in need. To act otherwise is "treason," against the school and the very order of things.

A classmate has the right to demand help from a more fortunate classmate. This goes for the children of classmates as well. This is an obligation that cannot be easily sloughed off or forgotten.

To fail one's classmate or schoolmate would cause one to lose the respect and good will of one's other school associates. One might even be exiled from the group as an "unperson."

Security in positions in government and in business depends heavily on having fellow alumni in strong positions, where they may assist one another and eventually gain control of an office, a firm, a political party, or the nation itself. For example, the 1961 coup d'etat was carried out largely by members of the Eighth Class of the Korean Military Academy. Every Eighth Class member, whether or not he actually took part in the coup, became a powerful person.

For someone with ambition, to go to a school that does not have successful alumni is sheer foolishness. A family may mortgage a home, a farm, a cow, or a sister may even go into prostitution to raise the money to enroll a boy In a "name" school with well-established alumni. Once the student enters the school, it often seems to matter little how much he studies or learns. To acquire classmates and fellow alumni is end enough in itself.

Currently, Seoul National University is claimed to ha ve the inside track for positions of power in the nation. To attend any lesser school is to limit one's future hope of a high position in present-day Korea. Ewha University holds a similar position for modern women. Persons of prominence naturally wish to have a wife from Ewha, with all the possible rich and influential alumnae connections that can be had through such a wife. This is not too different from the Ivy League school-tie mentality common In the eastern United States.

The problem of enrolling a child in a good school begins with kindergarten. The number of famous "name" schools is relatively small, and the competition to enter is tremendous. Certain famous schools in Seoul have arrangements for their students to advance to the next higher level big-name school. Parents are under great pressure to enter their children in good schools in Seoul. Their future depends on it, they say. Children are put under great pressure to pass entrance examinations. Extra tutors are often hired, and great time and expense is spent in preparing for the examinations.

To fail an entrance examination is a family as well as a personal tragedy. One doctor gave up a promising career and moved to a new locality because his son failed to enter a desirable kindergarten. He could not stand this loss of face.

Memory work is one of the main emphases in many Korean schools, and children are drilled excessively in such work. Because of this, Korean children are unusually good at memorization and often surpass Western children of the same age in this ability.

However, this is often at the expense of development of the ability to reason, to solve problems, to make evaluations, and to think originally or independently for oneself. This poses serious problems in life, especially in the scientific fields, for many students have never been trained to collect data, synthesize it, and come up with answers that are based on inductive reasoning.

The ability to form sound judgements from the available data is perhaps one of the greatest weaknesses in the Korean educational system at present. Two small colleges are making a valiant effort to correct this problem in education by introducing Western liberal arts and science methods in their classrooms. These schools are Sŏgang Jesuit College in Seoul and Taejŏn Presbyterian College in Taejŏn. Already they are beginning to win some academic recognition for their efforts.

The pressure of over-crowded classrooms in a nation in the throes of a major population explosion is a growing problem for the Ministry of Education and the nation. Koreans seem firmly wedded to modern education, and are demanding higher standards of academic achievement for those seeking employment after graduation from high schools and colleges. There seems to be a healthy development in the quality of teaching in Korea during the past twenty years.

At the elementary school with its six years, the middle school with three years, and the high school with three years, the competition for admission is hectic. It sorely tests the fiber of students, parents, and teachers to see that the brightest students actually are admitted at each level. The opportunities for favoritism and hanky-panky are ever present, and it is hard to resist the pressure from affluent parents who demand that their children be admitted regardless of their mental equipment.

In overcrowded elementary schools it is hard for the underpaid teacher to resist the presents from parents who want their children to sit near the front of the class where they can hear the teacher. For those who fail to win acceptance in the better schools, other schools have developed which are willing to take rejects. These schools have become large money-making diploma mills with relatively poor academic standards. They thrive on awarding honorary doctorate degrees to anyone who might further enhance their image.

Many foreign visitors have unwittingly allowed their names to be attached to the list of alumni of these institutions. Some colleges have been known to sell diplomas without the student having attended the school at all. It is the challenge of the future to insure that these overgrown new schools raise their standards and become in fact worthwhile institutions of learning.

Many students still seek studies which equip them for non-technical fields. There is a great overcrowding and a lack of job opportunities for a high percentage of college graduates because they have taken courses that are not needed in Korea. The general feeling that classes which train someone to do something are inferior still controls many decisions. Thus there seems to be a lack of trained engineers, chemists, plumbers, electricians, and scientists. There seems to be an overabundance of political science and English literature majors. Physical work has yet to be dignified for Korean intellectuals. Traditionally, being a scholar of the Confucian classics has been considered the highest achievement in life, and an end in itself. As in other lands, there are some who become professional students as long as they can collect degrees, and their families or scholarships will support them.

Korea is an exceptionally nice country for teachers. Teachers receive great deference from their students according to traditional Confucian ethics. The fact that many foreigners have come to Korea in the role of teacher or advisor has given them a pleasant status and a following that would not have been offered, in all probability, had they come as businessmen or merchants. A teacher is surrounded by admiring and adoring students. Some students try to become disciples of their favorite teacher, and would like to live close to him through life. One future challenge is to try to break the umbilical cord and stimulate students to stand on their own intellectual feet, to think as responsible individuals, and to be willing to apply their wisdom to the development of the resources of the nation.

Since the April 19, 1960 demonstrations by students that led to the overthrow of the Syngman Rhee administration, students have become more aggressive in taking the lead in various political and civic movements. Students, with the support of their teachers, often revolt to drive out a university president, or demonstrate against evils in society that they feel should be corrected.

Often it appears that students may be far ahead of their teachers in moral reforms and developing integrity. It is the great opportunity and hope of Korea that her students will modify Confucianism enough to lead the land into the modern world. The highly organized student groups on the college campuses have in the recent past emerged as a potential new political force. However, the elders have reacted strongly through the government administration to put the students back, submissive, at the feet of their teachers, in their traditional role as pupils.

IV. E T I Q U E T T E

6 | Importance of Etiquette

Koreans are among the most naturally polite people one will meet, when the proper rules of etiquette are followed. Koreans tend to be very strict in observing the rules of etiquette in personal relationships with strangers or associates. In the remotest mountain village, one will find gracious manners practiced unconsciously. Etiquette is observed in the humblest home as well as in the com pounds of the great. The exquisite niceties of a cultured Korean make even an American "Southern Gentleman" seem crude and barbaric. The cardinal principle is always to give deference to elders and guests.

To touch another physically is considered an affront to his person, unless there is a well-established bond of close friendship or childhood ties. This does not seem to apply in the overcrowded trains and buses. The custom of handshaking is a modern development and is still unnatural for traditionally-minded Koreans.

In transitional Korea, one may see a military man using a combination bow, salute, plus a double handshake for good measure. Many men now shake hands as a sign that they are modernized. An insight is to see Koreans shake hands with non-Korean speaking Westerners but bow to Korean-speaking Westerners in the same group.

It is modern for a woman to shake a man's hand. This may be illustrated at a formal reception where Korean and Western women are standing in a receiving line together. The Korean woman will offer a timid handshake to the Western men as they pass, but will immediately revert to her natural graceful bow as each Korean gentleman passes down the line. The Korean gentleman, on the other hand, will not hesitate to shake hands with the Western women, but will invariably offer a formal bow to the Korean ladies in the line. Handshaking is thus a feature of modern Koreans who wish to show that they appreciate foreign customs.

To slap someone on the back, or put one's arm around a casual acquaintance, or to be too familiar with someone in public is a serious breach that may effectively cool future relations. To embarrass someone by making a joke at his expense is highly resented if done by a foreigner; however, the literati in Seoul take great delight in making stinging jokes about their contemporaries.

After a few drinks, men often become effusively affectionate, but, at the same time, will apologize for being a bit drunk. The next day they will say they are sorry for imposing on one's good nature while tipsy. A person who feels aggrieved by too much familiarity may smile blandly and appear not to mind it, but then may go home and nurse the insult and lay plans for future revenge. One seldom forgets an insult or any injury. Malice and hurt are often cultivated. "Fifty generations" are not too long to wait to avenge a wrong to one's person.

To negate one's own presence is a sign of politeness. On entering a room full of people, in order to proceed to one's place, one bows low and ducks in, opening a path with the right arm by moving it up and down gracefully, with the left hand tucked in the right armpit. In handing a gift or an object to anyone, always use both hands. Passing with one hand is poor manners. At the Panmunjŏm conferences, the north Korean Communists practice a daily insult by handing over their report to the United Nations representative with one hand.

When appearing in public (to speak, perform, or receive a diploma) one bows first toward the audience and then to the chairman of the meeting at the beginning and at the end of the performance. A proper bow is made from the waist, back straight, chin tucked in, palms of hands on buttocks, with slow flowing motion. A Korean child grows up knowing how to bow gracefully, and is natural and charming. Of ten Westerners look ridiculous trying to copy this difficult bow. Westerners will do well to nod with the head in greetings, for their bow will more often bring ripples of smiles from amused Koreans.

Although water clocks were developed during the Yi dynasty, most people do not worry about keeping time, being on time, beginning on time, or leaving on time. There is little appreciation for a close schedule. Many public functions gradually commence up to an hour after the announced time. The arrival on the scene of the military junta in 1961 has begun to change this, with the new military time-consciousness of those army officers who received their training from foreign military advisors. To arrive promptly at many functions is to cool one's heels for quite some time before anything happens. This is most frustrating to the time-conscious, schedule-bound foreigner, but it seems to worry the Koreans not a bit.

One major exception to this is that the trains usually run on time. This tradition was begun during the Japanese occupation. for the Japanese seemed to have a mania for punctuality in their Imperial Railroad system. Once in the 1930's a Japanese railroad engineer was reported to have committed suicide on the platform of the Seoul station because his train had arrived two minutes late while bearing a member of the Imperial family visiting in Korea.

Immediately after the Liberation in 1945, railway schedules were most uncertain, but since the Korean War, the train service has returned to the traditional pattern, and one cannot afford to be late if he wishes to catch his train. With the overcrowding of railway coaches, most travelers have learned to line up early if they wish a seat on any train.

This rushing to meet the clock is not appreciated by traditional scholars and farmers, for it seems to them undignified and immodest to be rushing about like a flapping duck or a scared rat just to satisfy someone's obsession about the clock. Many people still do not think in time-space relationships, and are yet to be adjusted to the concept of exactness in time or anything else. A new generation of men with military experience may eventually bring time-consciousness to the Korean scene. To appear to be in a rush is still considered impolite and unbecoming to a gentleman.

There was a time when the driver of a model-T Ford wishing to pass a missionary in another model-T stopped his car after passing and apologized and explained how he had to catch a train, and asked forgiveness for the impoliteness of passing an honorable teacher. Modern drivers in Seoul seem to practice the same tactics as the famous kamikaze taxi drivers of Tokyo, and have lost all pretense of courtesy on the road.

Practicing proper etiquette still opens doors, and is keenly appreciated by most Koreans. A foreigner cannot be too careful in his conduct to show the proper respect and concern for the feelings and sensitivities of Koreans.

7 | Introductions

It is not the custom among Koreans to introduce one person to another. You ask your friends to introduce themselves. This is a formal little ceremony. One says, "I have never seen you before," or "I am seeing you for the first time." The other party repeats the same sentence. Then usually the elder of the two in age or rank says, "Let us introduce ourselves." Each one steps back a pace, bows from the waist, and states his own name. They are then formally introduced. It is also possible to perform this ceremony while sitting on the floor.

Often names are stated in a low, humble voice that cannot be heard accurately. To solve this difficulty, calling cards are then exchanged, and the new friend's name and position may be learned at leisure. One should avoid saying, "Sorry, I didn't get the name." Calling cards are very necessary and proper in Korea, and are needed in many social and business situations. Without a card, the chance of a Korean getting past the junior clerk in an office is slight.

One naturally does not introduce himself to just anyone. It is only when one is recognized as a "person" that the formal introduction is performed. One does not usually introduce servants, or assistants who are considered part of the wallpaper, Westerners might remember that "persons" may even resent being introduced to a servant or chauffeur. "Why does he presume to give my name to a nobody?" is a complaint made of the carefree American manners.

Under ordinary circumstances, a third person is needed to ask two people to introduce themselves to each other. It is not proper to go up to a stranger and propose an introduction. However, when traveling, one may fall in with a companion and carry on quite a conversation without an introduction. If the contact has been pleasant and both wish to meet again, they may stop and say, "Wait, let us first introduce ourselves," in effect, "so that we can continue our association more properly." Cards are then exchanged, and each sucks in an audible breath of air over his teeth in wonder and awe at the high position of his new-found friend. They then bow respectfully,

Many Koreans who have had military and Western contacts have begun to use the casual American approach, but this is still considered crude by many Koreans. They are seldom casual with each other in this regard.

8 | Names and Titles

The use of names in Korea has an entirely different connotation from that in most Western countries, especially in America. To the Confucian, using a name is presumptuous and impolite. A name is something to be honored and respected, and should not be used casually. In Shamanism, to write a name calls up the spirit world and is bad luck. The name, being written or spoken, has its own mystique.

A name is a person's personal property. To call someone directly by his name is an affront to his person in most social circumstances. There is a relatively small number of surnames. Thus to Westerners, there seems to be an inordinate number of Kims, Paks, and Yis. When the Westerner uses a Korean' s name to his face, watch for the slight wince around the eyes. It is almost always there. Name-calling is not the way to win friends and influence people in Korea.

Names are not a part of polite social intercourse, other than as identification of a third person not present. Instead, one is addressed by his title, position, trade, profession, scholastic rank, or by some honorific such as "teacher." Contrary to American training, it is improper to say, for example, "Good morning, Mr. Kim." A polite "Good morning" is best. If one must designate, "Good morning, teacher," is acceptable.

One of the most common mistakes Westerners make with Koreans is the too frequent use of names in conversation. The American Chamber of Commerce approach works poorly in Korea outside of, perhaps, the Seoul Rotary Club. Frequent use of names merely indicates poor breeding to a Korean, and shows that the one using the names so freely has no sensibilities about a person's private property. This misuse of names is often pointed to by Koreans as evidence of the crude nature of Westerners: how barbaric they are in using names in the most embarrassing and disgraceful manner. Many Koreans work and live next to each other for years without ever knowing their full names.

One should refrain from calling "Hey Mac" or "Joe" in Korea. Yŏbo, "see here," comes close to meaning this, but is a long look down the nose at the person addressed. The low estate of the person addressed must be very obvious before one would safely use this term. When polite conversation becomes heated, you may let someone know you are irritated and shock him into reason by shifting to a loud yŏbo. This escalates the conflict immediately. Strangers are treated with careful deference until one has established their rank and one's proper relationship to them. Then one may change to the proper endings that are appropriate, depending on the situation.

The President of Korea is ref erred to by high officials as Excellency, Kakha, even in his absence. It is too familiar to use such a high personage's name in conversation. This is similar to the various ways in which ancient Hebrews avoided using the name Jehovah. One can tell members of the political opposition because they do not hesitate to use the President's name. Men in certain high levels of government or at a certain age and station in life are addressed as Honorable Sir, Yong-gam. One of the subtle features of the emerging political arena is the new awareness of image-building. In this political context, a leading figure might prefer to have his surname used along with his title and the proper honorifics, in order to project it before the voting public.

Yangban, or noble gentleman, is used in both a proper and jocular manner when referring to a third person in his presence or absence. Paksa is the title for anyone with a doctor's degree. To call a person paksa is always flattering and shows great respect, since the scholar is on top of the social heap. Great store is placed on being called paksa. It is quite commonly used in scholastic and cultural circles. Sŏnsaeng, "senior" or "elder than me" or "teacher" is always safe with average people. It is proper on first meeting to ask a person to be your teacher and guide through life. Kun is used by a teacher when calling on a student, as in Kim kun. Office boys and student helpers may be called kun as well. Yae is used to call a child or a boot-black.

A consular official in the American embassy in Seoul was once overheard berating a young woman for submitting "false" information on her application for a visa to the United States. This young official stated, with great self-righteousness in his voice, that the woman had "lied" on her application and thus would "never" be admitted to the United States of America. The source of the difficulty was one that confuses many about Korean names. Women in Korea keep their own names after marriage and do not assume their husband's surname. The woman in question had stated in her application that she was "Miss Kim. "Investigation had revealed that she was married to a "Mr. Pak." Ah, ha! Trying to trick the United States Government, no doubt.

In fact, however, she was innocently following Korean custom. A woman always uses her own family name, not her husband's; and in Korean, Mr., Mrs., and Miss are all expressed by the same word, ssi. This young woman was being accused of a crime she was unaware of committing. It often pays to know the local customs before "mounting a white charger."

A Korean name is usually made up of three characters. The family surname is placed first. The given name is made up of two characters, one of which is chosen by the clan (all members descended from a common ancestor) and is used by all members of the same generation. By knowing this name, a person's generation in the family tree can be recognized. There are some Koreans with only one character in the given name, and some even have three. However, the usual number is two characters.

Given names are seldom used except in the family, between classmates, or between very intimate friends who have agreed to first-name each other as a sign of special affection. Childhood acquaintances also first-name each other. Even so, names are used much less than in a Western family. A mother will not call her grown daughter by her first name in the presence of visitors. Many dislike being first-named by foreigners. The casual American custom of encouraging children to call adult family friends by their first name is especially offensive. The British are less apt to make this blunder.

A servant working in a home, if young, may be called by his given name. A teacher may call a favorite student by his given name with the word ya at the end to show special affection and a father-to-son type of relationship. Fathers call their children ya, a vocative ending, as a sign of endearment. Ya may also be used for animals, and when angry with someone. As a general rule, every device is employed to avoid using the name.

A traditional bride speaks of her bridegroom as her sŏbang-nim, an archaic term for "one's man." Even today this term is used in a jocular or facetious manner when asking a bride about her husband. Sŏbang, as in Kim sŏbang, is still used in rural areas and in literature for a humorous effect when speaking of a bucolic fellow. A wife speaks of her husband as "the master of our house," uri chip chain. She may refer to him as the "outside gentleman," pakkat yangban. In

asking about her husband, one may refer to him by his title or position, if known, or as the "outside gentleman." Namp'yŏn may also be used for "husband." A husband addresses his wife as yŏbo. This yŏbo denotes a very special relationship and is the Korean equivalent of "honey" or "darling." A husband does not use his wife's given name in the presence of others.

A good example of how the language reflects the stratification of interpersonal relations in Korean society is seen in the way a man refers to his wife. The word "wife" which he uses will depend on his relative position to the one with whom he is speaking. For example, she is his ch'ŏ when speaking upward to a higher ranking person. To an equal, she is his chip saram or his an saram, "house person" or "inside person." To an intimate friend, she may be his anae. To a lower person, she is his agi omoni, his "child's mother." Many Western men make the humorous mistake of giving honor and equal position to their wives in speaking Korean. Koreans feel that this is being presumptuous, is in poor taste, and at best a ridiculous mistake in the use of the language.

Still another set of words is used in speaking of someone else's wife. Yŏsa is the highest form for a lady; for example, the President's wife. Puin is the intermediate high form and should not be used in referring to one's own wife. This is a common error among Korean-speaking foreigners (Westerners and Chinese) and is a sure-fire laugh-getter when Koreans play their favorite game of mimicking foreigners. Samonim is the commonly used polite form. Ajumŏni, "aunt," or halmŏni, "grandmother," depending on age, are used in ordinary conversation.

Nicknames are used in speaking of a person in his absence, such as "rock head," a favorite nickname for someone who is hard-headed, dense, or stupid. A pen name, or ho is part of the equipment of many prominent people, writers, artists, poets, and political figures. One may receive a ho from some respected philosopher or teacher, or he may create one himself. This nom de plume has a very restricted use on paintings, writings of poetry, some books, or when the well-known name of the public figure is used in public. The ho may be used by members of the "in" group within a certain circle. This is to forego the embarrassment of using the real and private name so freely among the hoi polloi.

A young person may address an older man as "uncle," ajossi. An old woman is referred to as "grandmother," and an elderly man as "grandfather." Many Western women of uncertain age are not very pleased when referred to by their admiring students as "grandmother," a respectful gesture toward their grey hairs. The student means no offence but is merely being polite.

If he is not a prominent person and the atmosphere is cordial, one may address a slightly older man as "elder brother," hyŏng-nim. But to claim brotherhood with a high official or prominent person would be presumptuous. One is always careful to add honorific endings when speaking of someone else's kin to his face.

When called upon to make a speech, one may address an audience of contemporaries as "elder graduates of the same school," sŏnbae-nim. Kwibin is used for dignitaries and refers to distinguished guests. Yŏrŏbun is used as is "ladies and gentlemen" in addressing a group. Kwibin yŏrŏbun would be "distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen" and is the proper way to open a formal address. The literal translation for "gentlemen and ladies" is foreign and grates on Korean ears. Ladies are just not referred to publicly in traditional polite circles.

The basic rule to remember about proper names is, don't use them if you can possibly avoid it. Use the precise term of the relationship instead. Always honor others and debase yourself. Refer to your own relatives, except your parents, in a slightly lower form than you would others' relatives.

Under the pressure of the jam-packed Orient, these age-old attitudes towards others help ease the tensions of too-close living. In the words of a popular song, "A little bit of sugar makes the medicine go down."

9 | Privacy and Propriety

Privacy is a luxury that few can afford in Korea. People have learned to make imaginary walls about themselves. A visitor calling on a professor on a hot day may find him in his undershirt with his feet on the desk, fanning himself. The visitor coughs to announce his arrival; he does not knock. He does not "see" the professor and the professor does not "see" the visitor until he has risen, put on his shirt, coat, tie, and adjusted himself. Then they "see" each other and begin the formalities of greeting. To have acted as though one saw this relaxed gentleman would be most inconsiderate.

To have privacy, one withdraws behind an imaginary curtain and undresses or does what he has to do, not seeing or being seen by those who, to the literal Western eye, are in plain view. It is discourteous to violate this screen of privacy once it is drawn about a person. A discreet cough is enough to notify the person behind his screen that an interruption is impending.

Often, when traveling on a hot train, a gentleman will undress down to the pajamas he wears under his business suit in summer. He will carefully hang up his clothes and sit relaxed and comfortable during the journey. Before getting off, he re-dresses and alights as fresh as a daisy. The Western traveler fidgets in his uncomfortable clothes all day on the train, and drags himself off looking like the victim of rush-hour on the subway, with his clothes wrinkled and his disposition beat.

Although it is now being discouraged, some men still take care of their bodily functions along any street in full view of the passing crowds. A woman, on the other hand, is not supposed to be seen in public, and thus must hide someplace to relieve herself. Public facilities are usually not segregated. Children may be observed relieving themselves whenever and wherever the urge strikes them. This practice leads to heavy infestation with hookworms.

It is quite acceptable for a young woman to breastfeed a baby in public. It is common for older country women to expose their ageing breasts while working in the fields or walking along a hot country road. A married woman of ten feels little sense of modesty about her breasts. An unmarried girl, on the other hand, is painfully modest about any exposure of herself below the neck. The modern Westernized swing-set in Seoul is quickly adopting the latest styles of dress. Around American army camps, Montgomery Ward's catalogue is ref erred to as the "moose maintenance manual," "moose" being the current army slang for local mistresses.

The Korean attitude towards floors varies widely from the Western concept. Because of the muddy streets, people always remove their shoes before entering their homes. In the home, the floors are traditionally made of fine oiled paper, and are kept polished and spotlessly clean. Any place where shoes are worn is unconsciously considered to be like the streets outside. In modern buildings where shoes are worn, the floors are also considered to be like the streets. This presents a problem in public buildings, hospitals, schools, trains, and buses where people spit or throw trash on the floor without a second thought.

Just as a Westerner would not consider wearing shoes in his bed, so the Koreans remove their shoes before entering their rooms, where they sit, sleep, and eat on the floor. Often a Western home creates a problem for Korean guests as to whether to remove their shoes before entering or not. If they wear their shoes they of ten feel hesitant to step on a rug. In a modern hospital room, the patient considers his own bed as he would his room at home and keeps it clean, but may spit or throw trash on the floor, or allow his children to urinate on the floor without compunction.

There is little public concern for keeping public property clean. Most public places, without modern cleaning equipment, settle for sprinkling water on the floor from a bucket several times a day and an occasional sweeping up of the refuse. A whole army of scavengers with wicker baskets on their backs and long tongs in their hands roams public places and streets picking up bits of scrap and paper to sell to the paper-makers. Vandalism of public property is too common, and, for economic reasons, it is difficult to keep trains, public telephones, and toilets clean or operating properly.

Consideration of others in public places is a new thought to most Koreans, but there is real hope that the scenic spots that abound throughout Korea will be preserved and policed for the better enjoyment of Koreans as well as foreigners.

10 | Table Manners

Manners in Korea are based on making the guest feel comfortable and expansive, and require self-negation; making oneself small and unobtrusive. The attitude of a servant is proper for a host with his guest. At meals, the host sits at the lowest place, the farthest from the place of honor. Of ten a host will not eat in the presence of his guests, and usually a hostess will not eat with her guests, even though there may be servants in the house. Her place is to be out busily preparing a succession of delicacies for the honored guest and supervising the help in the kitchen.

Before beginning to eat, the host will often make a formal welcome speech stating the purpose of the gathering and paying his respects to the guests. He will thank the guests for honoring his home by their presence, and giving their valuable time to share his poor fare. He will usually state that he has "nothing to offer" his guests, but will they please eat heartily. The senior ranking guest then uses his chopsticks or spoon to dip into the communal bowls.

Often food is served on small individual tables, each with many small side dishes of food, a bowl of soup, and a bowl of rice. One removes the top of the hot rice bowl and places it on the floor under his place at the table. Korean food tends to be highly seasoned with red pepper, thus a careful sip of the soup is advisable before taking a big gulp. Large groups may be served at a long table. Everyone sits cross-legged on the floor. A warm, moist wash cloth is passed to each guest before the meal to wipe his hands.

To lay the chopsticks or spoon on the table is to indicate that you have finished eating. To lay them on top of a dish or bowl means you are merely resting. A host will often continue to hold his chopsticks in his hand until all the guests have finished eating. A guest may show his appreciation of the fare by lustily slurping his soup or smacking his lips.

Guests are not expected to clean their plates. To leave nothing indicates that you are still hungry and embarrasses the host, implying that he has not prepared enough food. The host will continue to urge his guests to eat more, but a firm refusal is respected. One need not worry about the amount of left-over food; it will be rearranged and served and eaten by the family, or the help, or beggars who make their regular rounds for the left-overs.

A good healthy belch after a meal is a sign that one has eaten well and enjoyed it. Using toothpicks and belching are accepted practices after one eats, although one hides his toothpick and mouth with a hand while tooling away at the particles between his teeth.

When eating, Koreans consider it indelicate to use the hands to pick up food. If at all possible, they use chopsticks, spoons, or even a toothpick to pick up a piece of fruit, for example. When Korean guests in a Western home are faced with a plate of biscuits, they may try to harpoon one with a fork. They hesitate to use their fingers to handle food. Some Koreans like to point out how they are superior to the Indians, who, in a most "uncivilized manner," use their fingers to put food into their mouths.

At a social meal, one never pours soy sauce in his own little dish, but waits until someone else pours it for him. In like manner, one pours sauce for his neighbor as a gracious gesture of serving him and honoring him. This custom holds for tea or wine. One pours for others, but not for oneself.

The most impolite thing that one can do is to talk too much while eating. The hardest custom Koreans have to ad just to with foreigners is the "business lunch" and the carrying on of sparkling table conversation. Talking distracts from the important business of eating; this derives possibly from a purely Korean over-literal interpretation of a phrase from the "Analects of Confucius". To ask questions and carry on business conversation is most inconsiderate. How can one en joy concentrating on the flavor of his food if he has to think and talk about other matters at the same time?

The Westerner who persists in conversation is intruding on the private and personal pleasure of filling one's stomach. Table conversation thus has a tendency to sag at Korean dinner parties. Only the Western host is frantic. Good talk, the singing of songs, and charades come after the eating is done.

After the meal, each guest may be expected to perform for the entertainment of the group. It is a serious faux pas not to comply with a request to perform, after a proper show of modesty. It behooves the Westerner to know a few parlor tricks if solo singing is not his forte. He will most certainly be called upon sooner or later to amuse the guests. To refuse to add to the entertainment of the group leaves a bad taste for all, and spoils the kibun of the group.

After everyone has performed, the dinner usually breaks up, and people leave early. It is not the custom to linger long after a meal is finished in a Korean home or restaurant; an exception is a kisaeng party, where girls and dancing are provided with the drinks, which terminates only with curfew.

11 | Parties

Korean men are certainly not asexual. However, men do travel, socialize, and enjoy the company of other men. This does not mean that they are homosexual. A group of men friends go out together to wine shops, cabarets, or kisaeng houses where they are entertained by trained females. These women, whether kisaeng or barmaids, are free and easy, and most uninhibited. They sit close to one at meals putting dainties into one's mouth at a feast, and caress their partners freely. These women exist as the socially acceptable means for all premarital and extramarital relations with women.

Not to frequent their company is considered by most Korean men to be missing one of the gentlemanly joys of Korea. To go outside this area of easy conquest is criminal and foolish. One, of course, would marry only a virgin. Virginity is often certified before the wedding by the bridegroom's womenfolk. An ageing kisaeng may graduate to being owner or manager of a kisaeng house. A fortunate kisaeng may become the "little wife" of a wealthy patron. Far too often, however, many of these women resort to suicide once their not-so-youthful charms can no longer compete with the new crop coming along.

At kisaeng parties and other functions, it is the custom to exchange wine cups between guests as a token of good will and friendship. This is done with some formality. One hands his empty cup to his neighbor's kisaeng, who fills it with rice wine. After emptying it, the neighbor returns the cup and it is filled and drunk with suitable bows and words of friendship.

During the course of a party, everyone passes his cup one or more times to everyone else. This custom tests the resistance of the host to bacteria, and also tests one's ability to hold liquor. To refuse an offer of friendship in this manner hurts the genial atmosphere of the party.

For the non-alcoholic drinker, it is permissible to have one's cup filled with cola or some other soft drink. There seems to be no way to avoid the sipping from others' cups. This is a price that a germ-conscious Westerner has to pay for an evening out with the boys.

During the course of the evening, several friends may offer their kisaeng for the night. One of the acceptable ways of declining this show of generosity is to claim temporary illness. For the good of your friends, therefore, you are let off with a "rain check." A flat "no" during such a social affair is considered very bad form, and will usually cause others to bristle. One must be able to say "no" in an oblique, indefinite manner without causing offense. Koreans practically never give a flat negative answer to each other to their faces. Social affairs especially test one's ability to decline with finesse, without causing loss of face to your friends, and thereby losing their friendship.

Much business is conducted at drinking parties. When one is relaxed after a few drinks, one can discard face and more easily make the compromises necessary to settle a business deal. Feeling in a good humor with his wine, one will consent to propositions that he might refuse or haggle about indefinitely if cold sober.

Business deals are, if possible, placed on a personal social basis. The morning after the party, those with whom one has made an agreement will show up to formalize the contract. One may try to change his mind, but seeing that face is involved, the transaction will be consummated. Rather than the "business lunch," the kisaeng party is where much of the business is concluded in Korea.

Many well-intentioned Westerners, who have a compulsion to get out and “get next” to the people, want to visit a Korean home. In Korea, it is not the normal custom to "take someone home for dinner to meet the little woman." Special feasts, such as weddings, funerals, and 60th birthdays, are family occasions and are usually held in the home. However, much of the entertaining is done outside the home in restaurants or kisaeng houses.

Most men do not wish to introduce their secluded wives to foreigners or strangers. Social life is not usually on the couple basis in the traditional Korean scheme of things. If feminine company is desired, one repairs to the kisaeng house, where trained entertainers are available. It is not the custom to drop into homes informally as it is in Western lands. It is usually a very special honor when one is actually invited to a friend's home for a meal.

12 | The Problem of Gifts

Koreans are among the most gracious and generous people one will meet. They are thoughtful and considerate, and try by every means to establish personal relationships before they conduct any business. For the foreigner working in Korea in government aid programs or mission groups, where hiring and firing is involved and allocation of funds is in his control, the receiving of gifts often poses a delicate problem. A common Korean attitude is that among friends anything goes, and close accounting is a sign of distrust, and thus unfriendly. This is in sharp contrast with the Western concept of the public servant holding funds in strict trust with careful accountability. The Korean does not make the same distinct cleavage between personal and public funds entrusted to his care. The giving and receiving of gifts are considered a normal operating commission for services rendered.

In this context, every gift expects something in return. One rarely gives an expensive gift without a purpose. The purpose may be to establish an obligation, to gain a certain advantage, or merely to create an atmosphere in which the recipient will be more pliable to the requests of the donor. To accept a gift and then refuse the requested favor is considered insincere. To return a gift is also an affront, but it may be better in some cases to return the gift than to accept it with no intention of doing a favor in return.

One may save face by accepting the gift, then passing it on directly to some needy person or a charity, to relieve one of future obligations. Thus gifts may be given as part of a long-range plan of winning friendship and backing for some project. Such gifts may be considered in the nature of an investment for the future, when help may be needed. Often a foreigner is put in a position in which he feels indebted and must comply with a request. This can be a polite form of blackmail. When someone uses the word put'ak, or request, it is putting his face on the line, and thus not granting the request becomes a matter of face, and may be very difficult to refuse.

Some Koreans have a special ability to work their way into the affections of foreigners and, if given a chance, may "cuddle up" and form personal relationships that may later prove embarrassing and difficult to handle when some impossible, often illegal, request is made. The problem of how to have close friends without becoming too involved is a touchy one for people in official positions where they have the responsibility for dispensing goods, favors, or influence. Many Koreans expect to use their friendships and connections for personal advantage, and see nothing amiss in this approach as long as they are the main recipients. If other Koreans have the inside track in this regard, they may become most bitterly critical of the blind foreigner "who has been so stupid as to allow himself to be taken in by a group of thieves."

From the Korean point of view, to forget to give presents to those above one in life, or from whom something is needed, is foolish in the extreme, and shows a lack of understanding of the system, or arrogance in thinking one is strong enough to buck it. At least, such actions and shows of individualism are considered anti-social. The "top" must be well fed and, if possible, kept in blissful ignorance and bleary-eyed happiness if one is to find security or gain promotion in an organization. In Korea as elsewhere, things are seldom what they seem. In government, this custom has had grave consequences many times in Korean history, both ancient and modern. The system, however, still persists. Once one has accepted a gift, he is somewhat at the mercy of the donor until some suitable alternate gift or favor has been returned. Some foreigners are not flattered when they come to realize that gifts are thought to influence their decision-making.

Along with the matter of answering requests, it is helpful to remember that, in Korean, ''yes" may merely mean "I heard you," and not agreement or intention of complying. To say a flat "no" is an affront, as it hurts the feelings and is thus poor policy. Many Koreans often say "yes, yes" to each other or to foreigners, then go merrily on their way doing quite the opposite, with little sense of breaking a promise or an agreement. If called on the point, they may even explain that they had to say "yes" to keep from causing offense and to save themselves embarrassment, but they never even considered complying. This use of "yes" and "no" often frustrates the literal-minded Westerner. Some Koreans, however, may become quite incensed when Westerners play this game in reverse.

A note on when it is proper to give and receive gifts in Korea: A small hostess gift is always in order when going , to a home for a meal. To call on anyone to put him at an inconvenience requires a small gift wrapped in white paper. When calling at the home to off er condolences after a death, it is customary to take a white envelope containing a sum of money, usually five hundred or a thousand won. On the envelope is written the name of the donor and a character for condolences.

At weddings a similar white envelope with the character for congratulations is offered to a clerk at the door of the wedding hall, whose job it is to collect these wedding gifts and record the names of the donors and the amount of each gift in a ledger. Handing cash to someone is considered crude, and will often be refused. A gift or tip should always be placed in a white envelope to save the recipient embarrassment.

To hand someone a bank check is also considered impolite, for he must go to considerable trouble to cash it. Gifts should not usually be opened in the presence of the donor, lest he be embarrassed at its smallness. Gifts are opened in private.

Although the commission system is in full operation in Korea, and every service involving funds requires a commission, the public draws a neat but indistinct line between the acceptable commission for services rendered and embezzlement. A sum obviously too small is a gift, but a larger sum may be a bribe. The problem exists: foreigners, beware!

V. PUBLIC RELATIONSHIPS

13 | Traditional Attitudes Toward Government

By its very nature, the average Korean traditionally has looked upon government as a nuisance. Government is thought to exist largely for the benefit of the rulers. People seem to have little love for the government or those connected with it. Whereas there is great emotional loyalty to Korea, there often seems to be little sense of loyalty to support the administration in power.

The problem for many seems to be how to suffer the least from government pressure. The traditional solution to this problem was to try to keep officials happy. An official was carefully studied and his weaknesses noted before approaching him for a favor. If the official enjoyed pretty girls, these were supplied. If wine was his soft point, his thirst was quenched. If he happened to be greedy, rice and presents were sent privately to his home at night.

Money has always been the great oil that makes bureaucracy function smoothly. In the past, an official expected to be supplied from below, for his supply from above was always inadequate. He, in turn, had to support the level above him if he was to succeed. One must be like the sunflower, always turning a smiling face upward toward the sun.

To show a cloudy or an unpleasant emotion in the presence of a superior official was to endanger one's position. There is an old saying that those who come bearing disturbing news seldom live long in the presence of the great.

It has usually mattered little how much one leaned on those beneath him in station, for they had to continue to smile upward and offer support as each, in his turn, supported the next higher rank. This basic pattern of government also holds true in many institutions since the days when Imperial China assumed the position of elder brother to Korea. Anyone in a position to offer favors or give an advantage usually depended on gifts and commissions for the major part of his personal income.

In the past, if the "top" truly desired to find out what was going on below, he sent secret agents to spy out the land. These agents whispered their reports in the official's ear, and, at the same time, suggested a remedy. They must firmly place the blame on the person who was to be eliminated. It was often more important to place the blame for malfeasance than to correct the error. Once the blame was fixed, then everyone else could relax.

The Japanese introduced the custom of keeping a dossier on most people of importance. All misdeeds were noted for a time when, for perhaps entirely different reasons, it was desired to bring them to heel. When such an occasion arose, the dossier with all the previous misdeeds was brought out as the well-documented reason for bringing the culprit to justice.

When a misdeed was committed, the person asking forgiveness must write a letter of apology, simal sŏ, and promise never to repeat the offense. These letters were collected and when enough filled the file, their total weight was enough to sink the person involved. One could not refuse to write a letter of apology if he wished to be let off for breaking the rules. Thus the government appeared to use considerable restraint before it brought a person to prosecution.

The public would likely turn against an official or an employer who hastily fired someone on a first offense, unless it was of such a nature that it caused personal embarrassment to the superior. If the public felt that someone had been fired in an arbitrary manner, it was necessary to have the dossier full of documented reasons to prove that the person doing the firing had been pushed beyond patient endurance, and was left with no alternative but to act as he did in removing the offender. It is interesting to note that if a deed was done that involved face, and immediate firing was the decision, the person fired could not collect his terminal pay or benefits of retirement. On the other hand, if he accepted his firing without fuss and resigned smoothly, he could receive all his terminal pay and benefits, regardless of what he had done. Stealing was not usually considered a valid reason for firing someone.

A common practice of pay-off developed. Misdeeds filed in a dossier could be made public in the press if one did not pass money "under the table." Once a matter was printed in the newspapers, the police felt that they must move in to take action, lest they be accused of laxness in performing their duties.

Thus the key to a person's rise or fall in government or the business world was of ten the journalist. Some journalists in the past have made a good living out of the stories they did not print. In recent years, a growing segment of the "fourth estate" has made a gallant effort to police these activities. One of the great reforms of the military junta of 1961 was to take away the press credentials of many reporters who had been notorious blackmailers under the Rhee regime.

While the government is regarded as a necessary nuisance, at the same time it is expected to be the responsible father of the people. If a calamity occurs, some official must be prepared to bear the blame and offer his resignation, accepting "moral responsibility," although he might pe far removed from the actual incident. A fire or a train wreck often requires that some official step forward and take the blame so that the public conscience can be satisfied that something is being done.

In the past, this has made for frequent changes among high-ranking officials. This insecurity in the future of any political official has been cited as a factor in tempting some to make a "pile" during their brief tenure of office, knowing that any day they might suddenly have to resign from their post.

This attitude was also common in Japan before World War II. During the Japanese occupation of Korea, a medical missionary, the late Dr. Robert M. Wilson, who headed the leprosy colony near Sunchŏn, was called to Tokyo to receive a medal and a poem from the Empress of Japan, who was concerned with leprosy work. The poem was duly hung in the colony chapel.

One day a group of disgruntled patients burned down the chapel. Local officials called on Dr. Wilson, suggesting that, since the Empress' poem had been burned, the responsible official of the colony must commit suicide. Not feeling the same sense of shame as did the local officials, Dr. Wilson was almost forced to resign and leave the country in disgrace, until one of the culprits, who was waiting trial in prison, committed suicide. This event was reported to Tokyo and the crisis was resolved. Dr. Wilson was able to continue his work with dignity.

Koreans are less apt to commit suicide for misdeeds than the Japanese, but they feel that resignation is required for all untoward events, in order to return the situation to normal. There must be a sacrificial lamb.

Government, on occasion, has been prone to make sudden and dramatic over-decisions which have proven impossible to obey or enforce. Woe to the one who challenges the new hard line too soon! In a few days, the mad edict is usually discreetly forgotten and by-passed with little loss of face for the top official whose sudden whim gave the "off-with-their-heads" type of order.

Hard decisions have seldom been enforced or actually carried to conclusion. The wise have learned to lie low and survive "for three days" until the wrath of the ruler has subsided. In the past, some inexperienced officials have given orders right and left without prior planning, consultation, or adequate evaluation to determine that there were the means to enforce the decisions. It has often fallen to the hands of the lower level of government bureaucracy to "kill" the over-enthusiastic decision proclaimed from the housetops by the uninhibited chief. Many rulings made by a minister or bureau chief never reach fruition because of the cooler heads down the line who have learned how to quietly pigeon-hole and forget the whole affair. The bureaucracy has thus been a stabilizing influence in Korean politics and government.

At times, it has also been a deadening influence on administration. In order to get action through the government, the private citizen is wise to approach the lowest echelon first and work up through the bureaucracy step by painful step. Approval at each level is needed before approaching the top officials in a department.

There is a saying, "one chop, one meal." Every document and decision has to bear the chop or signature stamp of each official up the ladder. To import items through customs for relief work has required as many as thirty-two chops. To go to the top first might often doom the project to failure, even though a hearty verbal approval had been granted by the chief of the department. Until the lower ranks are mollified, the papers remain "lost." One learns to play both ends against the middle in order to get decisions favorable to one's cause.

The American way of rushing in and demanding to see the "top dog" often ends in frustration. At the top one can almost always get glowing agreement to any proposal, but then begins the waiting, and often nothing happens until the lesser lights are appeased. It always helps to know a strong man in a bureau, and to secure his cooperation and support if a quick result is desired. To by-pass an official is a serious affront. He may be aggrieved and use his various levers to block your success the next time around.

The exception to this rule is when one is known as a personal friend or relative of the chief. In this happy circumstance all goes well, lest the private channel be used to put a bad word in the ear of the chief about the lower official who is causing difficulty. Private and personal channels are much more effective and powerful than to try to do things purely by the rules of the book.

Once an official has quoted the rules and said "no," he has done his official duty and one begins to negotiate to see how the rule can be circumvented. Laws tend to be more often enforced on those without a strong "back"; that is, without powerful connections. A person with a strong "back" can almost live above the laws of the land.

Traditionally there has been little or no public confidence that the government is just. One tended to expect corruption, and learned to live with it. In the courts there is no jury system and one is not judged by twelve good peers. The judges make the decisions after hearing the arguments of the prosecutor and the defense lawyers. The government has always made its decisions in secret and is not subject to much review by the citizens. People often felt that court decisions went to the most powerful contender. There was little feeling that the courts would be impartial.

There thus grew up the practice of protesting government decisions by mass demonstrations. This, in fact, was about the only recourse citizens had to protest actions they felt were wrong. At times in the past, opposition political parties have joined student demonstrations to try to overthrow the administration.

The word demo has become a Korean word for demonstration. Due to the close organization between students and other groups, a nation-wide demonstration could be touched off at the will of a few student leaders in Seoul. People suffered in silence from arbitrary government until a demonstration was touched off, then all the pent-up emotions and frustrations were suddenly turned loose in a flood that, on one occasion, overthrew the elected government.

Many people express the feeling that government officials manipulate things among themselves without much consideration for the average citizen or his opinions. The government has countered this on several occasions by conducting street-side public-opinion polls. Some government officials have seemed to assume the attitude of despising the average citizen and showing little concern for his problems.

There has yet to develop the British concept of "Her Majesty's loyal opposition." The opposition has often been out to overthrow the administration in power by hook or crook whenever the opportunity presented itself. Opposition parties thus have tended to be subversive for the administration in power. Because of this, consultation and cooperation between parties has been difficult if not at times impossible.

Secrecy has been a compulsion of the administration, and surveillance has been practiced, in the name of "anti-communism," over the opposition and the average citizenry. Korea has thus often been a country where people basically did not trust each other or the government. This insecurity and lack of public trust has been one of the major hindrances to modernization and economic development. Western-type democracy, which depends on trusting the citizens and their trusting the government, is little understood or practiced as yet in Korea.

The ultimate success for a young man is to be a foreign diplomat. A diplomat can remain a true Korean and yet "escape" from Korea. There has in the past been little respect for the military life, as it was considered in the Confucian culture to be one of the lower levels of society.

In an organization, the higher up one goes in the scale of things, the fewer hours of work he is expected to perform. All office personnel are expected to remain at their desks until the boss has left the office, regardless of the lateness of the hour.

One often measured his own success by the number above him to whom he had to pay respect, and the number below him who must pay respect to him. Success is the feat of reducing the number above and increasing the number below one on the totem pole of vertical relationships.

Gutzlaff accurately described the traditional official in action when he made a visit to Korea in 1832.* [*Charles Gutzlaff: "Journal of Three Voyages Along the Coast of China," 1834. Pages 316-356 describe his visit to Korea.] After the visitor waited a week for the Korean official to come for an interview, the great one finally arrived, carried in his chair by four bearers. The official first ordered his aides to grab two young men in the crowd of curious villagers who surrounded him and had them beaten before the group so that all would know that he was a great official. Then the interview began. This same general mental attitude has often continued although, of course, such actions as described by Gutzlaff are no longer performed. There is little of the compulsion seen among American politicians to get out and kiss babies or pump the hand of the "man in the street."

14 | Attitudes Toward the Provinces

As in the days of Imperial China, when Peking was considered the center of the universe, Korea today considers her capital, Seoul, to be the center of all political, social, economic, educational, and cultural activities. There is a strong belief that everything of value emanates from Seoul and that anything outside of Seoul is, at best, second rate. The welfare and development of the country outside of the Seoul area are given relatively low priority in the thinking and planning of many officials.

This centralization means that anyone who has any business with the government must travel frequently to Seoul, as no decisions of importance c~n be made in the provincial capitals. People who can afford it maintain a home in Seoul so that their children may attend school there, in the hope that they will grow up as Seoulites and escape being stigmatized by a provincial accent, which might hinder them from securing worthwhile positions after graduation.

It has been said that Koreans believe in three paradises: Seoul, the United States, and the one in the next world. Many seem to have little interest or concern about the latter heaven.

About five hundred years ago a famous Confucian scholar, Yi T'oe-gye, traveled and wrote about the special characteristics of the people living in the various provinces. His characterizations have remained as the abiding prejudices that many people hold today about people from the other areas. Each characteristic is subject to various interpretations, both complimentary and otherwise, which many people still apply to the eight provinces. There are also popular vulgar labels that are used to describe various provinces and the people who come from them.

The prejudice against certain provincial areas is so great that school children in Seoul often try to hide their home origins and assume Seoul customs, accent, and manners to a void the provincial labels. When problems arise, these ancient prejudices are often revived to justify the decisions made. Island people as a group are considered inferior to mainland people.

The people of Kyŏnggi-Do are said to be "like a beauty looking in a mirror". In the vulgate they are said to be "misers and hagglers".

People from Ch'ungch'ŏng-Do are described as being like a "bright moon and clear wind" and they are popularly known as "Ch'ungch'ŏng-Do gentlemen".

People from Chŏlla-Do are compared to a "slender willow before the spring breeze". They are commonly referred to as being like mud flats that quickly lose the imprint of a passing foot. The sound of this phrase is sometimes corrupted to a similar phrase for canine excreta. People from the Chŏllas are also referred to as being from "Hawaii." Hawaii, being an island, is considered inferior.

Kyŏngsang-Do people are compared to "high mountains and arrogant peaks". This can be interpreted as having independence and self-respect. They are more commonly referred to as "Kyŏngsang-Do lepers" as there is a high incidence of leprosy in this area. (People with leprosy tend to be clannish and rarely marry outside their group.) They also have a reputation for keeping agreements, as do the Chinese.

Those from Kangwŏn-Do are compared to an "old Buddha sitting beneath a rock" that is, immobile, fixed, and lifeless. They are popularly referred to as "potato eaters", as there is little rice in the province and eating potatoes is considered a sign of extreme poverty.

Harnkyŏng-Do people are said to act like "dogs fighting in a muddy field".

Pyongan-Do people are like a "brave tiger coming out of the forest", much sound and fury and aggressiveness.

Hwanghae-Do people are compared to a "cow plowing in a stony field", slow, diligent, suffering. They are referred to popularly as "loud tigers".

Young girls from the island province of Cheju-Do are referred to as "stones and wind". Cheju-Do is said to have a superabundance of women, wind, and rocks.

15 | Importance of Ceremony

Ceremony is of major importance. Things must be done decently and in order. Ceremony must be tailored to the relative status of those involved and those on whom an impression is being made. Strict protocol, language forms, proper bows, and an attitude of humility and deference must be exhibited, regardless of one's personal feelings. To be otherwise than proper at a ceremony is an offense against society, tradition, one's nation, and one's ancestors. Frequent ceremony is necessary to impress people that something is being done, and one seriously reveres the object of the ceremony. The fact that often little more than the ceremony can be accomplished is not to be criticized. In performing the proper ceremony one has done one's best, and at least half the job is done.

Ceremonies are held to open all meetings, memorialize the past, teach history, and propagandize the public. Ceremonies welcome defectors from communism, campaign against tuberculosis and parasites, honor fallen heroes and victims of boat accidents. It is of small moment that little or nothing is actually done about these problems or for these people, as long as the ceremony has been carried out in an impressive manner. Having shown its interest and concern by the proper slogans, banners, and opening exercises, the government often appears to feel it has performed its function by introducing the problem to the public and showing its concern, and has thus discharged its duty. The solution of the problem is secondary.

Once the ceremony is over, junior officials and technicians can wrestle with details and try for solutions without expecting much additional support from the top.

A very gracious ceremony is to award diplomas of appreciation to those who have made some contribution to the country by their service. Honorary doctorate degrees are also handed out to visiting dignitaries as a way of saying "thank you." This may be for past favors or the hope of future help for the institution, a practice also common in other countries. A few institutions have made such a reputation for giving out degrees to visitors that some feel they hardly have a souvenir of their trip unless they can carry home an impressive diploma. One prominent American dignitary visiting Korea a few years ago received such a handsome degree and proudly had it hung upside down in his official office in Washington. He could not make heads or tails out of the Chinese characters declaring him a "doctor."

One group of foreign wits developed a mythical university whose sole function was to hand out honorary doctorate degrees. This "University" has become a symbol of sophistry in Korea and is known as Ajax University, last located on the Island of Cheju.

16 | Korean Self-Confidence

It can safely be said that most Koreans are endowed with a remarkable sense of self-confidence. Almost any Korean man feels few qualms at assuming command of a situation, speaking to ten thousand people, advising on affairs of state, boldly dismantling a delicate voltage regulator along the side of a dusty road, or diagnosing and prescribing for the ills of his fellows. When faced with a new tool, machine, or complex modern device, the average male will blithely attack it to test its limits.

He will often push just beyond the limits until something snaps. He will next take it apart, explore the contents, and make a patch job. From then on he can keep it going just under optimum performance with putty, rubber bands, and baling wire.

A vehicle that would be growing grass in a junk yard in other countries can be made to chug along the rough roads of Korea, laden with loads never imagined by the original designer. Witness, for example, the Russian trucks that still carry the nation's commerce sixteen years after they were abandoned by the retreating north Korean army in 1950. A grimy hole-in-the-wall may contain a lathe and a young man who can make a precision part that a broken vehicle may require out of any available bit of scrap metal. It may not last long, but it will allow the vehicle to limp along to the next city.

In matters of state, the feeling has been that any intelligent man was as good as any other in deciding the future of the nation or the public welfare. An elementary school teacher usually feels quite confident that he could fill in for a college professor, and many young men feel that they could assume the duties of an ambassador.

People in the political world bounce around from job to job. A young doctor recently out of medical school is not dismayed by the most difficult and complicated surgical procedures. To admit lack of experience and knowledge is to lose face.

Face is sometimes considered more important than the endangering of human life. Some seem to believe the old saw, "When all else fails, read the instructions." Since the instructions are usually written in obscure Chinese characters, English, or Japanese, and cannot be easily read, one tends to ignore them altogether.

Fortunately, with the development of more trained people in various fields, there is beginning to be an awareness that trained people can indeed perform more effectively than untrained people. However, technical training, anything that has to do with using the hands, is still held in rather low esteem. A highly-trained engineer will often sit back and let an unskilled lad do his work for him, rather than stoop to getting his fingers dirty. In the political realm, a glib tongue and courage are of ten the only equipment necessary for launching into orbit.

In the economic field, Koreans tend to be great gamblers. They may try any exciting adventure with a minimum of information or study, and then seem amazed when the venture fails and they lose their shirts. Although most are very clever and suspicious, with long experience in the school· of hard knocks, some are easily conned by a persuasive tongue. Private loans may be risky and the interest is usually 10% a month, with some failing to pay up. Women are frequently involved in private investment societies, or kye. The turnover of property and businesses is often very rapid. Bankruptcy carries little or no social stigma.

Few seem to worry over the possibilities of failure or accident. Preventive maintenance seems not to be a part of the culture, and preventive health is as yet a little-thought-of idea for most people. Every time someone gets away with something risky, he seems to assume that there is little risk involved, or that his skill and cleverness made him succeed where others might fail. When one trips and falls, there is often no back-stop or alternative safety device to prevent disaster. Some dart through dangers depending more on luck than on prior planning. This self-confidence makes for an aggressive, dynamic people who are willing to take on the whole world in their own minds.

17 | Attitudes Toward Crime and Criminals

Korea is a highly organized society. The beggars are organized by their captains. Leprosy patients are organized and have their own system of self-government in the colonies. Criminals are also organized into gangs. Westerners have of ten run afoul of the differences in Korean attitudes toward criminals. There is no heritage of British Common Law. A suspect is considered guilty until proven innocent. The investigative authorities must extract the confessions, and decide who is innocent and who is guilty. The guilty are then remanded to the public prosecution authorities for trial and sentencing. No jury system is involved.

A criminal, or a suspect in police custody, has embarrassed society. He has become an "unperson," regardless of his previous rank. He is required to sit on the floor in a kneeling position with his head bowed during questioning by the police. He must speak high talk to even the lowest office boy in the police station. He may be kicked, slapped, or tortured as the whim of his captors dictates. He has lost his right to be considered a "person."

Torture, in the past, has been considered necessary in order to extract the "truth" from the suspect and secure a confession of guilt. The police have the responsibility to conclude the investigation and secure the confession before they turn the prisoner over to the prosecution or release him for lack of evidence.

Common forms of torture were kicking and beating. More bizarre forms have been practiced such as the famous "water-cure" introduced under the Japanese regime. A prisoner was strapped to a table and rubber tubes, which led to a large water can, were placed in his nostrils. Water was run into the nose until one confessed or was nearly drowned. Electric shock to the genitals is a modern form of torture.

In olden times during the Yi dynasty, prisoners might be placed in a coffin-sized wooden box and allowed to die of starvation or suffocation unless they confessed. A long wooden plank with a hole for a person's neck was also used in olden days as a stock to keep prisoners from escaping. The severity of the torture was of little public concern, for, as one man who had himself experienced the "water-cure" said, "Some Koreans will not tell the truth unless they are beaten."

Modern penal codes and prison supervision are doing much to change the treatment of prisoners once they are sentenced to the penitentiary. Before they are sentenced, however, there is little public outcry over how roughly prisoners are handled.

If a burglar breaks into a home at night, the owner has no right to injure him. One should cough discreetly and the burglar will know that the owner knows that he is there, and will withdraw. To shoot a burglar is considered murder. A thief will not usually steal if the house is guarded even by a small servant girl representing the owner. To leave a place unguarded is to invite thieves to come in at will. One does not deserve to have what he does not care enough about to guard. Seeing something left alone, unguarded, the thief considers that he has greater need and appreciation for it than the careless owner. A thief must eat too.

If one does not awake when a thief comes, he will "lose his pants." In modern Seoul if one yells for help when attacked by a ruffian gang, he is not likely to receive help from his neighbors. However, if he yells "fire" his neighbors will rush out to help, lest their own homes burn down. This same unwillingness to get involved in others' difficulties has been notoriously evident in such large Western cities as New York, to name one. The general lack of community spirit is an attitude that will be noticed by many foreigners living in Korea.

Physical combat and crimes of violence and passion are relatively rare and considered to be terrible. These are thought of as crimes against society in general, for society is frightened to think of violence. Such crimes are likely to be severely punished. Blackmail, theft, false documents, misrepresentation, unethical business practices, bribes, short measure, adulterated foods, and graft are all considered less terrible. To push a person or hit a person in anger, however, is a very serious matter.

Even to injure someone accidentally is of almost equal seriousness as willful injury. Police often judge the seriousness of the offense by the number of days a victim has to be treated in a hospital. Anything over seven days is serious. Society joins against the physical combatant, of ten regardless of the merits of the case.

To assault a person with a weapon is a crime of the same order as murder, regardless of which end of the weapon is used. An automobile driver involved in a fatal accident is immediately put in jail to satisfy the public conscience. It matters little that he was in no way able to avoid the accident, due to the carelessness of the injured. The fact that an injury was sustained is evidence enough. Motives and peripheral circumstances carry little weight in one's defense in a vehicle accident.

If, on the other hand, one interferes with nature and saves a life from suicide or an accident, he may be assuming the responsibility for that person's future. If one had not interfered, the person would have perished, and that would have been the end of it. If one treats a person in a hospital and saves his life, it has been argued by some patients that the doctor and the hospital owe him a job and support from then on.

When one strongly advises a patient to come into the hospital for treatment, the patient and his family often assume that the urger is prepared to cover the cost of the treatment. Without this pressure to be treated, the patient would not have been treated, but by the urging he was "forced" to be treated, and thus the urger, not he, is responsible for whatever happens.

Heroic attempts to rescue people in distress are so unusual that when they do occur they cause considerable comment in the press. To meet the obligations of one's family alone is so great a task that many feel they cannot afford to assume added responsibilities.

The family responsibilities are indeed not small. What, to the outsider, may appear to be callous indifference to human suffering is a protective mechanism to insulate oneself by not becoming involved in problems outside the family. Westerners who worry about trying to find homes for mixed-blood and abandoned babies are considered by some to be doing penance for past sins to save their own feelings.

Every person is assumed to have a front and a "back side." To know a person one must know his "back side." His front is always correct and makes a good show to the public. The "back side" is the manner in which he actually does business. Everyone must eat, and has a right to eat. If one has too small an income to furnish the basic necessities of life, it is quite permissible to engage in irregular financing, accept bribes, or even to steal to fill these basic needs. One is considered corrupt and a thief only when his greed reaches excessive proportions. There is a broad area of public agreement on each level of society as to what is acceptable "earning-a-living" and what is graft and corruption.

To call a man a thief when he is only satisfying his basic economic requirements is considered unkind and shows one's lack of appreciation for the realities of life. To injure a person's kibun by accusing him of stealing will bring society to his defense against you in almost every case. The foreigner is especially fair game for the wily petty thief. Some Koreans seem to be secretly amused at his discomfort.

18 | Attitudes While Under Duress

One of the great virtues of many Koreans is their ability to endure hardship. Korea is the land of those who have learned to endure in order to survive. If it cannot be escaped, one endures oppression, corruption, injustice, insults, and physical torture with stoic calm. One lives and dreams of the day when he will be liberated, restored to his position as a "person," and able to retaliate against his former oppressors.

While under duress, whatever one does is not considered a crime. One does what he is forced to do in order to survive. During the forty years of Japanese occupation, many Koreans collaborated with the Japanese and some outdid themselves in seeming to be ardently pro-Japanese. This same type of attitude was assumed by some during the Communist occupation of most of the Republic of Korea in 1950. Many did what they felt they had to do.

Once the pressure was removed some made a formal retraction and confession of their misdeeds, and they were again able to participate in the life of their community. There seems to be little sense of morality involved when one is enduring an invader. In some cases the refugee was considered cowardly because he did not remain in his place and suffer. There is a saying that the poor cannot afford morality. It is also said that once one loses his position, hyŏngp'yŏn, anything he does may be justified.

The lack of inner controls while under duress is not peculiar to Korean psychology, but has been practiced in other societies as well. For example, the relatively new American military code of ethics for soldiers when captured is an effort to set standards of conduct while under duress. In Korea there is no set of ethical or religious teachings in the culture that tend to bind anyone to abstract principles. Anything that one must do to survive is usually right.

19 | Business Attitudes

In a society where people are under tremendous pressure just to survive, where competition is always keen and often unfair, and where the spoils go to the clever and the strong, many business practices are conditioned by factors which do not exist to the same degree in Western countries. In Korea, it is much more important who you know than what you know. In a country where there is never enough to go around, it is vital to know persons of influence and authority if one is to have a chance at the good things of life. In business, one will do almost anything to gain the good will and favorable notice of an important person who may be able to take care of one's needs.

In business, flattery is often a way of life. Without subtle flattery (if honest admiration cannot be summoned) business would come to a grinding halt and officials might become stony cold and resistant to one's pleas. It is important to create the proper atmosphere before any business can be accomplished. One must begin on the periphery and gradually zero in on the main business in narrowing circles. To break right into some delicate business is the height of stupidity and dooms the project to almost certain failure. In order to create proper relationships and thus the proper atmosphere, much time and care are spent in advance in studying the persons involved. Each contact becomes a rehearsed and important part in a play to bring about the desired contract.

Impatience is a major sin. The gentleman moves with deliberation, dignity, and studied motions, his sensitive antennae ever feeling out the trends and indicators that are put up by his opponent. Nunch'i, or measuring the opponent by his eyes, is a fine art. Success in a venture ften depends on the superior ability to react to shades of meaning. Between two persons, this probing becomes an exotic dance of subtle moves and ploys. Better to withdraw without a mention of the business in mind than to expose it in poor surroundings or at an inopportune time. Diplomacy is the natural inherited art of almost every businessman in Korea.

One of the business attitudes which, in the past, has retarded economic development has been the emphasis on living for today only. People who made things sometimes showed little concern for the end user. There was a great lack of quality control in many industries. As one Korean businessman once said, in spite of the fact that he wished co purchase Korean-made parts for his factory, he could not afford to because of the careless manner in which they were made. At twice the initial cost he would still come out ahead by using Japanese or American parts.

Certain big industries, notably the textile industry, are fast developing a world reputation for good quality. The pressure to export on the world market is happily bringing about an improvement in the quality of many Korean products.

One of the games that some Koreans like to play is "who will be king of the mountain." It is distinctly painful to see someone rise above his fellows. There is little tradition for building up another person or helping someone to succeed in business, politics, or anything else. As soon as one person seems to be pulling ahead of the pack, there may be a joint effort to discredit, cross-up, or pull down the offender. He has dared to do a superior job, become more prominent, or win certain recognition for his efforts. This only tends to point up the failures of the less successful in the group and damages their kibun. For this anti-social act he must be pulled back into the ooze. There is a saying that it is easy to pull down the pants of the person climbing up a ladder ahead of one.

If a young man would succeed in business or government, he must hitch his fortunes to a rising star. He must follow this star blindly, do his every bidding, no matter how menial, and become an indispensable assistant.

Eventually, if all goes well, he will rise with his patron. Loyalty is to the individual. There is little loyalty to an institution, to a firm, a government, or to abstract ideas such as business ethics, justice, democracy, equality, or honesty. One survives by being loyal to one's family, teacher, leader, and patron.

If one is born under a lucky star, at a propitious hour, in a fortunate month in the lunar cycle, one will go far with his star. If the fates are against him, his future holds only defeat and sadness. Defeat is not his fault, but rather the unfortunate caprice of fate. Accept your fate quietly, without emotion; it is unavoidable.

One price for economic success is to have one's poorer relatives move in and expect to be fed and cared for. One is wise to hide his assets and to take great pains to appear 1verage or poor. Any show of wealth invites beggars, the police, the tax collectors, and the privilege of paying double for every purchase. To have people think of one as wealthy may be ruinous. To pay off everyone who crowds around for gifts or bribes can break a moderate fortune.

Weddings and funerals are times of great expense for the wealthy. The pall-bearers carrying the bier to the grave will chant that their feet are getting too heavy to lift off the ground. Only money can make them light enough to carry on their cumbersome load. Presently the foot fatigue sets in again, and increasing sums of money and liquor are required to get the coffin to its final resting place. For the well-to-do, this can come to a considerable sum.

Every guest at a wedding must be given a cake or a towel as a souvenir of the occasion. All must be wined und dined. In the urban areas, many uninvited guests show up to collect a piece of cake and a towel at the wedding hall. After the invited guests have departed, the beggars In the community descend on the wedding home to be fed.

To Korean businessmen, Westerners appear to make contracts on the assumption that all the factors will remain indefinitely the same. They take a gamble that society will allow them to complete the agreed conditions of the contract. In Korea, a written contract sometimes is of little value. It may be only a paper contract. There may be no understanding that it will be kept if the conditions at the time it was made should change. A fluctuation in the economy, the political situation, or personal reasons of the contractor may invalidate the completion of the contract without any sense of misdeed. If prices go up, the contract may be invalid. There is at times little sense of obligation to complete a contract, because the conditions almost always do change. This is a major cause for the lack of business planning and long-term operation of businesses. There is sometimes little feeling that one must produce products as good as the samples shown at the time of the contract. However, this situation is changing for the better as more Korean businessmen do business with the West.

Loans are not necessarily to be repaid on time. Therefore, interest rates run as high as 5 to 10% a month in private loans. The risk is high. If conditions change, there is little compulsion to repay the loan. Fate has stepped in to change things; how can a mere individual be responsible? Society or the government is to blame for allowing inflation or economic conditions to fluctuate.

If one would get loan security, he must locate a borrower who has much face to be saved. If a man's face is involved in the loan and his face is valued at more than the loan, then he will repay it. If there is little face to be protected, then the loan may be insecure, regardless of the borrower's real assets.

This high rate of interest also means that, if one can delay paying bills, considerable money in interest can be made during the delay period by the borrower. The down payment on a contract may be loaned out rather than spent for beginning the contract construction, in order for the contractor to make extra money. If this private venture fails, the quality of the rest of the job must be trimmed to compensate for the loss. Time deposit loans in government supervised banks pay as high as 37.2% interest if the interest is allowed to be com pounded. This high rate of interest holds a fascination for many that playing the horses does in other societies. If one can only secure a position where he has access to sums of money, even for a short period, he can vastly improve his situation, if all goes well as speculated. The diversion of corporate and institutional funds is one of the major causes for lack or retardation of development in Korea.

The inability to trust employees with funds has led to the practice of having family companies, for the family loyalty is the strongest tie that binds Koreans. One has some hope of control over relatives, and if there is a misuse of funds, it can be absorbed and adjusted within the secrecy of the family without public notice. Many are thus unwilling to pool their capital in joint ventures unless they can control its use and pack the company with "their" men.

In order to cut down on the possibility of fraud in an organization such as a bank, for example, several different people are required to add their chops to the transaction before money can be released. The matter of cashing checks sometimes involves the clerk at the counter, the section chief, the vice-president, and the cashier. This slows up banking to a snail's pace. It may take as much as twenty minutes to cash a single check. However, this situation is improving as banks try to meet increasing competition for customers.

In many positions, salaries are set far below actual living costs, for it is assumed by the employer or the government that the low-paid employees will "make their living" in some irregular manner. Frequent rotation of personnel is practiced in banks and government offices in an effort to cut down on the possibility of mass collusion between employees.

Although Korea has on her legal books many model laws and business control laws patterned after more industrialized countries, there is little enforcement of these laws, because of the high unemployment rate. Many factories employ teenage girls as their main labor source because of their willingness to work for low pay until they can build up funds for a dowry. Such girl labor is also used on road construction projects, and in coal mines, and in the making of knitted wear for export.

The working conditions are crowded and without safety precautions, and there is little job security. Labor unions that exist are weak and controlled by the government, and make their main efforts toward foreign employers whom they feel will be more sensitive to their demands. Because of this cheap labor force, Korea is now increasing her exports to the world market, with the middleman getting most of the profits. This sweatshop labor absorbs the young girls while the army absorbs most of the young men. The real problem is the army veterans who have completed their service and find that they cannot compete with these girls in their ability to work in miserable conditions for 30¢ a day. Bringing in dollars has become such a national economic goal that almost any labor practices are tolerated as long as the products are exportable.

VI. HAN YAK

The Practice of Ancient Medicine

Korea is the land of the very old and the very new. Next door to where a young scientist is adjusting his electron microscope sits the practitioner of a system of medicine that dates back at least three thousand years to its roots in China. The last great text on Han Yak was written over five hundred years ago, and it is still the standard work in use today. In spite of the introduction of modern medicine and the opening of nine modern medical schools in the Republic of Korea, the majority of patients still seek out the Han Yak practitioner as their first reaction when faced with disease. After all, they say, how can Western medicine, which has been in Korea only eighty years, compete with three thousand years of medical experience gained by the traditional methods?

Han Yak makes its greatest appeal to the traditional concepts of the Confucianist. Its practice depends on the skill and insights of experienced individual practitioners.

Constant attendance beside the sick in the home gives great comfort to the patient and family. All efforts are directed toward immediate relief of symptoms. Treatments are often dramatic and have an awe-inspiring effect on both patient and relatives. There is also a philosophical explanation for every symptom and sign.

Little interest is shown in etiology, accurate diagnosis, definitive care, preventive medicine, or in long-term follow-up. If a patient has a symptom, he tries each recommended drug or treatment until he finds relief. Obviously, no one can know everything about disease, so one must shop around until he is lucky enough to meet just the right person who knows the cure for his particular condition. It has been said that there are twenty million doctors in Korea. Everyone has experienced illness, and thus feels qualified to diagnose and offer suggestions for therapy to anyone in need. There is no sense of legal liability if the therapy misfires.

This is the philosophy. Life is controlled by two great contrasting forces: the Positive and the Negative, Light and Dark, Male and Female, Good and Evil. These forces, if in proper relationship, fit together to form the perfect circle or whole. This union in medicine is health. The concept is beautifully symbolized in the Korean flag with the center circle, or T'aeguk, which is made up of interlocking commas. The upper comma is the fiery red male yang. The lower comma is a receptive blue, or female ŭm.

The male is the yang; the female is the ŭm ( or yin of China). The male force is aggressive, fiery, hot, dry, the south side of the mountain. The female force is receptive, regressive, quiet, soft, moist, swollen, the north side of the mountain. Any imbalance· between these opposing forces causes disease. The function of the practitioner is to help restore these forces to their proper balance by repressing or stimulating one or the other force. He may counteract the offending force with purges, diaphoretics, diuretics, stimulants, or sedatives.

In the body, as in the world, everything is derived from the five basic elements: Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, and Wood. Fire is the heart, the seat of the mind; the heart is derived from the sun, from heaven; it is the vital spark of life. Blood is from the Earth. Metal is gold; the lung is gold, the precious breath of life. Water is the kidney, condensed from the breath. Wood is the liver; it comes from Water and is the father of the heart. Thus it is that the heart (Fire) restores the blood (Earth); the blood (Earth) helps restore the lung (Metal); the lung (Metal) helps the kidney (Water); the kidney (Water) helps restore the liver (Wood); and the liver (Wood) gives fuel to the heart (Fire). The cycle is complete, each element or organ helping and supporting another. If a disease is caused by too much Fire, it is treated by a method that will reduce the Fire, such as Water, or kidney medicine.

From the five chang, or major organs, are derived the six pu, or minor organs. The small bowel is derived from the heart. The gallbladder is derived from the liver, the stomach from the blood, the large bowel from the lung (breaking wind), the bladder from the kidneys, and the spleen and adrenal glands from the heart.

Twelve great lines of force, or nerves, carry impulses from 360 spots on the surface of the body to various organs. The thumb, for example, has a line of force to the lung. The index finger connects with the large bowel, the middle finger to the spleen, and the ring finger to the sexual organs. Thus the wedding band on the ring finger controls the sexual impulses of even unenlightened Westerners. Koreans usually do not put a ring on this finger.

A nerve from the little finger controls the heart on the medial side and the small bowel on the lateral side. The great toe has two nerves, one down the middle of the dorsum to the liver and the other on the medial side to the blood. The second toe is linked to the stomach. The third toe has a link only to the great toe. The fourth toe ties in with the gallbladder, and the little toe goes to the urinary bladder, while a spot on the instep of the arch of the foot controls the kidneys.

There are two great veins in the body. One extends from the pubic arch to the lower lip; this is the ŭm pulse of the female line. The vessel from the lip over the scalp and down the back is the yang, or male pulse. Stimulation along these lines has a major effect on the ŭm or the yang. Small wicks made of powdered tobacco and other matter are set on fire and allowed to smolder along these lines to increase ŭm or yang. This treatment is called moxa. A modern Christian innovation is to make the form of a cross along the ŭm line in the epigastrium for stomach troubles.

Sharp silver needles, three to six inches in length and often very fine in calibre, are used to puncture the 360 spots and either increase or decrease yang or ŭm by twisting the needle to the right or left. For example, if a needle is inserted into the tip of the second toe and twisted to the right, a stomach cramp will subside as the yang is increased. Unfortunately, this form of treatment is prone to certain complications. Bacteria, introduced into the bones and joints by these unsterile needles, are a frequent cause of much of the osteomyelitis seen in Korea. A major artery may be torn with a needle, or a false connection between an artery and a vein may result in an arterio-venous fistula which, if untreated, may lead to eventual heart failure and death.

Physical examination is by four methods called maeng, mun, mun and chŏl. Maeng is observation of the face, the appearance of the patient. Mun is listening to the sound of the patient's voice. The next mun is questioning the patient as to his history and symptoms. Chŏl, or "cut," is palpation of the pulse or the stomach. All these steps must be taken in order to insure the correct diagnosis. One leading practitioner bemoaned the fact that in modern times some practitioners are shysters and do not follow this proper ritual before beginning treatment.

In the Shang-han-lun, written 1800 years ago by Chang Chung-ching of China, acute febrile diseases are described with their methods of diagnosis and treatment. In this book, Chang describes six stages of diseases, three kinds of yang and three kinds of ŭm. He also outlines the regular and irregular signs of disease and lists 396 rules for treatment of both the regular and the irregular signs. He also lists 113 prescriptions for treatment. He stresses the importance of age, sex, season of the year, and weather in affecting the susceptibility to disease and the response to treatment. He states that han, or cold, destroys substance and constricts, while yŏl, or fever (heat), destroys ki, or energy, and causes swelling and effusion. Yang can also mean the resistance of the body to disease, while ŭm means the destructive forces inside or outside the body.

There are three areas of disease in the body: the hollow organs, the surface of the body, and the area between these two. A disease arising in one area must be driven to the surface or into a hollow organ from which it may be expelled, such as through the bowel or kidney. A rash is interpreted as the attempt of a disease to come out through the skin. If medications are wrongly administered and drive the rash into the body, kidney disease may result. To encourage rashes, sweats are produced by applying external heat. There must be surface treatment as well as internal treatment for every condition. In the Shang-han-lun, various body types are described along with their susceptibility to disease.

The tongue is a very important diagnostic indicator. There are eight types of tongues described. A white-coated tongue means too much moisture, and fever must be induced by applying heat. A yellow-coated tongue, if dry, indicates the need for evacuants; if moist, evacuants should never be used. A red-coated tongue signals the need for increase in body fluids, while a shortened tongue offers a very grave prognosis. A purple tongue shows the patient suffers from "soiled blood."

Diagnosis by means of the pulse is very important.

Three fingers are placed along the radial pulse at the wrist, the middle finger over the head of the radial bone. The pulse is felt in each finger separately. Seventeen types of pulse are described with their significance and necessary therapy: pumaek, or floating pulse, ch'immaek, or sinking pulse, sangmaek, or rapid pulse, stagnant pulse, scanty pulse, hasty pulse, bowstring pulse, broad pulse, narrow pulse, gentle pulse, feeble pulse, intermittent regular pulse, and intermittent irregular pulse. These give a fair example of the various types. The intermittent regular pulse, or t'aemaek, is more dangerous than the intermittent irregular pulse and is a serious prognostic sign. In the days of the Yi dynasty, no physician was allowed to see or touch the queen. A silk thread was attached to her wrist and handed to the practitioner, who stood behind a screen out of view. By merely feeling her pulse through the thread, he was required to diagnose and prescribe her treatment.

Some 1500 years ago surgery was performed, including brain surgery, such as trephining the skull. The great surgeon Hwat'a was once summoned to see the king, who was suffering from a king-size headache. Hwat'a decided that brain surgery was indicated and so advised the king. The king decided that this was a plot on his life and promptly had Hwat'a executed and all his books and instruments burned. That ended Han Yak surgery.

Today, Han Yak practitioners are not allowed to perform surgery. They are, however, licensed to practice medicine with the same government recognition accorded to graduates of modern medical schools.

A host of wild flowers, roots, and fruits are used in the preparation of drugs. To list a few of the common ones:

Camellia buds are used to steady the mind.

Iris roots are used for feeble-mindedness.

Snakeberry leaves are used to regulate the menstrual cycle.

Azalea roots are used for pleurisy.

Yellow day lilies are a good physic.

Bluebells are a remedy for colds and fever.

Kudzu vine roots are boiled to make a cure for a "beer headache."

Chrysanthemum roots are also used as a cure for headaches.

Thistle root is used for malaria and rheumatism.

Insam, or ginseng, is the panacea for all diseases needing an increase in heat or yang.

In a recent advertisement in a local newspaper, ginseng is said to be "The only Korean-made Drug Exported to World Markets. It will satisfy your wants . . . to check senility, to help recuperation of convalescents, to give vitality to the feeble, to step up digestion, and it is the ideal hematinic. The Royal Elixir of the Orient, Sam Yang Ton, is a concoction of such marvelous remedies as Koryo Ginseng and Antler of Deer, together with Vitamin B and other Vital Elements. Owing to the kind help of the Foreign Ministry, which introduced the drug into international markets, Sam Yang Ton has already been exported to Hong Kong and Thailand, and will soon be exported to other Southeast Asian countries."

In addition to orthodox Han Yak, there are "peoples' remedies" and women practitioners who specialize in driving out evil spirits, which are also believed to cause disease. By beating drums, burning Incense, and chanting holy incantations, these sorceresses, or mudang, attend the sick. Some women specialize in certain conditions. For example, some practitioners cauterize the vagina with acid or lye for prolapse of the uterus or postpartum hemorrhage. This treatment often results in a burn through the vagina into the bladder or rectum or both, causing a vesicovaginal or rectovaginal fistula. Correction of this condition offers one of the major challenges to modern gynecological surgery. In a mission hospital we have seen as many as forty of these miserable sufferers in the course of a year.

Another treatment is to place an infected foot or hand into the belly of a dead pig for three days. This treatment may produce gas gangrene, and amputation of the extremity is necessary to save the patient's life. Snake meat and dog meat are both believed to be very fine tonics, especially recommended as a body restorer.

Drinking a broth of pig's feces is used to treat intestinal obstruction in an effort to cause a violent diarrhea. The results are of ten fatal. These "peoples' remedies" are not a part of formal Han Yak, but are part of the treatment one may receive in the villages from unlicensed practitioners.

The Oriental College of Pharmacy, now a department of a major university in Seoul, is recognized as a regular medical school by the Ministry of Education. Han Yak holds a respected place in Korean society, and embodies Confucian philosophy as applied to medicine. One practitioner in commenting on Han Yak and Western medicine said, "We use the solid needle in our treatments; you in the West use a hollow needle and inject something through it. This is the main difference between the two systems. Perhaps the hollow needle is an advancement; I do not know."

There are several attitudes in Korea about handicapped people which are quite different from Western attitudes. Handicapped people are hidden from view and are not expected to be able to do anything. It is very difficult to find an employer who will use handicapped people. There are not enough jobs for whole people, so the handicapped have little opportunity. Schools often will not admit a child with a physical defect. Many handicapped children are neglected so that they do not survive long, once it is determined that their handicap is permanent.

One exception to this is the employment of a blind person as a fortune teller or a massager. Recently, a group of blind people demonstrated before the National Assembly in Seoul protesting a change in the law that would deprive them of recognition as licensed acupuncturists as well.

Another attitude that adversely affects patients is the strong feeling that one must die at home. If a patient appears critical after major surgery, or during the course of treatment, the family is likely to rush the patient home lest he die away from home and his spirit continue to wander and afflict the family. If a doctor insists on treating a patient and he dies, the family is often bitter, not so much because the patient died, but that he did not die at home. They will try to make it appear that the doctor made some mistake in treatment that caused the sudden and unexpected death; otherwise the doctor would have warned the family in time to take the patient home to die in peace. The securing of permission for autopsies is very difficult in Korea.

This also makes some doctors reluctant to treat critically ill people who might be saved if they could be treated continuously, for the doctors fear reprisal from the family should the patient die in the hospital. Families often refuse to pay hospital bills if a patient dies, regardless of the cause of death.

At the time of death, the relatives set up a wailing that is loud and uncontrolled and often violent. They may go wild and try to tear the place apart, and are abusive to anyone who has been connected with the treatment. Relatives who have shown little concern for the patient, and have even been unwilling to give blood to save his life, will turn on this violent show of grief when the patient dies. During all this emotional outburst there is little chance to settle business matters and, in order to restore peace and quiet for the other patients in the hospital, the family is allowed to leave without settling bills. It is usually impossible to collect a bill once the body has left the hospital grounds.

Korea has three systems of medical practitioners: Han Yak, "peoples' remedies," and modern trained doctors. A fourth system consists of pharmacists who are allowed to diagnose and treat patients without a doctor's prescription or examination. This results in much waste and misuse of scarce drugs and, in cases of inadequate treatment, the development of drug resistance on the part of bacteria. Many of the seriously ill are poorly cared for. Appendicitis is rarely seen before an abscess has developed from a ruptured appendix. Much permanent damage is done because the families first tried useless remedies before coming at last to competent medical help. Koreans continue to spend large sums of money on medical care but, unfortunately, much of what they spend results in little benefit for the sick. It is amazing that the human body can stand so much misguided treatment.

Many Koreans feel that to patronize a system other than Han Yak, or to speak against it, is to act against the true Korea. A Korean accepts Han Yak first. Only when it fails and much valuable time has been lost does he turn in extremis to modern medicine for treatment.

This attitude towards Han Yak seems unrelated to education. People with graduate degrees from American universities, and even those certified by specialty board examinations in American societies of medical specialists, when they return to Korea, continue to seek out the Han Yak practitioner first for their own families' ills.

Eighty years of modern medical practice in Korea have yet to shake the strong faith that most people hold in the ancient Han Yak.

VII. MODERNIZED KOREANS

20 | Koreans Today

There is one very influential group of younger Koreans who are now largely "westernized" or modernized. They have gone abroad and secured their education in some of the most advanced disciplines, have competed with other nationalities, and have been able to obtain graduate degrees from the finest universities in the world. This group is bi-lingual or tri-lingual, and is almost bi-national. They are truly cosmopolitan. They feel equally at home on the Korean ondol floor, seated in a supersonic jet, operating a heart-lung pump, or monitoring an atomic reactor.

Their general preferences are for the best in Korean culture and life. They usually pref er good Korean food to Western food, but can eat either with ease. They are beginning to hold responsible positions in the educational world, in the professions, and in government; and they enjoy the exhilaration of power and accomplishment.

Some of these Koreans have dual personalities. With a foreigner they can appear to be almost completely Western in their attitudes, language, and manners. However, once they are with an all-Korean group, they revert to their Korean personality, and can express all the traditional attitudes and prejudices, and assume face, with the most nationalistic of their fellows.

People who thus live in two worlds tend, when under pressure, to revert to their former state. When things are going well, a person will seem to hold to his newly-acquired Western attitudes and standards; but, as things become more difficult, he may switch to traditional Korean attitudes.

One feature of some modernized Koreans is that their modernization may be uneven or spotty. They may be fluent and knowledgeable in one area, but completely ignorant in another, without the broad base that most educated people acquire through years of schooling and associations in their native cultures. This makes for some misunderstanding when there are problems, and sudden breaks in communication may occur.

Many in this group feel the need to travel abroad frequently to prove to themselves that they are successful and are not bound to Korea. They may feel imprisoned when they do not have a passport and an exit permit in their pockets. Some depend for prestige on being selected to attend various international gatherings.

Some have become "professional" Koreans. They are quick to point out the weaknesses of foreigners, and generally tend to feel superior to them, thus confirming their traditional belief that, ultimately, the Korean way is the best way, and Koreans are the cleverest people on earth. They can ad just to their surroundings with ease, and some are willing to make whatever compromises are necessary for their own personal progress. Their loyalty tends to be to themselves alone. Abroad, they may forget a wife and family and marry someone they meet. Some have become masters at dodging immigration laws, and move from country to country as their visas expire.

Some have trained themselves far beyond what can be supported in Korean society, and manage to secure positions in scarce specialties abroad where they can receive incomes that cannot be matched in Korea. This group of Korea's brightest and most able are often lost to the development of the country as they settle in more comfortable slots abroad, with no intention of ever returning to help raise the standards of their homeland.

Some are truly patriotic; they have returned to Korea and are doing outstanding work, of ten at personal financial sacrifice. Those of the modernized Koreans who have elect·d to stay in Korea most need encouragement from the government and from Westerners in Korea. They are the cream of the intellectual crop.

21 | Impact of Study and Travel on Korean Attitudes

It is a long step from living on an ondol floor to a large metropolitan center in a Western country where living is sanitary, efficient, and comfortable the year around. This sudden leap from the stark realities of Korean living to a "heaven-on-earth," physically speaking, produces many interesting effects on Koreans who go abroad.

The first reaction of many Koreans is open-mouthed wonder at the "marvelous, unbelievable, heavenly" way of life abroad. To most comes a sober second look and some second thoughts, depending on the contacts made and the personal experiences.

Korean students either like the natives or become increasingly disenchanted. If their previous maturity is adequate, many adjust without major changes in their basic thought patterns. If they are immature and lack basic understanding of the language, or have a few unhappy experiences, they may return to Korea convinced of Korean superiority, and that there is really little worth learning abroad. Western civilization is, they say, in fact a "paper tiger" full of violence, crude social behavior, race prejudice, and a self-centered craze for soft living and luxury.

Some short-term visitors, with little language and much face to uphold, see very little of what they pass, never asking a question when they do not understand what they see. These return with minds convinced that the foreign way has little to offer intellectually, morally, or physically. Many anti-Western Koreans are to be found among those who have returned from short visits abroad.

A teacher who is trained abroad sometimes finds it difficult to be accepted back into an institution in Korea. His training poses a threat to the older professors who have not had his experience and background. These elderly hold-overs from Japanese training before World War II usually want to avoid an invasion of Western-trained teachers in their realm.

Those students who have settled in critical professions abroad, where the demand for their services has caused employers to make special pleas to keep them, are considered by many in Korea to be exceedingly clever. They are also proud that a Korean can win fame and academic standing in an "advanced country." Other Koreans, however, consider them to be traitors to the "true Korea."

The first reaction of the long-term trainee abroad upon returning to Korea is often utter disgust at the smells, the filth, the poverty, the inefficiency, and the corruption of officials; all things that were never noticed before living overseas. These people tend to criticize all things Korean, and show little respect for the old customs. This type of approach, naturally, does not win a warm welcome from Koreans who have "suffered" by not leaving Korea, and often antagonizes the stay-at-homes.

The cycle slowly changes and the returnee begins to settle back into the Korean pattern again and learns that, in order to survive, he must ad just to his former state. The returnee soon discovers that it helps to be critical and to discount things Western. Many follow the cycle to ultranationalism and apparent hatred for the West. It usually depends on the stage of the cycle in which a returnee happens to be during his recovery from living abroad as to what his attitudes and reactions will be about the West vis-a-vis Korea.

In general, foreign trips and foreign training appear to be most productive when made available on the postgraduate level and in fields that cannot be adequately taught in Korea, and for persons with demonstrated maturity who have made a success in Korea and have a challenging place to come back to after their period of advanced training. To tamper with a person's culture by exposing him during his formative period to a radically different culture, and then to expect him to adapt back to his original culture, is asking too much in most cases.

Those who have been carefully selected, who have proven themselves mature before going abroad, and who have a specific job to return to after completion of their study, come back from their foreign experiences greatly enriched, and bring back a genuine desire to help their country and to do an honest job. These have learned to accept the good in other cultures and reject the bad. These are the people, thoroughly sophisticated, who are qualified and able to make a positive contribution to the future development of Korea. These are also the people with whom it is easiest for Westerners to cooperate in joint projects. Fortunately for Korea, there are many returning students who fall into this group.

To make the great leap from the ox-cart society to a jet society and back again is quite a feat. It is to the great credit of many Koreans that they accomplish this feat as well as they do. It is no wonder that some find it difficult, if not impossible, to clear this barrier with distinction.

22 | Imprint of Japanese Occupation on Korean Patterns

When Commodore Perry anchored off the shores of Japan in 1853, he set off concussions that still reverberate throughout Asia. Japan turned her face to the West and, under the Meiji Restoration, promptly studied and adopted Western technology and administrative reforms which helped her to become the undisputed power in the Far East. China resisted the invasion from the West and fought a losing battle to remain traditional. Korea, under the suzerainty of China, continued her policy of isolation and kept her gates closed to foreigners. She was left without protection after Japan's victories over China in 1895, and the Russian Navy on May 27, 1905 in the Korean Straits, when 32 out of 35 Russian ships were sunk. Korea thus had little alternative but to acquiesce in Japanese claims upon her as their prize of war.

There was an attempt by a group of young Korean gentlemen to open the doors to new ideas. They first toured the United States, Russia, and Japan in the early 1880's and returned from their trip with many ideas which they urged the court to adopt.

This early history can be illustrated by the story of the beginning of the postal system. In 1884 the first post office was opened in Seoul and Inch'ŏn with stamps printed in Japan. On the day of the official celebrations opening the new postal system, the progressive elements attempted a coup d'etat (the Kap Sin attempt), to drive out the conservatives who were backed by China. The coup failed and the young Minister of Posts was cut down in the Secret Gardens of the Ch'ang Duk Palace in Seoul, thus bringing to a close the postal system for the next ten years. The Japanese had established their own postal system in the treaty ports of Pusan and Inch'ŏn for their own nationals. By 1905 they were able to merge the Korean and Japanese postal systems under Japanese administration.

By 1910, the annexation of Korea by Japan was largely a formality which met with little organized resistance. Japan set out to make Korea a model colony, after the custom of great nations of that day. She planned to use this base on the land mass of Asia to extend her influence over all of eastern Asia.

She first attempted to serve in an advisory position to Korean officials, but soon found that, without actual control, it was impossible to institute the reforms in administration which she felt were essential to develop her new colony. The Japanese followed a paternalistic system of government. Following the traditional Confucian protocol, they attempted to gain the respect of Koreans, if not their love, but in general it can be said that they usually failed to obtain either.

Aside from the assassination of Marquis Ito in 1909 in Manchuria, and the 1919 demonstrations of young Christian and other leaders against Japanese rule, there was relatively little open resistance to the Japanese occupation of Korea. However, there was continuing passive resistance of varying degrees to the Japanese throughout the occupation.

Depending on the personality of the Japanese Governor General in Seoul, the Koreans were treated harshly or kindly, and they were made to realize that only as a part of the Japanese dream of greatness in Asia was there hope for survival.

Korean customs and manners remained little affected by the occupation forces until the 1930's, when the Japanese took an aggressive turn toward fulfilling their dream of a Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. From this time on, Koreans were strongly pressured to "conform to Japanese standards. The Korean language was prohibited in the schools and in public use. The teaching of Korean history and culture was forbidden. Koreans were required to take on Japanese names, and the program of full integration of the Korean peninsula into the Japanese Empire was greatly accelerated.

Early in their occupation, the Japanese set up a complete school system for Japanese children in Korea, based on the German model. A parallel system was set up for Koreans, but it was of inferior quality. Only the children of those who cooperated completely with the Japanese rulers were allowed the special honor of attending Japanese schools. The price for having one's children educated in the better schools was complete collaboration with the Japanese regime.

The Japanese introduced modern buildings constructed along European architectural lines. German medicine was introduced into the Imperial University in Keijo(Seoul), and this influence remains to this day in Seoul National University. The Japanese military machine was patterned after the Prussian model. Port facilities and extensive irrigation systems, with reservoirs and hydro-electric plants, were built. Gold mining was developed as well as coal and tungsten mines. Large fertilizer plants and cement plants were built.

Silk culture was expanded and a textile industry was developed, as well as a tobacco monopoly system created under government control. The government monopolies ran all major industries and utilities. Japan used Korea as a training base for her armies and air force in preparation for the invasion of Manchuria and China in the 1930's.

During the period of Japanese occupation, Koreans were allowed to hold only subordinate positions in government. They were used as cheap labor for Japan's industrial development. Koreans thus observed the manners and patterns of Japanese behavior from the sergeant's point of view. They came to resent their second-class citizenship and the fact that they were not given training in managerial skills. The Koreans who suddenly found themselves in positions of authority after the Liberation in 1945 tried to copy the external antics of the Japanese without adopting the strict controls essential to make their authoritarian system work.

Since the Japanese concentrated their efforts in urban areas, the 80 per cent of the population comprising the farmers made few changes in their traditional attitudes and patterns of action.

The cities under Japanese occupation were poor copies of Japanese cities, with shops full of Japanese goods and business conducted along Japanese lines. Some city people became hardly distinguishable from the Japanese rulers. Some Koreans tried to pass as Japanese, and fully adopted Japanese manners, language, and culture in so far as they had the opportunity.

Since the occupying forces had complete control of the police, the courts, transportation, utilities, communications, mass media, the schools, hospitals, and large industries, few Koreans dreamed that the Japanese would ever be forced to leave. Many settled for trying to succeed under the Japanese, and found that the more like them they could become, the more chance for success. A few Koreans were appointed to the police on the lower levels and some were actually appointed as judges in the lower courts. Japanese tended to use Koreans to do their dirty work, both in Korea and elsewhere in Japanese-controlled areas on the mainland.

Twenty years after Korea's liberation from Japan, it is interesting to note what vestiges of Japanese thought patterns and attitudes still remain. The schools are still built and run largely along Japanese lines. The government monopolies of tobacco, salt, and major industries are still operated along Japanese administrative lines. The irrigation system, the agricultural cooperatives, the banks, the courts, and the police are essentially patterned after the former Japanese system. The Korean army has been largely generaled by men who served in the Japanese armed forces, although it has, since its beginning, been subject to strong United States influence. Since the Korean War, the Republic of Korea Army has been trained and completely supplied with American equipment.

When a Korean over 35 years of age figures arithmetic, he will revert to the Japanese language, for this is the way he learned his arithmetic; he flounders if he tries to figure things out in Korean. Ceremonies used by the government are based on the Japanese Buddhist and Shinto pattern. School uniforms, teaching methods, and the rank

system for teachers are all based on the Japanese plan. Railway stations are run along Japanese models; the Station Master with his white gloves follows the way he remembers the Japanese acted in the same job.

Vestiges of the Japanese army system can still be seen in the manner in which Korean soldiers carry the ashes of fallen comrades at military funerals. They wear white surgeon's masks, white gloves, and carry the ashes in a box slung from the shoulders by a white sash. A picture of the deputed is displayed on the front of the box. This is the custom for Japanese military funerals. At public ceremonies, the bowing of heads for a moment of silence, honoring the spirits of the dead, follows Japanese Shinto practice. Civilian funerals of public figures are patterned after the Japanese model.

At the end of World War II, General MacArthur set up his Supreme Headquarters in Tokyo and, in the early days of the occupation, directed the military government in Korea. It was early decided to keep most of the Japanese laws in force, and only gradually to change them as circumstances required. This decision, which was considered the only practical one under existing circumstances, has tended to perpetuate the principal aspects of the Japanese legal and government administrative system.

President Syngman Rhee had violent emotional hatred for Japan, but he did not revoke the Japanese system when his new Republic of Korea government assumed office in 1948. He used the powers of his office to educate young Koreans in a reflex reaction of hatred for anything Japanese. Older Koreans did not openly oppose this approach, but many stated privately that they did not have the same feelings toward the Japanese as did the President. For bargaining purposes, in trying to force Japan to return national treasures and pay reparations for their exploitation of Korea, it was useful to continue the "hate Japan" approach up until the conclusion of the normalization treaty with Japan in 1965.

Many Koreans felt that the Japanese must somehow be made to confess publicly and seek Korea's public pardon for the sins they committed in Korea during their occupation. It was only after fourteen years of fruitless negotiations, during which it became apparent that Japan was not dependent on Korean goodwill, that the Koreans finally became reconciled to a settlement and re-establishment of formal diplomatic relations with Japan. The fear and suspicion of possible Japanese aggressive economic moves against Korea exist side by side with admiration and envy of Japanese economic development and technical ability. Japanese goods are highly prized in Korea and are available in many stores. For a time Korean-knit sweaters, when shipped to Japan and returned with a Japanese label, sold for three times the price of the same article bearing Korean labels.

Those who were educated in Japanese schools and universities remain proud of their degrees and still play a vital role in educational and governmental circles. Japanese education is still more highly respected by many Koreans than is American education. Koreans are quick to notice and to attempt to follow the Japanese example in social and business trends. One of the possible reasons for this may be that Koreans feel that Japanese attainments are possible for Korea, whereas Western economic and technical development and Western culture and ideas are so far removed as to be beyond the realm of possibility.

Remnants of Japanese superstitions still hold sway among some Koreans. The unlucky number four, sa, which has the same sound as the word for death, is still avoided by many Koreans. Hotels do not have a fourth, floor, in the same way that Western hotels skip the thirteenth floor. No Korean military unit uses four in its unit designation since the 14th regiment revolted in Yŏsu in 1948 in an abortive Communist attempt to take over the army. Telephone numbers and license plates on cars used the number four mainly for foreigners, as most Koreans would object to such a number. This is a little joke played on foreigners, who are considered not to know about the meaning of four.

Writing a person's name in red, for example on a place card or a Christmas card, signifies death and should be avoided. A sentence of death used to be written in red. Another superstition is that girls born in the very unlucky "White Horse Year" (1966) have great difficulty finding a good husband; some women are said to resort to abortion to prevent childbirth during such an unlucky year.

More interesting perhaps than the Japanese adaptations are the many Japanese things the Koreans did not adopt. The strong religious forces of Shintoism and Zen Buddhism, and the lively pantheistic world of Japanese demons and spirits, have never been accepted to the same degree in Korea. The strict Bushido code of Japanese militarism, in which the warrior was glorified, did not displace the scholar who, in Korea, remains the object of reverence and admiration.

Koreans are, perhaps, more skillful in diplomacy than the Japanese, who, in the past, have tended to use strong-arm techniques in Asia. While adopting the bureaucratic system of the Japanese, the Koreans have not accepted the disciplines which in Japan make the system work successfully. Koreans never adopted the Japanese diet; and, although there is a re-opening of many Japanese restaurants in Seoul, most Koreans prefer their own dishes with strong kimch'i. Koreans continue to sit comfortably on the floor with their legs crossed rather than adopting the more difficult and uncomfortable Japanese way of sitting on their flexed knees and feet. The continuous social bowing of the Japanese was quickly abandoned in favor of the single bow in greetings.

Certainly twenty years of liberation and relatively strong American influence in Korea have not erased the marks of forty years of Japanese domination. In spite of these forty years, some fifteen years of which were directed at trying to make the Koreans into Japanese, the Koreans have remained Korean. They have adopted only those externals from the Japanese which fitted into their traditional patterns, and have rejected most mannerisms and customs which were distinctly Japanese.

Koreans have thus again proved their ability to resist assimilation by a foreign power. Like the ancient Hebrews, they have remained a distinctive nation, even though submerged periodically by powerful neighbors both near and far. Korea has been likened to ancient Palestine, with the Romans as the Japanese of their day, and the Greeks as the Chinese of their day, passing to and fro through the land. It absorbed from each certain externals and new ideas, but accepted changes in methods and techniques rather than in basic philosophy. Koreans have remained true to their own culture and patterns of thought as developed through the centuries.

23 | Reactions to American Forces

The American military man arrives for his tour in Korea with mixed feelings, based on the stories he has heard from many who served during the grimmest days of the Korean War. During his tour he is likely to meet only two basic types of Koreans: those who work on military posts and those who make their living trying to supply the off-duty extra-curricular needs and desires of military men. Some foreign military men even try to limit themselves to meeting only one type of Korean by never leaving their compounds, thus keeping themselves "uncontaminated" and in blissful ignorance of the society in which they are living. They forego a rare opportunity to see a fascinating country and to make interesting friends that might enlarge their vision of the world and rub off a few misconceptions.

It is to their great credit that many Koreans have been willing and able to adjust to working with Western military people over the past twenty-two years with a minimum of friction and tension. Often it is the trusted Korean clerk or assistant in an office who gives continuity and efficiency amid the rapid turnover of the transient military men, who hardly learn their jobs before they are counting the days and hours until their tour is completed.

These faithful Koreans must cautiously instruct their new bosses each time, and keep the flow of papers moving smoothly from file to file. Many have mastered enough English to function effectively in the American military idiom. They have learned to keep a smiling face and a pleasant disposition under careful control regardless of the thoughtless remarks and idiosyncrasies and the morning-after tempers of their military superiors. Many have served as a true bridge of understanding between the American military units and the local communities and government. Many have adopted good foreign attitudes and manners, and carefully rejected the less laudable aspects of foreign military mentalities.

Some have learned many of the virtues and some of the vices of their associates. Some have become so isolated from their own society that they of ten react like Westerners, only more so. Many have competently learned foreign military techniques, methods, and procedures and have learned to accommodate and also how to win the admiration and respect of their foreign counterparts.

In the Confucian system, the military has always rated fairly low in the vertical scale of things. However, in modern Korea, it has been the army that has had the power, the supplies, the finances, and the men trained in modern administration, accounting, procurement, supply, transportation, logistics, medicine, and communications technology. Thus it has been largely men from the army who have learned the technology needed to modernize Korea. The army has attracted and developed some of the best-trained leadership that is available for modern Korea. It has also given a faith, a sense of purpose and destiny that has been often at sharp variance with the depressing attitudes of the squabbling politicians in civilian branches of the government.

Many of the bright young men of Korea have found in the army a sense of pride, accomplishment, and a broadened vision that have qualified them for top leadership in the new Korea. Once off the army compound, these same men often meet the traditional contempt for the military which is held by many civilians. They tend to receive little respect, recognition of rank, or appreciation from the local citizenry. This has reinforced the traditional military disdain for civilians, and they hurry back to the security of their military posts where they are recognized by their rank and feel the flow of power and status.

Many bright men who have remained in the armed forces and risen through the hard schools of war and command were originally from poor rural families. They did not enjoy the status of wealth that belonged to the "in group" families, some of whom avoided military service altogether by studying abroad or other devices. Thus the military has made personages of these men from limited backgrounds who might never have had similar opportunities in civilian life. They owe their education and their success to the army.

Those with military experience in the Japanese army at the end of World War II formed the cadres and backbone of the early Korean constabulary forces set up in 1946. Many of these men are now senior generals in the fourth largest army in the world. Most of the higher-ranking officers have learned English as a part of their equipment for success. Some of their English is "G.I. English," with all the expressive terms used freely by soldiers.

These modern military men have become quite different in their attitudes and thought patterns from those who have not spent most of their adult lives in the military. Many are quite uninformed about their own culture and history, and are happily unaware of the accepted standards of ethics in politics and the business world outside their ken. On the other hand, some have learned to adjust to the society around them, and are not above using their positions for personal gain. They have practiced the traditional lack of division between a person's private accounts and his public accounts and responsibilities.

On the lower levels of the military, the Korean army men assigned to American units have often shown great self-restraint in learning to live with the vast difference in pay between the Korean and American armies. Often the highly qualified Korean soldier works side by side with a less capable counterpart, while receiving one tenth the pay. If there is an occasional loss of personal belongings in such a situation, the careless manner in which Westerners sometimes leave things lying about unguarded may be partly to blame for the problem.

The other group of Koreans the foreign military man is likely to meet are those who hang around outside the fence of his military compound. People who make their living off the army camps are considered by other Koreans to be "unpersons." Camp followers in Korea, as in many other places on earth, are thought to be semi-criminals and prostitutes. To the traditional Korean, all non-Koreans are, naturally, barbarians. Criminals and prostitutes, and other "unpersons," being fixed in their rank and position by an inflexible social system, are denied recognition by society and are also almost beyond its control. Anything goes. To steal is clever, to be caught stealing is bad luck or stupidity. To beg or embarrass a personage in public is great sport. A social outcast can be an actor and show all the range of emotions in public without inhibitions because, not having much face, he has little face to lose and thus can act on primitive instincts. "Unpersons" may fight, commit crimes, drink, and carouse loudly and obnoxiously for all to see and to avoid.

In the past, the prostitution around foreign army camps has been highly organized. Poor families have sometimes given their daughters as security for loans. These girls have been trained by their sponsors in the arts of modern dress, make-up, dancing, and seductive English. They have then had to rent a room and bed from their sponsors at exorbitant rates, so that they might entertain the soldiers. Few are able to work their way out of this load of debt. Some even commit suicide once their "boy friend" ends his tour. Taking chloroquine tablets, given to the soldiers to prevent malaria, has been the favorite means of suicide, as it is effective and non-treatable, once a lethal dose is taken.

Girls try to receive pay for their services in military payment certificates. These can then be passed on to some "legal" wives of personnel who have PX privileges, and thus begins the steady flow of PX items to the Korean black market, circumventing Korean customs. This system has worked so smoothly and efficiently that items arriving on a PX shelf from the States are said to have been clocked showing up on the Korean market in twenty minutes.

Several times in the past, military commanders have made heroic efforts to stop this illegal flow of PX luxury items to the civilian market by allowing the dependents access to the PX only in the company of their husbands. On one occasion, these dependents then took to the streets in demonstrations before the American Embassy raising the issue of racial discrimination and second-class citizenship. All Koreans are very sensitive to any indignity shown even to criminals by foreign troops that suggests, in any way, that they are considered to be inferior beings. The commanders had to rescind their orders and retreat in disorder before the public outcry.

No doubt this type of large-scale operation must have the help and collaboration of Western personnel in order to continue. The Korean government has made numerous attempts at policing the markets and confiscating black market PX items, but these forays usually only ripple the surface, and the next day business is back to normal. Some "legal" dependents on a private' s pay have been known to purchase the full limit allowed them every day the PX is open.

The days on which the military suddenly change the military payment certificates (MPC) for a new issue have been agonizing for some. Without warning, the compounds are sealed off and no one can come or go until the exchange period is over. The illegal holders of MPC suddenly find their fortunes have the value of Confederate money. In the past, this has shaken the whole civilian economy and many businesses have suddenly collapsed. In this running battle between the haves and the have-nots, many have lost all respect for Americans and vice versa.

Racially mixed infants fathered by foreign troops create a problem in a country which has a very strong sense of race. Racially mixed children have little hope of full acceptance in Korean society. Their probable future is in prostitution for the girls and crime for the boys. Many have been saved from this future by being adopted into homes abroad. Black eyes and black hair are considered the only true beauty in Korean society.

On the positive side, many military units have sponsored orphanages and do much in community relations around their camps. The problem in orphanages is what becomes of the orphans once they grow up and have no family backing to see them into good schools and worthwhile jobs. In order to secure one of the hard-to-find jobs, one must nearly always be recommended by someone who is willing to stand behind him (almost as a bond for him). Orphans generally have no such support, and thus have great difficulty securing positions.

In the traditional society, an orphan was taken in by a relative, no matter how distant, and was allowed to work as a servant in the home and eventually was set up in life, if a boy, and given clothes and a dowry and married off, if a girl. The building of many orphanages around military camps and by other Western groups since the Korean War has tended to break down this family-responsible custom. Now some tend to feel little responsibility for their orphaned relatives, relegating them to the tender mercies of orphanages and taking no further interest in them. Many poor families have placed their children in orphanages because they were poor. It is questionable whether the training given in the average orphanage does for the child what even a poor home can offer him. Thus orphanages have been a mixed blessing, to say the least.

Another problem connected with orphanages has been chat some directors, following good traditional custom, have not distinguished their personal accounts from those of the orphanage. Often the care of children and their feeding have taken second place to the personal well-being of the managers. In recent years, it has been only in such orphanages that one could find truly malnourished children in Korea. Many orphanages, due to their generous foreign support, have become money-making projects for the managers. Thus generosity and a desire to help poor children have created a social problem for which, as yet, no satisfactory answer has been found.

The child mascots of military units have also been a sad group once they have grown beyond the age when they are "cute." Their original sponsors have long since departed, and their replacements often want to "discover" their own mascots. These half-cultured waifs have, of necessity, often drifted into crime and ended up as poor toughs, unable to make their way in the unfriendly world of civilian life. These by-products have at times damaged the image of foreign troops with many traditionally-minded Koreans. However, over the years this generous American concern for children has basically won the respect and appreciation of most knowledgeable Koreans.

Many tend to look on an American military unit as a gold mine set in their midst, to be worked by whatever means are available. Units are often allowed the privilege of contributing to highly-organized efforts to build a schoolhouse, a church, or a new road for the village. No request seems too outlandish to some local leaders. Some organized criminal groups have tried to compromise unit commanders to insure that they will overlook the shady business enterprises around the compounds.

The fact that many Americans abroad have made moral slips is one possible explanation for the feeling of revulsion some military men feel for Korea. The many genuine friendships that have developed between Koreans and Americans over the years attest to the fact that one finds all types of people in Korea, as well as elsewhere in the world.

24 | Christianity in Korea

Christianity was first introduced into Korea late in the 16th century by Korean emissaries returning from Peking with Catholic writings. Because the Christians set themselves against Confucianism and ancestor worship, they were persecuted and many were killed. For the next two hundred years, the Christians continued their heroic struggle to survive, waxing and waning according to the moods of the rulers, who increased or decreased their pressure to exterminate them. Beginning in the 19th century, Western contacts increased, and when the first Protestant missionaries arrived in Korea in the 1880's, they found over 10,000 Catholics who had survived the persecutions.

The reports of the first Protestant missionaries stimulated several religious groups to send numbers of missionaries to Korea. The Presbyterian and Methodist churches responded with the largest contingents before World War II. The Protestant movement in Korea received great impetus from a spiritual revival which swept the church, beginning in 1906. It became known world-wide as a Bible-believing, prayer-centered church and a model for successful missionary activity in the other non-Christian lands.

Early in its history it became a largely self-supporting, self-sacrificing, self-propagating, and self-governing church. In the 1930's, a large influx of Catholic missionaries came from the United States and Ireland. After the Korean War had turned the world spotlight on Korea, many sects began to send representatives from countries around the world.

During the period of the Japanese occupation of Korea from 1905 to 1945, the Christian group attracted many patriotic Koreans who sought Western associations in preference to collaboration with the Japanese. The Japanese authorities soon recognized that the Korean Christian community was a center of anti-Japanese resistance and activity. In 1919, a group of young people, largely Christian in leadership, staged a nation-wide passive demonstration against Japanese rule in the hope of attracting world attention to the Korean desire for independence. The Japanese ruthlessly suppressed these demonstrations and increased their efforts to stamp out all vestiges of Korean nationalism.

In the 1930's, groups of Protestant Christians refused to comply with Japanese orders to participate in religious services at Shinto shrines. Some mission schools were closed because of their refusal to send school children out to bow at the shrines. Many Protestant leaders were imprisoned for this show of resistance to Japanese super-patriotism. Many died under torture in prison.

The Catholic Church and some Protestant groups took the position that Shinto observances were merely patriotic exercises of no religious significance, and allowed their followers to take part. Many Christian leaders were re-arrested just before the Japanese surrender on August 15, 1945. It was the general belief of the Christian community that those in prisons would have been executed had not the war come to a sudden close following the atomic bombing of Japan.

Since 1945, many Christians in north Korea have been arrested and executed by the Communists. In the Republic of Korea, during the Communist invasion of 1950, many Christian leaders were executed and many were taken north with the retreating Communist armies. There were incidents where church groups were surrounded during services, the buildings set afire, and those who tried to escape cut down by Communist gunners stationed outside. At least five hundred Protestant leaders disappeared during the Korean War.

Before 1945, an estimated 10% of the population of P'yŏng Yang was considered Christian. Over 50% of the population of Sonch'ŏn in north Korea was considered to be Christian. Among the nearly four million refugees from Communist rule in north Korea since 1945, whole church congregations fled to the south. The Christian church in north Korea no longer exists above ground.

The Korean church has not fully recovered from the tremendous loss of leadership during the Korean War. With the dislocations of war have come a lowering of standards of leadership and a resurgence of the traditional Confucian patterns of action, causing many divisions in the major church groups. Where there was one Presbyterian Church in Korea in 1945, there are four major divisions of the Presbyterian Church in 1967. These church splits have not necessarily reduced the church, since competition has stimulated each division to win more converts, thus increasing the total numbers. But the spectacle of Christians fighting each other has not improved the public image of the Christian church in Korea. There is little willingness to heal divisions or reunite divided groups.

Some Korean church leaders trace the lowering of standards in the church after 1945 to two major corrupting influences. First was the mad scramble to secure Japanese vested property for churches, orphanages, and seminaries. These desirable properties, which were up for grabs after the withdrawal of the Japanese, could be secured by using Western contacts as intermediaries with the American officials in the military government, or by bribing Korean officials to put in a good word.

The second corrupting factor was, ironically, caused by the generous outpouring of relief supplies, largely from the United States, in response to the stark picture of human suffering which followed as a consequence of modern war up and down the peninsula. Many of the supplies were channeled through church leaders who were completely untrained in relief activities, who were under intolerable pressures, and who often failed to administer their distribution equitably. In spite of many difficulties, the church shows steady growth, and most churches are crowded at every service.

25 | Impact of Christianity on Traditional Korean Attitudes

Since Christianity in Korea has come from the West, and since Christian missionary activity has been extensive and relatively successful, it has had a substantial impact on traditional Korean thought patterns and attitudes. Christian mission activity has emphasized education and evangelistic, medical, and social service work. Thus it has had a strong influence on many facets of Korean society.

Modern schools were first established by Christian missions. Women were first educated in mission schools. The first hospital and the first medical school were set up by medical missionaries, and Christian mission work has led the way in training Korean doctors, nurses, and technicians, sending many abroad for advanced training and offering them an environment where they can practice modern scientific medicine once they are trained.

The first tuberculosis sanitarium and the first leprosy colonies were developed and operated by Christian missions. The thriving apple industry developed from apple trees first introduced by missionaries. The rural church groups and Sunday schools have brought Western and Christian ideas into the remotest villages and islands off the coast. The Korean language and use of the phonetic alphabet, hangŭl, received a major boost by the fact that the Bible and Christian hymns were written in hangŭl.

The Protestant system of church government has been taught to Korean church leaders, so that even during the Japanese occupation, Christian leaders learned the democratic processes of representative local government in their churches. When Liberation came to Korea in 1945, the Christians were the first on the scene with knowledge of English to communicate with the American military government.

In the first National Assembly, set up in 1948, 42% of the elected assemblymen were Christians, whereas only about 4% of the population claimed to be Christian. The first two presidents of the Republic of Korea (Syngman Rhee and Yun Po-sun) and Democratic Party Premier Chang Myŏn were Christians.

Because of the inability of the Christian leaders to practice their Christian ethics and morality when they were in positions of power, the whole Christian movement has been somewhat discredited in the Korean mind. The Christians lost the opportunity to initiate modern reforms, largely due to their lack of experience in government, to passive acceptance of traditional Korean ethics, and a general inability to follow through on accepted standards.

With the turning over of the leadership of the Christian movement to Koreans, direct Western influence on the Christian movement is steadily decreasing. With this change is developing a return to more traditional Korean methods of doing things. As yet, the Korean Christian community has not spelled out what it envisions a Christian Korea should be like. They have not yet set national Christian goals, or become deeply involved in national, social, and philosophical dialogues. It remains for the future to see a distinctive Korean church architecture develop. There are beginnings of Korean church music. Korean church services, weddings, and funerals are still patterned on what are considered Western practices.

The Korean church has a well-established organization with a broad base in rural and urban areas, and a steadily growing number of well-trained pastors and leaders. What direction it will take in the future is yet to be determined. It is waiting, perhaps, for the arrival on the scene of a charismatic leader.

26 | Some Attitudes of Korean Christians

The Christian community in Korea, with a history of persecution and martyrdom, in many ways resembles the first century Christian church. Christians have tried to separate themselves from the world. They have set standards of their own that have little relation to the society in which they live. They tend to have a strongly evangelistic and missionary approach. More emphasis is placed on winning a soul from hell than in becoming involved in this world's problems.

During the period of the Japanese occupation, they tended to place more emphasis on the next world than on this one and endured persecution, considering that the pilgrimage through the "vale of tears" was to be endured for the coming glory above. They have set up taboos which give one a distinctive mark as a Christian. While turning to Christianity in surprising numbers, they have still remained Korean in their basic patterns and attitudes.

Smoking became one of the early taboos among Protestant Christians in Korea. Anyone who smokes is not elected as an elder or a minister in most Protestant groups. Alcoholic beverages are also strictly taboo for Protestant Christians.

The Catholic community has not had these puritanical distinctions and has always allowed smoking and drinking among its missionaries and Korean followers.

Korean Protestants, on the whole, are shocked by the lax morals in regard to sex and social drinking among American Christians. On the other hand, many Americans are equally shocked by the lax standards of business ethics and morals of many Korean Christians who still follow the basic Confucian ethics of their own society. In spite of 80 years of missionary pressure, the moral and ethical standards of Korean Christians tend to remain in force mainly where they coincide with traditional Confucian standards.

Koreans tend to be very conservative theologically. They may be classified as conservative, more conservative, and most conservative. Korean Catholic priests tend to be much more conservative than the missionary priests. The same tendency holds true for most Protestants. Because of the freedom of church structure in the Protestant traditions, Korean groups gather around a strong leader and follow his leadership, often blindly. Because "equal" leaders find it hard to cooperate, they tend to withdraw with their followings and cause factions in the church. This, of course, is good traditional custom.

It is very difficult for many Christian groups to become concerned or involved in the many developing social problems. It is for this very reason that many people in the government and economic planning and welfare agencies tend to ignore the church and consider it irrelevant. This other-worldliness of the church often separates it from the mainstream of modern Korean life in a manner which is non-productive for both.

The Korean church is trying to raise its standards for the training of ministers and lay workers. Almost every major village in Korea and every township now has a Christian group of some variety. Foreign mission bodies are joining cooperative groups with Korean church leaders in setting budgets, policies, and planning programs for the church.

Contacts at international conferences are beginning to bring in some sophistication and a widening of vision of many church leaders. Korea is assuming her place as a well-established, strong church in the world councils of churchmen. The Korean church is sending her own missionaries to other Asian and Southeast Asian countries. The Korean church today shows all the signs of an indigenous Christian movement.

27 | The Westerner Working in Korea

The Westerner working in Korea needs to keep certain philosophic principles in mind. First, a Westerner can never become a Korean. He will never be completely accepted by Koreans as a "person." He may be accepted by a small group of people who look to him for leadership or benefits.

A Westerner is most respected when he is first true to his own philosophy, ideals, and beliefs. To compromise one's moral and religious beliefs is to invite scorn. Most Koreans have now studied and know what Westerners claim to believe. They judge them by their inability to live up to their own, not Korean, standards. Koreans graciously excuse many gross social errors in foreigners. To refuse wine, women, or bribes because of one's beliefs and standards is to gain respect and a hearing.

For a foreigner to apologize for his beliefs or standards would tend to lose him the respect of his Korean associates. Koreans are impressed by strength, moral and intellectual as well as physical, and by those who know how to use it wisely and fairly. Paradoxically, they expect from Westerners a higher degree of moral and ethical performance than they require of their own officials.

In order to survive physically in Korea, one needs to exercise a certain amount of common sense. One must realize that those Koreans who have attained adulthood are the 50% who have survived infant mortality. They are the toughest of their race. Korean life expectancy is on the order of 45-52 years, as against 72 years in the United States in 1965. To eat and live in the fashion of average Koreans is to stack the odds for long life heavily against one. Westerners have not been reared selectively through the gauntlet of major diseases that Koreans have had to survive. In public eating places, uncooked foods and unboiled water are frequently contaminated and dangerous to health. Because many Koreans seem able to live and function effectively under the severe limitations of chronic anemia from hookworms, hidden hunger from roundworms, and liver damage from liver flukes is no reason to believe that physically and immunologically unselected foreign constitutions can stand these invasions as well.

Many Westerners tend to live at a faster pace physically and emotionally than do many Koreans. Koreans are willing to live at a calmer pace, slowed down as they are by their parasites and chronic diseases, having never had to compete in a truly physically healthy society. The Korean showing at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics was not only due to poor coaching, but also, in no small part, to the physical limitations caused by intestinal parasites. The average hemoglobin in Western countries runs about 14.5 grams per 100 cc of blood for men and 14.0 grams of hemoglobin for women. In Korea the average is between 9.0 grams and 10.0 grams of hemoglobin per 100 cc of blood. This means that there is less oxygen-carrying capability to the brain, which suffers most from chronic oxygen lack. The higher centers of volition and judgement are affected first, whereas the lower brain centers manage on what oxygen is available to them. Many problems in Korea may possibly be traced to this physiological effect of low oxygen tension over long periods of time. If he is to leave Korea physically undamaged, a Westerner must use some common sense about his food, water, mosquito control, and waste disposal.

For the long-term foreign resident in Korea, there is always the temptation and danger that he will gradually give up or modify his own ethical standards and adopt local standards in his effort to identify and integrate with his Korean associates. In the area of .finances and business dealings this is especially apt to occur. One may finally give up the struggle for keeping moral standards that seem so foreign in the local situation.

It is well for foreign residents to keep this possibility in mind and try to maintain some objectivity in dealing with Koreans, since their methods of doing business often lead to economic ruin and disgrace in their own public press. Westerners cannot get away with practices that may be condoned in Koreans. Westerners will nearly always be judged by how well they keep their own standards, even by those Koreans who make no attempt at observing such foreign standards. It pays to leave Korea from time to time and live for awhile in one's home country, to regain one's vision of what practices are right and wrong, and what is considered acceptable in his own culture. Some old hands have "missed too many boats," as the saying goes.

The Westerner who has not the time or the inclination to learn the language must learn to work through interpreters. He must realize that he is making a great compromise, for often his interpreter will be speaking from a completely different frame of reference than his own. Real communication of ideas and concepts is thus difficult. Governments will be well advised to train their own interpreters from among their own nationals if they want their ideas communicated in the same frame of reference, for many Koreans have learned through experience not to trust the local interpreters, unless he is "their" man.

With the normalization of relations between Korea and Japan, those foreigners who can speak Japanese will have little difficulty communicating with Koreans age 35 and over. These were trained in Japanese-controlled schools where no Korean language was allowed. They may be more fluent in technical Japanese than in technical Korean. Younger Koreans know very little, if any, Japanese. During the early history of the Republic, students were not taught Japanese in schools. Japanese is still not a very welcome sound in Korea, and one must apologize before using it with a Korean. It should not be used in public addresses or in formal conferences. Many older Koreans are delighted to use their long-dormant talent for Japanese when given the opportunity with a foreigner who does not speak Korean.

Many Koreans resent "G.I. Japanese." Mamasan and papasan are two of these words that are especially grating on the ear of Koreans. One American colonel was heard to boast that during his first two weeks in Korea he had learned two Korean words, taksan and skoshi. His Korean hearers did not appreciate his confusion with the Japanese words for "big" and "small."

Koreans do not like to be compared with the Japanese. Many feel that Japan's economic success is due, in part, to the boost given Japan during the Korean War by American military orders. There is still a deep-seated fear and mistrust of Japanese motives in re-establishing relations with Korea. Perhaps more basic is the distrust of their own leaders who, they fear, may sell out their country to Japanese economic imperialism.

The Westerner living and working in Korea will do well so long as he has a basic respect for people as people, keeps a good sense of humor, and learns to ride a jeep as one would post a horse. To show anger and "blow one's top," or to get into a physical fight with a Korean, will seriously damage his influence and ability to survive. It is well to remember the tombstone, alleged to be in an Asiatic cemetery, which is inscribed, "Here lies he who tried to rush the East."

VIII. CONCLUSION

The chief factors which have determined traditional Korean patterns of thought and action are: geography, which has often made Korea a no-man's land between mighty neighbors; Confucianism, with its emphasis on relationships, the family, and reverence for the past; over-crowding, which does not allow for much individual freedom of action; and the hard facts of poverty. These factors have developed in Koreans a strong will to live, an amazing ability to endure, a submission of the individual for the good of the family, and a sensitive instinct for the feelings of others.

They have also developed a certain fatalism, with the consequence that many do not try to delay death, tend to live for today, and give little thought for future planning or preventive measures. There has developed a lack of public morality and concern for those outside one's own family and clan. There is little confidence in institutions or the government; loyalties are directed mainly toward the family or an individual leader.

Korea today shows many faces. The old ways of thinking remain strong in the minds of most people, regardless of their education and rank. In urban areas, many social changes are occurring in all levels of society. The traditional strict sexual morality is giving way to modifications stimulated by increasing contacts with other cultures, including Western movies and close observation of the conduct of American military personnel.

Young people in cities and towns now pattern their clothes, their hair styles, and their make-up after the latest fads seen in the fashion magazines and movies. Christianity has introduced a new appreciation of the value of the individual, especially of women. A superficial overlay of Western thought patterns has changed the outward appearance of many. Because of this overlay of Western dress and manners, some Westerners mistakenly assume that the inner man has changed. Relatively few persons, outside of some in deeply religious groups and some who have received advanced training abroad, have undergone substantial changes in their basic ways of thinking and acting. Even among Christian groups, there is a gap between Christian dogma and Christian ethics. Many Korean Christians are in reality more Confucian than Christian in their attitudes and actions.

Koreans live in a moral climate that is so different from that in Western countries that it appears amoral to some foreigners. The ethics practiced are a modification of Confucianism. Buddhism has been modified, and there is heavy pressure to modify Christianity nearer to the Korean mold. Few Koreans believe that the future will he an improvement on the past. Many are skeptical of "progress" and doubt it is possible for Korea. Those who have a vision of Utopia have little faith in its attainability.

It is not easy to give up the old ways and, with many changes in the mode of living brought about by modern cities, there is a real problem for Koreans in deciding what is worth keeping from the past and what should be modified. No one has clearly set the goals and standards for a modern Korean, be it in language (writing hangŭl phonetics or Chinese characters), in dress, in manners, in business ethics, in government standards, in job performance, or in religion.

Few Koreans have a vision of what they hope their country will become in the next ten or twenty years. The situation in Korea, in almost any field one wishes to consider, is in a fluid and fluctuating state. This is a time of great expectations, and a time that cries for strong leadership in philosophy, ethics, economics, science, and religion. At present this strong leadership has yet to appear on the Korean horizon.

There is much that the West can learn from the traditional attitudes of the Koreans. The traditional Korean respect for people as they grow older is in contrast to a culture where oldsters are often shunted aside into old peoples' homes, a crime in Korean eyes. The traditional strict sexual morality for women and the methods of protecting young girls from an over-emphasis on sex during then school years contrasts with the tremendous sexual competition among young Western girls, the growing moral laxity, and the high percentage of divorces seen in Western countries. This puritanical approach to sex in Korea has preserved the home and family system for thousands of years. Before it is carelessly discarded, Koreans might do well to re-examine some of its virtues for the good of the nation.

Koreans have great respect for learning and scholastic attainment. They have placed the scholar at the pinnacle of society. They have given their young people a grea1 incentive for education. The long hours that a Korean student spends in school would put Western children to shame. Education is taken very seriously by nearly every Korean.

Koreans are famous for their hospitality and politeness. This great sensitivity to others in interpersonal relationships lends a graciousness and generosity to society that makes for a very attractive people. No matter how humble the home, there is a warm welcome and refreshment for the visitor who enters the gate. A guest is urged to spend the night, because tomorrow might be a luckier day for travel. The ability to make people feel good is a special talent of most Koreans. Personal relationships are perhaps the most important consideration in their thinking.

When face is involved, there is a strong sense of personal responsibility and integrity in personal dealings. If an individual is made responsible for a piece of equipment, he will guard it with his life. Where clear-cut responsibility and personal relationships are not delineated, then there is little sense of responsibility; frequent loss and theft occur. There is little feeling for looking after a public place or the community.

The strong family loyalties in Korea give one pause. The internal security in the family setup means that, with family backing, one can have a refuge from the storms of life. Among Korean children there are relatively few personality problems, as compared with the many problems of Western children who visit pediatric clinics. A child grows up riding on his mother's warm back, having food available at the nearest breast, and knowing that he will not be left alone in the darkness of a lonely room. He will sleep in security with his family. The family unit is more important than the individual. Decisions are made in favor of the family, rather than for the sole benefit of a single member. Family life in the West has much to learn from the Korean family pattern.

Native intelligence and quickness of mind are a vital asset commonly found in Korea. This is a society where the survival of the fittest, both physically and mentally, demands alertness. Because of an over-crowded educational system with relatively poor basic training, this asset leads to overconfidence and inadequately planned efforts. Superficiality is a problem for many Koreans.

Like the Irish, whom they are said to resemble, the Koreans love music, have an earthy humor, a quick wit, a hot temper, and a strong pride. They have been compared to the people of Charleston, South Carolina, who also eat rice and worship their ancestors.

It is important to recognize that Korea is now a member of the free world community of nations. Her traditions are being strongly influenced and modified by the increasing number of Koreans who have received part or all of their advanced training in Western countries, by the impact of Christianity, and by increasing contacts between this once-hermit nation and foreigners, both in Korea and in the world at large. It is hoped that the influence of Greco-Judeo-Christian ideas, combined with the best in Confucian heritage, may lay a viable base for a modern society, characterized by integrity, scientific thinking, social consciousness, and a healthy belief in progress for Korea.

May Korea live ten thousand years! MANSEI!

APPENDIX

Korean Proverbs |

To know what a people use as their ideal guidelines, it is helpful to examine some of their pithy sayings. From these one can learn what is accepted as right and proper. Here are listed a few of the more common sayings with their English equivalents:

Though you bury a dog's tail for three years it will not develop weasel's fur.

(Or, in English, one cannot make a silk purse out of a sow' s ear.)

Make a needle into a pestle.

(To make a mountain out of a mole hill.)

A small beginning can make a great ending.

Many mole hills make a great mountain.

After the march the trumpet sounds.

(Or, to lock the door after the horse is gone.)

Trouble is the seed of joy.

If you find the way in the morning and die that evening, all is well.

If you sin against heaven there is no place to pray.

Just one li off the road will become a thousand li.

(Or, a miss is as good as a mile.)

The secret of happiness is health, wealth, and many sons.

To this Mencius replies, health is hard work, wealth is much trouble, and many sons mean many worries.

Power lasts ten years, influence not more than one hundred.

I wished for this world's glory, but it is only a short dream.

Lift it or raise it is all the same.

One near ink gets black.

To begin is half the job.

Righteousness will finally conquer.

Flowers will bloom again, but a man never regains his youth.

He who steals a needle will become a cow thief.

Ask the east, answer from the west.

(Give an irrelevant reply.)

It takes a tall mountain to cast a long shadow.

A successful evil-doer is a dragon, born out of a ditch, who has reached great heights.

Thunder out of a clear sky refers to unexpected trouble.

Beating a drum in a cow's ear expecting him to dance.

(Compares in English to throwing pearls before swine.)

Can there be smoke from a fireless chimney ?

Though he tries a hundred tasks, he never succeeds.

The Yellow River is never clear in a hundred years.

Though chased by a tiger, if one gathers his wits, he may live.

Who will tie a bell to a cat?

(Who allows the mice to live?)

After the march the trumpet sounds.

(Or, to lock the door after the horse is gone.)

Trouble is the seed of joy.

If you find the way in the morning and die that evening, all is well.

If you sin against heaven there is no place to pray.

Just one li off the road will become a thousand li.

(Or, a miss is as good as a mile.)

The secret of happiness is health, wealth, and many sons.

To this Mencius replies, health is hard work, wealth is much trouble, and many sons mean many worries.

Power lasts ten years, influence not more than one hundred.

I wished for this world's glory, but it is only a short dream.

Lift it or raise it is all the same.

One near ink gets black.

To begin is half the job.

Righteousness will finally conquer.

Flowers will bloom again, but a man never regains his youth.

He who steals a needle will become a cow thief.

Ask the east, answer from the west.

(An irrelevant reply.)

It takes a tall mountain to cast a long shadow.

A successful evil-doer is a dragon, born out of a ditch, who has reached great heights.

Thunder out of a clear sky refers to unexpected trouble.

Beating a drum in a cow's ear expecting him to dance.

(Throwing pearls before swine.)

Can there be smoke from a fireless chimney?

Though he tries a hundred tasks, he never succeeds.

The Yellow River is never clear in a hundred years.

Though chased by a tiger, if one gathers his wits, he may live.

Who will tie a bell to a cat?

(Who will allow the mice to live)

Three cups to the dead are not equal to one to the living (parent).

A righteous man never gets rich.

If it is not polite, then don't say it.

Though I deceive my mind in the dark, God's eye is like lightning.

Came to comfort, became a burden.

His beginning and end are the same (a dependable man).

Immeasurable emotion is both bitter and sweet.

This short list of familiar Korean epigrams helps to point up the obvious fact that the same ideals and pearls of wisdom are found in both Eastern and Western literature and heritage. There is an awareness of God, tolerance of human frailty, recognition of moral virtue, and an image of the ideal man.

The Lunar Calendar |

The Lunar Calendar has been used throughout the Orient from ancient times. It is still used by most people in Korea, although the government has adopted the calendar used in the West. Thus many people celebrate the holidays of both calendars. In the Lunar Calendar the 15th of each month is always full moon. Some months have 28 days, others 29 or 30 days. Every three years an extra month is added called yun tal. Each year is named according to the combination of two sets of Chinese characters. One set has ten basic characters, and the other twelve characters. Every sixty years the combinations return to start the cycle again. Thus when one has completed his sixty years, he returns again, or has a hwan gap, meaning he is starting a new cycle.

The ten basic characters and the twelve zodiac characters are listed below. One can see that at the end of ten years the upper row of characters returns to the beginning of the cycle, but the twelve-character row continues two more years before returning to the beginning. Thus it takes sixty combinations to return to the original set of two characters.

The upper row of ten symbols are the heavenly characters, and the lower row of twelve zodiac symbols are the earthly characters. Thus a year is made up of heavenly and earthly elements. Time is also divided according to the twelve zodiac characters in two-hour spans around the twenty four. This is very important, as will be shown in the next section, in determining suitability of time for births, weddings, funerals, etc.

It is easy to figure the name of any one year; for example Kap Cha, which was last in 1924. This was the Year of the Rat. Next came Ŭl Ch'uk, the Year of the Cow, 1925, down to Kye Yu, 1933, the Year of the Chicken. The next year is then Kap Sul, 1934, the Year of the Dog, followed by Ŭl Hae, 1935, the Year of the Pig. Next comes Pyŏng Cha, 1936, the Year of the Rat again. Thus by counting on one's fingers one can figure out an age by knowing the name of the year of birth. The traditional way of replying to the oft-asked question, "How old are you" is to give the name of the year of your birth, and let the questioner figure out how old you are. This is a nice retort for a girl, especially because many modern Koreans have never learned this system and are lost, but may be too embarrassed to push the matter further.

(Below is one complete cycle of sixty years for quick reference.)

Fortune Telling |

As in other cultures where people check on the "blue blood" of the ancestry before consummating marriage contracts, so in Korea one consults the fortune teller for such important matters as proper marriage partners and suitable days for weddings, for funerals, or taking journeys. For a funeral, for example, the third day after death, or the fifth, or the seventh, or the eleventh are suitable days. One would not plan a funeral on the in-between days if it could be helped.

There has developed a complicated system of calculations based on the hour of one's birth, the birth month, the birth day, and the birth year. Each of these determinants is related to the characteristics of a zodiac cycle animal symbol used in Korea. If there is a mismatching of these elements, the plans for an engagement or marriage should be cancelled, for happiness and success can hardly follow when the fates have decreed that the outcome will be poor.

There are certain hours for being born that are fortunate or unfortunate for either girls or boys or both. In making a match, generally speaking, those born in hours represented by small animals should be matched with other small animals, and large animal hours with large animal hours. Small animal hours should not be matched with large, aggressive animal hours and vice versa.

A number of books on this subject are available in Korean, and one that seems to be popular is the book by Kim Hyŏk-chae titled "Twelve Fortunate Early Days and Months with the Differentiation between Happy and Unhappy Days." Examples are taken from this book to explain how the calculations are made.

There are three primary numbers that must first be determined as a basis for the fortune or suitability of a marriage partner. These primary numbers are calculated in the examples listed below. Once the number is determined, one must refer to the original work where the fortunes and suitability and zodiac designation of each number are listed with the prospects.

Primary Number One = Age + current year divided by 8.

Primary Number Two = Number of days in birth month divided by 6.

Third Primary Number = Birthday number + 3.

The sum of the above three numbers is one's reference number, to be looked up in the book to see the results.

The day is divided into twelve two-hour periods. Each period has the characteristics of an animal in the zodiac. cycle. It is tremendously important to record the hour of birth, for from it all future significant calculations must be made. To be born in a certain hour determines one's future fortune and suitable marriage partner.

In matching for marriage, if the three primary numbers of either party turn out to signify a rat + chicken + snake, there is an obvious mismatch. Such a marriage would never be successful. On the other hand a cow + horse + rat is a good match to be sought.

Certain years, such as the white horse year, are believed to be bad years for girls. The Japanese feel strongly about this year as a birth year for girls, and will resort to abortions to prevent the birth of a child during this year lest it be a girl. Koreans tend to feel less strongly about this, but it is still considered unlucky and somewhat tragic to have a girl baby born in this year. It is a fine year, however, for boys. They will be active and good.

The Year of the Monkey is a bad year to be born; one will have no brothers, and live alone and likely fail. The Year of the Dragon is a bad year for girls, but a good year for boys. The Year of the Tiger is good for boys, but bad for girls, while the Year of the Rat is good for girls, but bad for boys. The best hour to be born is the Hour of the Horse, and the worst possible hour to be born is the Hour of the Rabbit for both boys and girls. One's fate is thus seen to be largely determined by the hour and day and year of one's birth. Obstetricians take note!

Special Days of the  Lunar Calendar |

Lunar and Solar Dates, 1967

1:1 Sŏl

2:9 New Year's day one makes a deep bow before one's elders and parents. One wears new clothing and takes a bath. One plays yut, a game of chance using half-round sticks as dice; the flat surface or the round surface comes up, and according to the number a button is advanced around a score board. Small boys whip wooden tops with a rag tied to a stick. Older boys fly kites. Everyone has a birthday regardless of when he was born.

1:11 U Su

2:19 Spring rain will come.

1:15 Tae Po Rŭm or Mang Wŏl

2:24 Great New Moon. Call someone's name and say Nae tŏ wi, that is, "my heat" and they will suffer from your heat next summer. You catch someone by calling their name, and if they answer you give them your heat.

Girls pray to the moon for an early wedding.

Women pray to the moon for sons.

One eats five kinds of vegetables: millet, red beans, Indian millet, large beans, and glutinous rice; plus chestnuts, jujubes, pine nuts, ginko nuts, and sugar.

One drinks wine to prevent deafness.

One visits twelve houses to eat during the day.

1:26 Kyŏng Ch'ip

3: 6 End of hibernation for animals.

2:11 Ch'un Pun

3:21 Spring equinox.

2:26 Ch'ŏng Myŏng

4: 5 Time for preparation of rice seed beds.

2:27 Han Sik

4: 6 Date to eat cold rice, decreed by Chinese emperor, when Ak Bi, a leading patriot of a previous regime, failed to answer the call of the new emperor. He withdrew into the mountains rather than serve the new king and thus be disloyal to his deposed master. The emperor ordered the mountain where Ak Bi hid to be burned, hoping that he would come out and join him, but Ak Bi remained and was burned to death. The emperor was so impressed by this show of loyalty that he decreed no one should build a fire or eat hot food on that day. Ak Bi became the symbol for loyalty.

3:12 Kok U

4:21 Rain to make the crops grow.

3:27 Ip Ha

5: 6 The beginning of summer in leap month.

4: 8 Sa Wŏl Ch'o P'a Il

5:16 Buddha's Birthday.

4:14 So Man

5:22 Small moon.

4:29 Mang Jong

6: 6 Earth becomes warm, and barley must be harvested by this time or it will spoil.

5: 5 Tan O Jŏl

6: 12 Women swing in swings and dye their hair black. Men wrestle and pull heavy ropes in a tug-of-war.

5:15 Ha Ji

6:22 The longest day, mid-summer.

6: 1 So Sŏ

7: 8 Small heat of summer.

6: 8 Ch'o Bok

7:15 First heat, dog days. One eats noodles and dog soup for strength.

6:16 T'ae Sŏ

7:23 Hottest day of summer.

6:18 Chung Bok

7:25 Middle heat; one eats dog soup and noodles and takes a bath.

7: 3 Ip Ch'u

8: 8 The beginning of fall.

7: 7 Ch'il Sok (Evening of the Seventh).

8:12 On this day it always rains or is cloudy. The reason for this is that in ancient times a princess named Chingnyŏ met a young man, Kyŏnu and they fell in love. Chingnyŏ’s father would have none of it, and decreed that they be separated as far as the East is from the West. She wept and refused to eat, until finally her father relented enough to allow them to meet once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month. When they came to meet, they found a great river separating them. Magpies and crows took pity on the couple and formed a bridge of their own bodies for the lovers to cross and meet. When they parted weeping, the rains came in sympathy, and the exhausted birds fell into the river and perished. Stars now bearing the names of the lovers also meet and pass on this day each year. Special ceremonies are held at Buddhist temples to memorialize this day of meeting and parting sadness.

7: 9 Mal Bok

8:14 The last heat of summer.

7:19 Ch’ŏ Sŏ

8:24 The end of hot weather.

8: 5 Paeng No

9: 8 The first white frost.

8:15 Ch'u Sŏk

9:18 Women in the Challa Provinces dance the kang kang su wollae circle dance. Women hold weaving contests while men hold archery and hunting contests. Everyone wears new clothes and visits the ancestors' graves.

8:21 Ch'u Pun

9:24 Fall equinox.

9: 6 Han No

10: 9 First cold frost.

9:21 Sang Kang

10:24 Severest frost.

10: 7 Ip Tong

11: 8 Beginning of winter or freezing.

10:22 So Sŏl

11:23 First small snow.

11: 7 Tae Sŏl

12: 8 Heaviest snow of winter.

11:21 Tong Chi

12:22 Longest night. Eat only red bean gruel.

11:16 So Han

1: 6 Small cold of winter.

12:11 Tae Han

1:21 Coldest day of winter.

12:25 Ip Ch'un

2: 4 The beginning of spring.

Weather in Korea is thought to come in cycles of three days of cold and four days of warm weather in winter, and three days of hot and four days of cool weather in summer. Rainy season is usually in late June and July and may last for six weeks with floods and much damage.

The fall in Korea is usually full of clear cool days that are most invigorating. The coastal areas of the Korean peninsula are moderated by the warm sea currents from either too hot or too cold weather. The central areas of the peninsula tend to have much colder and much hotter climates.

There is as much as two weeks difference in weather between Seoul and the southern coast in spring and fall. Fifty miles across a mountain range may make a sharp difference in temperatures.

Official Korean Commemorative Days and Official Holidays* |

Solar Dates

*January 1 Sin Chŏng New Year's Day.

*March 1 3.1. Chŏl Samil Day. Independence Day, commemorating the Independence Movement against Japanese occupation in 1919.

*April 5 Sing Mok Il Arbor Day.

April 19 4. 19 Ŭi Nal Anniversary of the Student Revolution which overthrew the government of President Syngman Rhee in 1960.

May 5 Ŏrini Nal Children's Day.

May 8 Ŏmoni Nal Mother's Day.

May 16 5. 16 Hyŏk Myŏng Military Revolution of 1961.

*June 6 Hyŏn Ch'ung Il Memorial Day.

*July 17 Che Hŏn Chŏl Constitution Day, commemorating the Constitution adopted in 1948.

*August 15 Kwang Bok Chŏl Liberation Day, commemorating the liberation from Japan in 1945.

October 1 Kuk Kun Ŭi Nal Armed Forces Day.

*October 3 Kae Ch’ŏn Chŏl National Foundation Day in memory of Tangun.

*October 9 Han Gŭl Nal Hangŭl Day in honor of the Korean phonetic alphabet.

*October 24 Yu En De I United Nations Day.

*December 25 K’ŭ Ri Sŭ Ma Ssŭ Christmas.

Terms Used To Denote Family Relationships |

GRANDPARENTS

Chobumo Speaking to or about grandparents collectively.

GRANDFATHER

Harabŏji Familiar, addressing own grandfather.

Chobu Formal, speaking to or about own grandfather.

Wangbu Speaking to others of own grandfather.

Sŏnjogo Speaking of own deceased grandfather.

Chobujang Speaking about other's grandfather.

Wangdaein Formal, same.

Wangbujang Formal, same.

Wangjonjang Formal, same.

Sŏnjobujang Speaking of other's deceased grandfather.

Sŏnwangdaein Same

Sŏnwanggojang Same

GRANDMOTHER

Halmŏni Familiar in addressing one's own grandmother.

Informal, speaking to others of own grandmother.

Chomo Formal, to others of own grandmother.

Chonjomo Speaking to others about their grandmother.

Wangdaebuin Same

Sŏnjomo Speaking of own or other's deceased grandmother.

Sŏnwangdaebuin Same

GRANDCHILD

Sonja Familiar

Soson Formal from grandson to grandfather.

Pulch'oson Archaic

FATHER

Abŏji Familiar, addressing one's own father.

Kach'in Speaking to others about own father who is living.

Noch’in Same

Kagun Same

Kaŏm Same

Ko Speaking to others of own deceased father.

Sŏngo Same

Hyŏngo Writing memorial about own father.

P'yŏnch'in Speaking of own widowered father.

Ch'unbujang Speaking to others about their father.

Ch'unjang Same

Ch'untang Same

Chondaein Same

Puch'in Same

Sŏnch' in Speaking to someone about his deceased father.

MOTHER

Ŏmŏni Familiar form for own mother

Moch'in Formal in speaking of own or other's mother.

Haengtang Same

Chach'in Same

Sŏnbi Speaking of own deceased mother.

Hyŏnbi Writing memorial for own mother.

P'yŏnmo Speaking of widowed mother.

CHILDREN

Soja Speaking of self in relation to parent.

Pulch'oja Same

UNCLE

Ajŏssi Familiar, a nice way to address an older man of same or lower class.

Paekbu Father's older brother.

Kŭnabŏji Familiar for father's older brother.

Paengmo Father's eldest brother's wife.

Chungbu Father's second brother.

Sukbu Father's younger brother.

Chagŭnabŏji  Familiar for father's younger brother.

Sasuk Same

Kyebu Same

Komobu Father's sister's husband.

Woesamch'on Mother's brother.

Samch'on Father's younger brother.

Sŏnsukbu Own deceased uncle.

Sŏnkyebu Same

Sŏnpaekbu Own deceased father's eldest brother.

Paekbujang Other's father's eldest brother.

Sŏnpaekbujang Other's deceased father's eldest brother.

AUNT

Ajumŏni Aunt in general; a nice way to address an older woman of same or lower class.

Komo Father's sister.

Kŭngomo Father's elder sister.

Chagŭngomo Father's younger sister.

Chagŭnŏmŏni Father's younger brother's wife.

Sungmo Formal for above.

Imo Mother's sister.

Kŭnimo Mother's elder sister.

Chagŭnimo Mother's younger sister.

FATHER-IN-LAW

Changin Husband's father-in-law, wife's father.

Pingjang Same

Pingbu Same

Akbu Same

Siabŏji Wife's father-in-law.

Sibu Formal for wife's father-in-law.

MOTHER-IN-LAW

Changmo Husband's mother-in-law.

Pingmo Same

Akmo Same

Oego Same

Siŏmoni Wife's mother-in-law.

Simo Formal for wife's mother-in-law.

SON-IN-LAW

Sawi Speaking of own son-in-law.

Yŏsŏ Same

Sŏrang Speaking of other's son-in-law.

DAUGHTER-IN-LAW

Myonŭri Speaking of own daughter-in-law.

Chabu Speaking of other's daughter-in-law.

ELDER BROTHER

Oppa Older brother as called by sister.

K'ŭnoppa Sister calling eldest brother.

Kaundeoppa Sister calling middle brother.

Mathyŏng Brother calling eldest brother.

Paekhyŏng Brother calling second eldest brother.

Kaundehyŏng Brother calling middle brother.

Chunghyŏng Brother calling next eldest brother.

Saje Speaking of self to brothers.

Kaje Same

Ch'aje Same

Sahyŏng Speaking to others about own brother.

Sabaek Same

Sajung Same

Sŏnbaek Speaking of one's own deceased eldest brother.

Sŏnjunghyŏng Speaking of one's own deceased second eldest brother.

Sŏnhyŏng Speaking of one's own deceased elder brother.

Paekssijang Speaking to another about his eldest brother who is older than speaker.

Chungssijang Speaking to another about his second elder brother who is older than speaker.

Paekssi Speaking to another about his eldest brother who is equal in age or rank with speaker.

Chungssi Speaking to another about his second elder brother who is equal in age or rank with speaker.

Sŏnpaekssijang Speaking of another's deceased eldest brother.

Sŏnjungssijang Speaking of another's deceased second elder brother.

Toragasin sŏnsaengnim hyŏngnimkkesŏ

Familiar form for speaking of another's deceased brother.

YOUNGER BROTHER

Au To someone about one's own younger brother.

Tongsaeng About one's own younger brother.

Saje Same

Aje Same

Sagye Same

Pije Same

Maengje One's own deceased younger brother.

Kyessi Other's younger brother.

Sŏnje Other's deceased younger brother.

Chane tongsaeng Younger brother, intimate.

Chane jessi Younger brother, formal.

SON

Kaa Calling one’s own son.

Tona Same

Miton Same

Misik Same

Mia Same

Kadon Same

Udon Same (foolish piglet).

Chaje Someone else’s son.

Yŏngyun Same

Hyŏnyun Same

BROTHERS AND SISTERS

Jamae Sisters collectively.

Hyŏngje Brothers collectively.

SISTER

Nunim One's own elder sister or another's elder sister.

Au Sister, speaking to younger brother.

Namdongsaeng Younger brother by sister.

Yŏdongsaeng Younger sister.

Ŏnni Female's elder sister (in Seoul also used as boy's elder brother).

Maessi Someone else's younger sister, formal.

Nuidongsaeng Male's younger sister.

Maehyŏng Elder sister's husband.

Maebu Same

Chahyŏng Same

Maeje Girl calling own younger sister's husband.

Yŏngmaessi Speaking to someone about her younger sister.

HUSBAND

Tangsin Husband as called by wife.

Aegi abŏji The child's father.

Kagun Wife speaking of her husband to others.

Pugun Same

Kabu Same

Namp'yŏn Same

Hyŏngun Same

WIFE

Anae Husband speaking of his wife to friend.

Tangsin Husband directly to wife.

Yobo Same, especially with others present.

Ch'ŏ Same

Hyŏnch'ŏ Husband speaking to another about his own wife, formal.

Sirin Same

Cholch'ŏ Wife calling self to her husband.

Happuin To another about his wife.

Chesu Male's younger brother's wife.

Samonim Speaking of someone's wife, usual polite form.

Puin Same

Hyŏnhap Same

Chonhap Same

Yŏngsil Same

Naesang Speaking of someone's wife, archaic.

Hyŏngsu Male's elder brother's wife.

NEPHEW

Chok'a Nephew on father's side of the family.

Ijil Nephew on mother's side of the family.

COUSIN

Kojong Father's sister's children as referred to by those outside the family.

Ijong Mother's sister's children as referred to by those outside the family.

Sach'on Cousins on father's side of family.

Naesach'on Father's sister's children.

Oesach'on Mother's brother's children, informal.

NIECE

Chok'addal Father's brother's daughter.

Ijilyŏ Mother's sister's daughter.

WIFE'S BROTHER

Chŏnam Speaking of wife's brother to another.

GIRL'S ELDER SISTER'S HUSBAND

Hyŏngbu Speaking of a girl's elder sister's husband.

Cherang Speaking of a girl's younger sister's husband.

Korean Wild Flowers Used in Han Yak Prescriptions |

A visit to a Korean drug store will reveal many fascinating bits of flora and fauna. The list of plants and animal parts used to compound drugs is endless. Of all the rare items in a prescription, the rarest is the navel of a bear. This item may sell for as much as three hundred dollars, and is alleged to act as a magnet to draw whatever drugs are taken directly to the site where the pain is.

The best list of medicinal flowers that I could find are in a long-out-of-print book by my mother, Florence Hedleston Crane. The title is "Flowers and Folklore From Far Korea." It was published in Tokyo in 1931 by Sanseido Co., using seven-tone wood blocks. The following list is used with her permission, and begins with flowers blooming in January in southern Korea and follows through the months of the year. The names of the flowers in single quotes are the translations of Korean names.

It is hoped that this incomplete list will add further background to the chapter on Han Yak, and be of interest to hikers in the Korean mountains and to flower lovers.

Camellia japonica, Linne; Camellia, Tongpaeng namu A medicine used to steady the mind is made from the tree.

Pulsatilla koreana, Nakai; Anemone, 'Grandmother flower,' Halmi kkot The roots of this flower are boiled in beer and used for rheumatism. The leaves are used for nose-bleeds, and a tonic is made from the dried seed pods.

Caragana Chamlagu, Bunge; China Peatree, 'Bone carrying herb,' Koltam ch'o The roots are boiled in rice wine until candied and eaten for rheumatism. The root is believed to insure long life. Flowers are mixed with bread as a medicine. Overdosage causes the body to swell and become edematous, and may be poisonous if eaten directly.

Corylopsis koreana, Uyeki; Mountain Witch-hazel, 'Camphor,' Changnoe Said to be splendid for colds, it is also used to reduce swelling.

Duchesnea indica, Focke; Mock Strawberry, 'Snake berry,' Paem ttalgi Leaves are placed on cuts to stop bleeding. Also used in the treatment of menorrhagia and other bleeding tendencies.

Viola, Violets, Orangk'ae kkot Violets are used as a poultice for boils.

Iris Rossi, Baker; Mountain Iris, Sanlan ch'o A tonic made from the roots is recommended for feeble-mindedness. This also makes a good cough medicine.

Rhododendron poukhanense, Levxeille & Vanoit; Rose Azalea, Chintallae kkot This is a household remedy for pleurisy, not recognized by Han Yak, which uses azalea roots to make cough medicine.

Prunus persica, Batsch; Flowering Peach, Poksunga The crushed seeds are used as a cough medicine, and also for cuts and bruises.

Pinellia ternata, Breitenb; Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Ch'ŏlnamsŏng The bulbs are boiled in vinegar and, although poisonous, in small doses are used for bruises, infections, and phlegm in the throat. This is a strong poison.

Panax Ginseng, Mey; Ginseng, In sam This root is a panacea for any condition needing increase in yang, or libido, or strength, or youth. Even to look upon a root is said to cure many illnesses. Soaked in alcohol the distillate is considered a potent aphrodisiac. Western pharmacologists rate its efficacy as equivalent to the power of a cup of coffee as a stimulant and drug.

Cypripedium speciosum, Rolfe; Ladies' Slipper, 'Dog testicle flower,' Kae pulal kkot A wonderful cure for headaches is made from the bulbs of the orchid.

Rosa Maximowicziana, Regel, var. rosacea, Nakai; White Wild Rose, Tchillenamu kkot The stem of this rose is eaten in summer to prevent "heat." The petals are dried and used as a cosmetic.

Paeonia albiflora, Pallas; White Mountain Peony, Hampak kkot The roots are red and are prescribed to build red blood. The roots of the pink peony are white, and are used to build white corpuscles in the blood. The roots are also used to treat stomach aches, hematemesis, and menorrhagia.

Clematis patens, Morr et Decne; Large Mountain Clematis, 'Turtle flower,' Chŏncharyŏn The roots are used for controlling hemorrhage, hematemesis. The fruit is used as a tonic for the heart.

Styrax japonica, Sieb et Zuce; Silver Bell, Cheton kwa The pod produces an oil used for illumination. This oil spread on water kills fish, and yet their meat is not poisoned. An unsportsman-like way to fish.

Punica Granatum, Linne; Pomegranate, 'Rock pomegranate,' Sŏngnyu Seeds and roots are used to treat infections of the skin and a coated tongue. They are also used for anemia, and the roots are said to be very effective in deworming for intestinal parasites.

Hypericum Ascyron, Linne; St. John's Wort, Munsupŏ tŭl The flower and roots are used for acute indigestion and to "purify the blood."

Diervilla subsessilis, Nakai; Yellow Wigelia, 'Bottle flower,' Pyŏng kkot namn The flowers are boiled with barley beer as a remedy for backaches.

Gardenia jasminoides, Ellis; Gardenia, Ch'ija Seed pods are used to reduce fevers, to treat a sore throat, and for anemia. A yellow dye is also made out of the seed pods.

Lonicera japonica, Thunberg; Honeysuckle, Intong kkot This flower is used as a poultice for boils, to reduce fevers, and the stem is used as a remedy for colds. The flower is also used to treat anemia. The stem is used for pleurisy and neuralgia.

Liliurn lancifolium, Thunberg; Tiger Lily, 'Lily of 100 closings,' Chungnari kkot Bulbs are boiled and eaten as a cough medicine.

Hemerocallis disticha, Donne; Yellow Day Lily, 'Forget your troubles,' Mangu ch'o The roots are used as a cathartic; they are also poisonous.

Dianthus sinensis, Linne; Wild Pink, 'Storm bamboo,' Sŏk chuk hwa This plant is used to make a tonic.

I nula japonica, Thunberg; Snake Grass, Paem p'ul Used for a tonic.

Nelumbo nucifera var. rosea, Gaertner; Pink Lotus, 'Daughter of the sun,' Yŏn kkot The seeds are considered a fine tonic and stimulant for the heart.

Pedicularis resupinata, Linne; Heal-all, Manyoso This flower is boiled and the dried distillate is applied to swollen glands in the neck.

Clematis chidisanensies, Nakai; Mountain Clematis, Tŏp kŭl ryŏk kul A poultice for boils is made using the leaves.

Lychnis cognata, Maximowicz; Fire Pink. The roots are used as a headache remedy.

Chrysanthemum sibiricum, Fischer; Field Daisy, Tŭlkuk hwa The leaves and stems are used in making tonics. An insect powder is made from the yellow center.

Sanguisorba hakusanensis, Makino; Burnet, 'Bachelor stem,' Hor api tae Boiled, they are applied to boils and skin infections. Also, a drug for con junctivitis is made from the plant.

Cirsium Maackii, Maximowicz; Purple Thistle, Ŏngkongk'wi A remedy for malaria and rheumatisrn. The roots are used to control hemorrhages.

Aconitum sinense, Siebold; Monkshood, Pucha A very potent poison used as a stimulant for poor circulation. It is also used to increase lactation and raise body heat.

Aconitum long-cassidatum, Nakai; Monkey Flower, U p'yŏn A powerful poison, used as a stimulant.

Mentha haplocalyx, Briquet; Menthol, 'Mother's blessing,' Ingmo ch'o This is a seasoning as well as a remedy for colds and stuffy noses. Used to regulate the menstrual cycle. Widely used by women in Korea .

Agastache rugosa, O. Kuntze; Giant Hyssop, Usŭlch'o A medicinal herb of the mint family. A strong purge.

Clematis apiiforia, D. C.; Clematis, Soemyŏng yŏkkul A basis for many herb prescriptions.

Pharbitis Nil, Choisy; Morning Glory, 'Trumpet flower,' Nap'al kkot Seeds are used as a cathartic. The symbol of a superficial man.

Platycodon glaucus, Nakai; Blue Bells, 'Tangerine stem,' Toraji The roots are very expensive. Boiled in water, the water is quite acid and is used as a remedy for colds and fever.

Pueraria hirsuta, Matsumura; Kudzu Vine, Ch'ik The roots are used for fevers. This is also a good cure for the "beer headache. " The ideal hangover remedy.

Lactuca denticulata, Maximowicz; Yellow Lettuce, Komaech'ae This is a very poisonous plant and makes a good insect powder.

Cocculus trilobus, De Candolle; Bamboo Vine, 'Dog grapes,' Kae mŏlku The berries are edible. The roots are added as a base to a long list of prescriptions. Used to control hiccoughs.

Scilla japonica, Baker; Wild Garlic, 'Mountain garlic,' San manŭl Garlic is an antidote for certain poisons, and a valuable addition to many compounded prescriptions of the herbalist. It is believed to reduce hypertension. Used as a diuretic.

Fagopyrum esculentum, Moench; Buckwheat, 'Square wheat,' Mo mil This is a remedy for typhoid fever.

Chrysanthemum sibiricum, Fischer; Mountain Chrysanthemum, San kukhwa The roots are boiled and make a sure cure for headaches. Also makes a good shampoo. Leaves are put in rice wine to spice it.

Adenophora stricta, Miquel; Harebell, 'Lantern flower,' Ch'orong kkot The roots boiled in beer are said to be good for rheumatism.

Gentiana scabra, Bunge; Blue Gentian, 'Dragon's gallbladder,' Yongtam ch'o Excellent for stomach troubles, biliousness, and liver disease.

Impatiens Textori, Miquel; Jewelweed, 'Spirit of phoenix' 'Spirit of the evening star,' Tŭl pongsŏnhwa This is a poisonous plant. It is used for indigestion after eating spoiled meat. Causes a violent purging.

Celosia cristata, Linne; Cockscomb, Kyekwan hwa This flower, a part of every flower bed, is used extensively as a treatment for leucorrhea.

This compendium of common wild flowers of Korea which are used in herb prescriptions is presented as a partial list to show how so many common flowers are put to medicinal uses in Han Yak. Unfortunately, as yet the potency and the purity of these drugs are not measured by the herbalist, and thus a patient never can be sure whether he is getting too much or too little. Many errors seem to occur, and these medical failures fill modern hospital beds in Korea.

The Hangŭl Alphabet |

The hangŭl phonetic alphabet was designed by scholars commissioned by King Sejong and was completed in 1446 as an easy method for the common people to be able to read — an alternative to the brute memory required to learn Chinese characters. One story has it that, while contemplating the lines of design of the frame of a sliding door, the idea for the symbols of the phonetic system came to the king. Be that as it may, the system is one of the most orderly and easy to learn that one can imagine. The alphabet now has 10 vowels and 14 consonants, which is all one has to learn. They are also orderly and easy to remember. What a contrast to the 30,000 or more Chinese characters that one must memorize to be educated!

Following are listed the vowels and the consonants. They are placed together like building blocks to make sounds. The characters thus made have no intrinsic meaning, only representing the sound of the word. Thus one can write almost any language in the Korean phonetics as far as its sounds go. There are several sounds that are not found in Korean, such as f, v, w, and z. Korean has aspirated and unaspirated consonants. The aspirated consonants have an apostrophe after the romanized letter according to McCune-Reischauer System of Romanization which is used throughout this book. By aspirated is meant that one blows breath out while making the sound of the letter.

Table of Contents

KOREAN PATTERNS

Paul S. Crane

PREFACE

INTRODUCTION

I. KOREAN IDEALS

II. THE IMPORTANCE OF KIBUN

III. INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS

1 | Importance of Relationships

2 | Family Relationships

3 | Deference to Elders

4 | Sex and Marriage

5 | Schools and Classmates

IV. E T I Q U E T T E

6 | Importance of Etiquette

7 | Introductions

8 | Names and Titles

9 | Privacy and Propriety

10 | Table Manners

11 | Parties

12 | The Problem of Gifts

V. PUBLIC RELATIONSHIPS

13 | Traditional Attitudes Toward Government

14 | Attitudes Toward the Provinces

15 | Importance of Ceremony

16 | Korean Self-Confidence

17 | Attitudes Toward Crime and Criminals

18 | Attitudes While Under Duress

19 | Business Attitudes

VI. HAN YAK

VII. MODERNIZED KOREANS

20 | Koreans Today

21 | Impact of Study and Travel on Korean Attitudes

22 | Imprint of Japanese Occupation on Korean Patterns

23 | Reactions to American Forces

24 | Christianity in Korea

25 | Impact of Christianity on Traditional Korean Attitudes

26 | Some Attitudes of Korean Christians

27 | The Westerner Working in Korea

VIII. CONCLUSION

APPENDIX

Korean Proverbs |

The Lunar Calendar |

Fortune Telling |

Special Days of the Lunar Calendar |

Official Korean Commemorative Days and Official Holidays* |

Terms Used To Denote Family Relationships |

Korean Wild Flowers Used in Han Yak Prescriptions |

The Hangŭl Alphabet |