Chosŏn society was one in which the patriarchal family order was imposed on the basis of Confucian ideology. After the 15th century, women faced greater social constraints as Neo-Confucianism, which emphasized even more rigid Confucian ideals, prevailed as the sole dominant system of social governance. In particular, King Sŏngjong promulgated the Widows' Remarriage Law of 1477 which prohibited women from remarrying once their spouses had died and excluded their children from public office if they remarried. When the ban on remarriage of women was proclaimed, people regarded the remarriage of widows as a sin for which their descendants should be punished and disadvantaged, and the majority of widows did not remarry. Over the next 6th century, however, historians have different interpretations of women during the Chosŏn dynasty. They argued that although on the surface women appeared to adhere to Neo-Confucian ideals, in reality they were active beings who expressed their opinions in their own ways against patriarchal social systems. This article will compare and contrast the different perspectives on women under Confucianism among people during the 14th-18th centuries of the Chosôn period and historians during the modern era, and provide an analysis of the possible causes of the difference. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Korea's living standards and traditional values ​​originated from Confucianism, the foundation of East Asian culture and the most represented ideology in Chinese history. Confucian ideas and systems began to seriously take root on the Korean Peninsula as Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla developed into ancient kingdoms. However, the most widespread period of Confucianism in Korea was during the Chosôn dynasty, which ruled Korea from 1392 to 1897. The new Chosôn ruling class, led by Neo-Confucian intellectuals, declared Neo-Confucianism as the sole governing ideology of the nation and attempted to transform the lifestyle of the common people and the ruling class into neo-Confucian. Neo-Confucian reform during the early Choson era also had a great influence on changing the status of women. During the Chosôn period, women were expected to obey the Three Obediences, which were the most basic moral principles and social code of behavior for virgins and married women, in accordance with the trend of worshiping Neo-Confucianism as a national tradition and practice it strongly. According to the Three Obediences, a woman must be obedient to her father before marriage, to her husband after marriage and to her son in the case of a widow. In other words, strict standards of female modesty and chastity were imposed on Chosôn women and treated as if they were brutes. Therefore, Confucianism, which has had a strong influence on family, politics, education, marriage, social system and customs for over five hundred years since the Chosôn period, has been criticized as patriarchal and misogynistic. In 1477, King Sŏngjong, the ninth king of the Chosôn Dynasty who completed Gyeongguk Daejeon, a comprehensive code of laws and foundation of Chosôn society, promulgated the Widows' Remarriage Law, which strengthened women's social bonds by prohibiting their children and grandchildren of widows who defied the ban on taking civil service exams and becoming scholar-officials. This event has important significance in Korean history. Before King Sŏngjong's reign, women's remarriage was considered natural and social constraints on widows' remarriage did not exist, as exemplified by King Taejong's remark,“why men and women who have lost their spouses should not be allowed to remarry.” However, the Widow's Remarriage Law of 1477 instigated conservative and negative views on women's rights and freedom. Despite the subsequent fall of the Chosôn dynasty and the abolition of the Widow Remarriage Law, there have been negative opinions regarding widow remarriage within Korean society until relatively recently. In 1930, for example, the widow Kim described her life and feelings as a widow in the Korean women's magazine "The Modern Woman." She confessed that there was once a time when she wanted to remarry, but she had to give it up because her mother announced that she would break off all relations with her if she remarried. This case shows the reality of Korean society where even the woman's parents ostracize her if she does not maintain her chastity. Although Confucianism in modern Korea is in decline, its influence continues today throughout Korean society in various ways. Most people, since the widow remarriage law was proclaimed, have regarded remarried women as immoral and sinful who are not only promiscuous but also contaminants who tarnish Confucian teachings. Chosŏn Wangjo Silk, which is the actual document of the Chosŏn dynasty, contains documents from members of the highest bureaucracy discussing the ban on remarriage of widows under the orders of King Sôngjong. According to Sôngjong sill ok, Wŏnjun Im, the sixth state councilor, argued that “starving to death is only a small thing for women compared to losing one's integrity.” Master Heng‑ch'ü Chang actively supported Im's opinion, saying that if a man accepts a woman who has lost her integrity as his partner, it is equivalent to him himself having also lost his integrity. In traditional society, women were seen as victims of male-dominated social norms. These examples reflect the fact that women's observance of chastity was considered a nobler value than anything else at that time. In 1528, under the reign of King Jungjong, a central government official named Yu Jung was dismissed after the remarriage of his young widowed daughter. Until then the code of law only stipulated that the descendants of remarried women could not take civil service exams and become academic officials. However, Jung was punished for allowing his daughter to remarry another man and for disturbing court customs. This shows that social discrimination of women intensified from mid to late Chosŏn. Furthermore, every year the government cited the “virtuous wife” or Yeol-nyeo, which is usually referred to as the unmarried widow, to encourage women to remain their chastity following the ideology of Neo-Confucianism. It was considered a great honor and privilege to have a virtuous woman in the family. This practice later intensified in Chosŏn because the principle of chastity became so widespread and rooted that it became an absolute and indisputable duty to preserve chastity for women. Many widows committed suicide to follow their husbands in death, but it seemed to be taken for granted by people. In contrast, there was also vehement opposition expressed to the law on remarriage for widows. Most officials agreed that women should maintain their integrity, but proposed banning women from marrying only a third time. Censor General Howon Park and others said the ban on remarriage by widows is harsh treatment because widows who have lost their spouses lack the ability to provide for themselves and theirchildren. Although the debate ultimately concluded that the majority opposed the enactment of the law, King Sôngjong approved the minority view that “losing chastity is a bigger issue than dying of starvation.” Most of the officials involved in the debate opposed the law because they were born into the Yangban classes, an upper noble class that wielded enormous power, and relatively higher-class men had more opportunities to run for higher-level government positions than the worker. But King Sôngjong considered it shameful that the sons of women who did not maintain chastity were placed in high official positions. There was some difference of opinion regarding remarriage of widows, but the majority of opinions tended to believe that remarriage of widows was inevitable in order to earn a living. Currently, six centuries after the proclamation of the widow remarriage law, modern historians have different views on Chosŏn women. Youngmin Kim and Michael.J.Pettid, the authors of the book “Women and Confucianism in Chosŏn Korea: New Perspectives” published in 2010, describe women under Confucianism not simply as victims of patriarchal systems, but as wise beings who rather used various strategies for asserting one's rights. They recognized and highly appreciated active and progressive women, for example, a constructive attitude towards life, management of one's property and economic sense. Furthermore, they understood women's desire and hope, and positively described women's remarriage after the death of their husband, the flexibility of fidelity, and the pursuit of happiness. Although the law on remarriage of widows was promulgated from the mid-15th century, it should be noted that it was not entirely impossible for widows to remarry. Preserving chastity was primarily an obligation of upper-class women during the Chosŏn period. For commoner women and lower classes, remarriage was considered one of the means of livelihood for lower class widows as they could not make ends meet on their own after losing their husbands in a male-dominated society. Some lower-class widows threw away their children because there was no way to raise them alone. An example of a woman who chose to remarry after the death of her first husband is Marduk. According to an "unofficial version of a historical tale of Hyobin", written by Sangan Ko in the 16th century, there was a servant named Marduk, who lived in the southern provinces of Gyeongsang. She married nine times, unfortunately the men who married her all died. The reason he was able to marry nine times was due to his low status; his children were less likely to work in official government positions, unlike the Yangban class. In response, Kim and Pettit explain her positively as an active female figure who freely expresses her desire despite the critical social climate related to the widow's remarriage. While people within traditional Chosŏn society perceived women under Confucian ideology as a repressed and repressed group, the modern historian perceives Chosŏn women as courageous group seeking their own free will despite the conservative social atmosphere. In Chosŏn society, the prohibition on women's remarriage and the increased emphasis on the concept of the virtuous woman served as tools that could be used to oppress women by discriminating against them. In contrast, modern historians Kim and Pettit believe that banning women from remarriage reinforces gender inequality and constitutes only a worthless sacrifice. In contemporary Korea, women's perceptions of gender roles.