退溪 李滉의 일본 인식

Abstract

After Japan's invasion of Saryangjin(蛇梁鎭), the Joseon government announced it would stop its trade with Tsushima(對馬島). In response, the Japanese government and the local government of Tsushima requested the Joseon government to resume trade with them. With regard to this matter, Toegye Lee Hwang(退溪 李滉) suggested that Joseon maintain good relationship with Japan through resuming trade with Tsushima. He thought not stick but carrot was needed to subdue barbarians. He believed that if Joseon treated them with great kindness, they would behave well. In addition, as the Jurchens on the northern border was getting stronger at that time, he thought, a hostile relationship with Japan would place Joseon in a difficult position where it confronted enemies both on the southern and northern border. As for the relationship between Joseon and Tsushima, he thought the two had to maintain a hierarchical relationship with Tsushima defined as Joseon's barracks. He, however, did not insist that Joseon regard Tsushima as part of Joseon territory or interfere in its politics. He just tried to make Tsushima follow Joseon-centered diplomatic order. In the meantime, he also urged the Japanese government to follow the Ming Dynasty-centered international order according to the Neo-Confucian view of the world. Toegye's view of Japan was much in accord with the Joseon's traditional policy toward Japan in that it sought the avoidance of physical conflict between the two nations, with Joseon placed at a hierarchically higher position. This attributed to the followings: first, he worked for a long time at Seungmunwon(承文院), the office of diplomatic correspondence, which handled documentations related to Sadae-gyorin(事大交隣) policy; second, he sought moderate politics rather than pursuing revolution aggressively; and finally, he thought Joseon had to treat Japan on the basis of the theory of the civilized and the barbarians. Furthermore, he was also confident that civilized Joseon could defeat barbaric Japanese at any time.