The Tradition of Non-violence in Korean Confucian Thought

Abstract

This paper examines the In and Sŏ concept of Chŏng Yakyong(1762-1836) in its exploration of the tradition of in Korean traditional thoughts. He is the person who sought to construct the new Confucius society in the late Chosŏn period and moved on to systematically integrate Sil-hak, a Confucius school of a practical vein in the late Chosŏn period. In these endeavors, He redefined the central values of Confucianism, In and Sŏ. In is 'the love for others for the coexistence of the members of a society'. Sŏ, the practical principles of In, is 'the principle of parity between the self and others'. He wanted to end the universal political and social struggles and violence and to pursue peace and happiness through this re-conceptualization of In and Sŏ. In relation to feminism, it is hard to get direct message from his thoughts but I would show that discussing the feministic implications of the In / Sŏ is possible. I believe that we can overcome the problems caused by modern individualism and self-interested ethics through his concept of In/Sŏ. It would provide no small amount of insights in re-claiming the relational ethics based on mutual-interest today.