‘강완숙의 죽음’을 통한 여성․천주교 담론 변화 -18～19세기 조선사회의 천주교에 대한 대응-

Abstract

This study examined the death of Kang Wan-sook (姜完淑, 1760-1801) - a Catholic who passed away during the Sinyoo(辛酉) Catholic Persecution of 1801 when Catholic and the East Asian culture clashed First, in terms of religious perspective, the death of Kang Wan-sook who was a Catholic was recorded through The Bakseo(帛書) by Hwang Sa-yeong(黃嗣永). Kang Wan-sook is described as a person who aspired to become a Confucian sage (聖人) since childhood and Hwang Sa-yeong portrays her as a person equivalent to a Confucian sage. Kang Wan-sook strayed from the restrictions that the Joseon Dynasty imposed on women by taking the theory of Catholicism and experienced liberation as a subjective teacher and passionate religious activist. Second, in terms of political perspective, the death of Kang Wan-sook strengthened the standard that Catholic is a wicked group. In detail, it was argued that Catholic destroyed the Three Bonds and Five Relationships(三綱五倫) in Confucianism and that Catholic is similar to civil Daoism group. In addition, her death gave rise to the political debate surrounding how to punish noble women. In The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, she converted from a person who was obsessed with evil magic to the head of monster (魁首) of group. Finally, she became the villain (妖女) obsessed with evil magic. Third, from ideological perspective, the death of Kang Wan-sook was an occasion that specified response toward Catholic by Neo-Confucianism. For example, Lee Kyu-gyeong(李圭景) insisted that 'the Lord (天主)’ is the same as the lessons by Confucianism since it indicates 'logic (理)’ of Neo-Confucianism, it is the field of studies preserving moral mind of men, and it calls individual greed as the root of evil. He argued that Catholic, which is a religious group believing in the Lord, and Catholicism, which has the same orientation as Confucianism, should be understood differently. Such a response by Lee Kyu-gyeong is the responding logic interpreting Catholic from the perspective of Neo-Confucianism. Also, the death of Kang Wan-sook in the 18th century expanded the discourse regarding 'how the Lord of Catholic and King of Kings in Confucianism differ'. Her religious death instigated the ideological response with regard to how the 18th century Neo-Confucianism should define Catholic and brought about diverse sociocultural influence toward women's social status.