정몽주 효행의 의의와 여묘(廬墓)설화 고찰

Abstract

This study set out to investigate the roles of Jeong Mong-ju in the settlement of the Living by the Grave custom in Korea and examine the perceptions of the custom among the nobility and common people through its tales. Being passed down from China, the Living by the Grave custom was introduced in Korea between the end of Silla and the beginning of Goryeo and settled down by Jeong Mong-ju at the end of Goryeo. The practice was so respected during the former half of Joseon that it was encouraged in books including Samganghaengsildo. The practice was controversial as it went against Zhu Xi's Family Rites. Lee Yi and Lee Hwang, however, insisted on its need. Song In and Kim Seong-il emphasized its significance by citing the case of Jeong Mong-ju. Kim Jang-saeng accepted it in his Garyejipram, taking it as a funeral rite fit for the country. In the literature of tales enjoyed by the nobility, the mainstream was tales that encouraged filial piety by telling stories in which the Heaven would help those who were in the difficult times of Living by the Grave. In oral tales enjoyed by common people, most stories reveal negative perceptions of the custom by depicting characters saving the tiger rather than getting help from it and wives being killed by fake husbands for not taking care of the house due to the custom.