박서양의 의료활동과 독립운동

Abstract

=Suh Yang Park, who Became a Doctor as a Son of a Butcher Dr. Suh Yang Park was born in 1885 as a son of a butcher, which was the lowest class at that time in Korea. However, contact with western missionaries, including Dr. O. R. Avison, provided him with an understanding of western civilization. After entering Chejungwon Medical School in 1900, Dr. Park learned basic sciences, basic medical sciences like anatomy and physiology, and other Western medical specialties such as internal medicine and surgery. He graduated from medical school in 1908 and received Government Certificate from Home Office, the first in Korea in this field, which granted the right to practice medicine. His certificate number was 4th overall. As both a doctor and a talented musician, Dr. Park actively participated in the social enlightenment movement. He was quite progressive in his time, having surpassed the social limitations as a son of a butcher, as well as actively propagating his knowledge of Western civilization onto others. After graduation, he had served as a professor at the school he graduated from, until he went into exile in Manchuria(間島) in 1917 due to the annexation of Korea by Japan in 1910. There, he opened a hospital(救世病院) and provided medical treatment for Koreans. He also established a school(崇信學校) for young Koreans, inspiring them with a sense of nationalism. Also, Dr. Park was an active member of various Independence Movement Organizations(大韓國民會, 間島敎育協會, 韓族勞動懇親會) in Manchuria. Then in 1932, at the time when Japan took control of Manchuria, his school was closed down. As a result, Dr. Park couldn't help but stop his anti-Japanese activities. In 1936, he returned to his homeland and passed away in 1940, just five years before the liberation of Korea from Japanese occupation.