인본과 윤리: 운정 성락서의 유가사상에 반영된 리더십 정신

Abstract

Unjeong Seong Rak-seo (1905-1988) was born at the end of the Joseon Dynasty, when national fortunes were exhausted, and lived through the turbulent 20th century through the Japanese colonial period. He was an outstanding administrator, educator, and Confucian intellectual. This article examines the spirit of leadership reflected in the Confucian thought of Unjeong Seong Rak-seo from three aspects. First, the emphasis on human subjectivity and humanistic characteristics stand out in Unjeong's leadership spirit. Unjeong finds humanistic characteristics in the Humanitarian Spirit (弘益人間精神), and shows leadership that emphasizes human rights in particular. It is in this context that the denial of human death and various types of terrorism was made. Second, the will and ethical characteristics of building a conscientious society are strongly expressed in Unjeong's leadership spirit. Unjeong points out that there are various social ills that are contrary to conscience and ethics in his age, and proposes that a conscientious society in which ethics is the core must be built as soon as possible. His Declaration of Ethics (倫理宣言) was proposed against this background. Third, in Unjeong's leadership spirit, the Confucian thought of transformation through the proposition of the Confucianism Renewal of Old Systems (儒家維新論) is found. Unjeong criticizes this by stating that there are dogmatist Zhuzism (朱子主義), toadyism, and conservative life in seclusion as the limits of Confucianism, which are still not getting rid of the old fashioned ones. The Confucianism Renewal of Old Systems was proposed as a way to overcome the limitations of Confucianism like that. It contains the purpose of raising Confucian scholars’ active sense of ownership and participation. Unjeong made various efforts like founding the Women's Confucian Association as a way to put his ideology into practice, hosting related seminars, circulating the manifesto emphasizing the role and responsibilities of the Confucian scholars across the country, and emphasizing the necessity of family rituals that fit the opportuneness. In short, Unjeong was a practical intellectual who possessed a Confucian leadership spirit.