孺人金氏 祭文硏究

Abstract

A funeral oration is a practical writing recited for the dead, sometimes a funeral oration portrays the dead vividly and contains a few information about the funeral ceremony in those days. Mrs. Kim(1665~1681) was Kim Su-hang's daughter and a sister of Kim Chang-hyup and Kim Chang-heup, the famous master of literary style. She died at the age of sixteen being childless and there are 16 pieces of the funeral oration for her. The authors of these works portrayed her as the ideal type of Sadaebu(nobility) woman, grieving her death. In this paper, I reconstitute Mrs. Kim's life and character, and study the funeral proceedings and the process of moving the grave in those days, based on 16 pieces of the funeral oration. In the late Chosun period, the procedure of funeral and memorial service came to be regarded as important things, and also many funeral orations were written. However Mrs. Kim's case was very exceptional, many funeral orations were written continually by father and brothers at each process of funeral service. This means that she was memorized in the various ways by her family and acquaintances.