An Evolving Confucian Patriarchy: An Analysis of Wedding and Funeral Rites in Sixteenth-Century Korea

Abstract:This article examines the notion of patriarchy and patrimonialism in Korean society during mid-Chosŏn through an empirical analysis of wedding and funeral rituals as portrayed in the sixteenth-century diaries of members of the Korean elite. Although Korean society during the Chosŏn era has been regarded as strongly patriarchal because of its Confucianization, the findings of this study provide further evidence of the fact that flexibility still existed. For instance, the diaries analyzed in this study show that newlywed couples resided temporarily at the bride’s house, thus indicating that the Confucian transformation of the wedding rite remained incomplete as late as the sixteenth century. This is also evidenced by transitional aspects associated with yangban funeral rites at this time, namely the recognition of maternal kinship and the unsettled nature of primogeniture rule. Even though funeral ceremonies at the household level were performed in stricter accordance with orthodox Confucian rituals than those related to nuptials, the extent of Confucian piety exhibited across all social classes in the preparation of funeral rites hints at the less rigid nature during the sixteenth century of the patriarchal domination that characterized traditional Korean society. Meanwhile, the historical existence of a self-manufacturing domestic economy and the yangban’s appropriation of government provisions—i.e. public goods being used for private purposes such as the carrying out of household Confucian rites—confirm the presence of patrimonial characteristics in mid-Chosŏn. The fact that mutual assistance between neighbors and close acquaintances at the community level was rooted in Korean tradition implies that communal networks of mutual-aid may have been an indigenous and essential resource in the performance of rituals in Korean society at the time.