Study on the floriculture in the early 17th century - Focusing on Lee jeong - gui, Huh Gyun, Lee soo - gwang -  (17세기 초 화훼 취미에 관한 일고찰 - 이정귀․허균․이수광을 중심으로 - )

ahn nami (안나미)

Study on the floriculture in the early 17th century - Focusing on Lee jeong - gui, Huh Gyun, Lee soo - gwang -

The Research of the Korean Classic
2015, (31), pp.85-111
Publisher : The Research Of The Korean Classic
Research Area : Humanities > Korean Language and Literature > Korean Literature > Korean classic prose

ahn nami ¹

¹성균관대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Writers’ preference of floriculture has a long history, but it was limited to the Four Gracious Plants, plantain, and lotus, all of which symbolize classical scholars’ sprits. In particular, writers based on neo-Confucianism regarded raising flowers as means of cultivating their personality and moral character. After the late Chosun dynasty, the flower hobby that raises flowers and appreciates them esthetic objects was in vogue, and then enhanced interest in flower books. However, a new perspective to differentiate the previous viewpoint of flower emerged in the early seventeenth century. In particular, after the Imjin War, diplomatic activities between the Chosun and Ming dynasties were activated, and writers who were in the front line of diplomacy had a leading role in the floriculture. Writers such as Lee jeong-gui(李廷龜), Huh Gyun(許筠), Lee soo-gwang(李睟光) got flowers from Ming, and raised them in Chosun. They were interested in the floriculture while seeing flower books through reference books and a series of books which were in vogue in the era of Ming. These phenomena were limited to only a few writers, but different from the fact that contemporary writers observed and recorded flowers. The imports of varieties of Ming and Ching dynasties’ reference books and a series of books as well as influences of Realist School of Confucianism played a major role in the prosperity of the floriculture the late Chosun dynasty. Before these factors, direct experiences and inflows of many books through diplomacy with the Ming dynasty after the Imjin War helped several writers start the floriculture. This trend continued to the mid and late seventeenth century, and eventually was in vogue in the eighteenth century. In the early seventeenth century the floriculture was so limited to several writers that it is not considered a major trend. It was meaningful as a phenomenon that led to communication between the Chosun and Ming dynasties and then transferred knowledge in real time. If the eighteenth century’s floriculture implies that the Ming dynasty’s fashion one hundred years ago affected the Chosun dynasty, the early seventeenth century’s floriculture has a meaning that it was a real time cultural communication between the Chosun and Ming dynasties.

KEYWORDS

floriculture, the seventeenth century, the Ming dynasty’s flower book, Lee jeong-gui, Huh Gyun, Lee soo-gwang

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