Korean Politics (1) Gojoseon: the First Nation of Korea

(6) Peasants Uprising in the 19C

During this period, drought and flood alternately plagued the country, causing a succession of bad harvests, which in turn generated a grim cycle of famine. The government responded with excessive taxes and harsh labor laws, and the combination of adverse natural and social conditions ignited a series of agrarian uprisings.

Peasants were fiercely committed to the struggle against oppression by the government, the local nobility and the wealthy landlords. It was in the context of these social conditions that Choe Je-u (1824-1864) formulated the ideology of Donghak (Eastern Learning) to wrest farmers from the cycle of poverty and rebellion and to restore political and social stability.

As his ideas gained rapid acceptance, he decided to set his doctrines to music so that the public would understand and accept them more readily. The songs, carrying a hopeful message to farmers in distress, were a mixture of traditional elements from Confucianism, Buddhism and Seongyo (teachings of Silla's Hwarang movement), and to these, he added modern humanist ideas.

A major element in Donghak was ‘exclusionism.’ Choe believed that the best way to exclude foreign influence in Korea was to introduce pro-democracy values, establish human rights and create a paradise on earth, and eventually, these elements combined would promote stability in Korea without foreign influence or aid.