Sŏ Kyŏngdŏk, whose pen name is Hwadam after the toponym of his life-long place of residence (Hwadam, i.e. the "Hwa pond"), was a native of Songdo, today's Kaesŏng. He is a well-known figure of the Korean Confucian pantheon, to the extent that his Collected works have been selected by the AKS among the 100 Korean Classics to be translated into English, under the categories of "Philosophy" and "Confucianism." Despite his modern fame, Hwadam had never been enshrined during the Chosŏn period in the Munmyo, the official Confucian Shrine -even though his mother, Lady Han of Poan, is said to have dreamt of entering the gates of the shrine herself the very night he was conceived.

Hwadam has a special place in Korean intellectual history for two main reasons.

Firstly, his thought and intellectual legacy have been highly praised in modern scholarship in both South and North Korea, which makes him a notable exception among the vast majority of Chosŏn Neo-Confucian scholars. On both sides of the 38 th parallel, Hwadam has been generally characterized by his supposedly exclusive emphasis on the notion of Ki (Vital Energy), also called sometimes Ki monism (chugiron or kiilwŏllon). He is hence believed to have paved the way for other iconic figures such as Yulgok Yi I. Hwadam has been commonly associated with Yulgok, in an attempt made by late Chosŏn scholars and modern specialists of philosophy as well to trace the intellectual genealogy of the so-called Ki school within the dominant historiography of Korean Neo-Confucianism. This historiography tends to highlight a few scholarly debates and controversies, mainly centered around the supremacy of the Vital Energy, the Principle (Ri or I), or both. The most famous debate is the "Theories on the Four Sprouts and the Seven Emotions," sadan ch'iljŏngnon, that you may have all heard about (for better or for worse) and in which major scholars of the 16 th century such as Yi I, Ki Taesŭng, and Yi Hwang were involved. Hwadam's reflections on Vital Energy and Principle are believed to have influenced the successive scholars who got involved in this debate in the late 16 th century. Moreover his apparent independent stance towards the socalled orthodox Cheng/Zhu school (also commonly called in Korea "the school of master Zhu

[Xi]," Zhujahak), has been also taken in recent years as a remarkable precedent that may explain the later flourishing of the polymorphous intellectual tendencies collectively labeled as the sirhak school of the late Chosŏn period.

The second reason why Hwadam's place in Korean history and memory is remarkable is because he is a true popular hero who has continued to play a significant role in the collective imagination in Korea over the centuries. Hwadam may qualify as an embodiment of the sallim, the rusticated scholar who voluntarily remains hidden in -literallythe "mountains and forests," far from the turmoil of a complicated political life at court or within the Chosŏn administration. Although he passed the Classics Licentiate Examination to please his mother, his stubborn refusal to serve in the bureaucracy portrays the image of an independent spirit, seduced by eremitism and erudite seclusion. This attitude has been often attributed by historians to the troubled times following the first three "literati purges" (sahwa) of Chosŏn history that were targetting Neo-Confucian scholar-officials in 1498, 1504, and 1519. Because of this attitude of deliberate withdrawal and the testimony of a life dedicated to learning far from the circles of power, Sŏ Kyŏngdŏk progressively appeared as a mythical character. For instance, in the Sŏ Hwadam chŏn (Story of Sŏ Hwadam), and the Chŏn Uch'i chŏn (Story of Chŏn Uch'i, who was a famous magician), he is depicted as a Daoist master with magical powers or even as an immortal. In the yadam, the unofficial stories orally transmitted by the people written in Classical Chinese by literati in literary compilations, he is also frequently featured in magic tales where he is gifted with the talent of prophecy and cast as the saviour of the common people. In the Popular History of the Great East (Taedong yasŭng) dating from the mid-Chosŏn period as well as in the texts collected in the modern edition of the Complete compilation of Korean oral tales documents (Han'guk munhŏn sŏrhwa chŏnjip), he is repeatedly cast as an exceptional sage unmasking either a Japanese spy who took the appearance of a fox or, conversely, a fox that took the appearance of a venerable Buddhist monk to harm people. He is even said to have unmasked a fox that took the apperance of his half-brother, born to the second wife of his father after his mother's death. In all these stories, Hwadam's extraordinary powers are attributed to his knowledge of Confucian Classics (but also Buddhist sutras), his expertise of the Book of Changes and numerology, and his mastery of occult sciences, especially Daoist techniques of immortality. Yet Hwadam is often described as being reluctant to make use of these exceptional powers, which suggests that the authors of these tales wanted to portray him as a Confucian master who has knowledge of occult sciences but does not use them unless it becomes absolutely necessary to save people.

Hwadam's wisdom and Confucian sagehood are particularly highlighted in several stories related to his relationship with women and especially Hwang Chini, the most famous kisaeng of Korean history who was a native of Kaesŏng. Legend had it that he had remained immune to the charm of Hwang Chini who tried to seduce him in order to test his reputation of being a wise man. Some of these stories specifically contrast the attitude of Hwadam who remained impassive and controlled his sexual desire while spending several nights in the same room with Hwang Chini and the attitude of a famous Buddhist monk who could not control himself after 3 nights spent in similar circumstances in spite of 30 years of practicing Buddhist meditation in the mountains. After the famous Confucian master and Buddhist monk were put to the test, Hwang Chini is known to have said that Hwadam, herself, and the Panyŏn waterfall (sometimes replaced by the Kaesŏng ginseng) were the three prodigies of Songdo (Songdo samjŏl). Because of this long lasting tradition of casting him as an exceptional sage, Hwadam has been regularly featured in the same way in some successful South Korean movies and historical drama from the late 2000's, most of them being focused on the life of Hwang Chini.

Although Hwadam was a real historical and literary figure, his case presents a certain paradox for the intellectual historian who would like to study him in a more detailed manner, for there are in fact few reliable testimonies of his life and thought. Most of these testimonies are to be found in his munjip, that is to say in the transmitted compilation of his writings, the Hwadam chip.

There have been five editions of the Hwadam chip from the late 16 th century to the late 18 th century. The most complete edition is the latest one and dates from 1786. It is the version that was used for the digital library of the Institute for the Translation of Korean Classics (한국고전번역원). This edition contains many addenda that gathered various testimonies related to Hwadam or the Hwagok academy in Kaesŏng where he had been worshipped during the Chosŏn dynasty, and most of them are located in kwŏn 3 and 4. But none of these texts were written by Hwadam himself. The heart of the Hwadam chip is located in 2 main sections: the poetry section in kwŏn 1 and the prose section in kwŏn 2. Hwadam's poetical writings account for more than 70 pieces. Except for 1 long rhymed prose (pu) listed apart, all these poems (si) are short circumstantial pieces written during trips (to Kŭmgangsan, Songnisan, or Chirisan) or gifts to friends. However several pieces resemble philosophical exercises and echo some of the themes found in his prose writings. In terms of prose, he has 21 texts of different lengths and of different styles. This prose is further divided into 5 categories according to its stylistic features and regardless of chronological order: memorials (sŏ), letters (sŏ), miscellanies (chapchŏ), gift-letter (sŏ), and inscriptions (myŏng). The Hwadam chip also contains 2 prefaces, 5 postfaces, a long tombstone inscription, and a chronological biography. These peritexts, added in the 17 th and 18 th centuries to the munjip, are of considerable interest to understand not only the history of the Hwadam chip but also the progressive and difficult steps taken by successive scholars to make of Hwadam an important figure of Korean intellectual history.

The task of Hwadam's supporters seems to have been rather difficult starting from the mid-Chosŏn period, since he was not held in high regard by the leading Neo-Confucian scholars of the time. It also seems that his writings and ideas were not well known. Contrary to the positive appraisal that Hwadam enjoys today, the historical and philosophical judgment made about him by the big names of the 16 th century is rather lukewarm, because of his taste for numbers and numerology. According to the latest preface, his teaching seems to have been dismissed as mere divination techniques, and Hwadam was not considered a true follower of the Cheng/Zhu school that was then orthodox. This feature constitutes a serious criticism and certainly explains why the admirers of Hwadam made significant efforts to restore his shattered image, claiming that he was in fact perfectly in tune with the Cheng/Zhu school. For that, the official biography cites in an extensive quotation the credit given to the exemplary scholarly attitude of Hwadam by T'oegye and Yulgok during the discussions at court in the late 16 th century, when a proposal was made to bestow him with a new posthumous title. However Yulgok's well-intended comparison of Hwadam's thought with Zhang Zai's during these discussions had a long lasting effect on how Hwadam's thought had been received until now. This comparison has been repeatedly stressed by the majority of modern commentators who hence tended to conceal the primary importance of Shao Yong's works in the Hwadam chip.

Despite the relative diversity of the texts gathered in the Hwadam chip, it is indeed striking that most of the studies of Sŏ Kyŏngdŏk's thought have focused exclusively on the miscellanies, without much attention paid to the rest of the prose writings. Moreoever although the miscellanies amount to 13 texts, only 4 texts at the opening of the miscellanies section are quoted ad nauseam: "Back to the Principle and Vital Energy" (Wŏnyigi), "Explanation on Principle and Vital Energy" (Igisŏl), "Explanation on the Supreme Emptiness" (T'aehŏsŏl), "Discussions about positive and negative spirits, death and life" (Kwisinsasaengnon). According to the tombstone inscription written by Pak Minhŏn and the biography, these 4 texts had been dictated in a hurry in 1544 by Sŏ Kyŏngdŏk before his passing to his disciple Hŏ Yŏp. These texts mainly refer to cosmology and are taken as authoritative evidences to illustrate the primacy given by Hwadam to the notion of Vital energy in the wake of Zhang Zai (notions of t'aehŏ and reflection on Ki), and Zhou Dunyi (notion of Supreme Ultimate, t'aegŭk). The texts also put forward strong criticisms against Buddhism, Daoism, and techniques of alchemy, which suggests that the compilers of the munjip tried to prevent any criticism that would accuse Hwadam of heterodox tendencies.

But when one takes a look at the other miscellanies texts, which clearly outnumber these 4 ante-mortem texts, this viewpoint is not fully convincing. Contrary to what Yulgok said (and I am really sorry to say this), Hwadam's thought is less indebted to Zhang Zai than it is to Shao Yong, the ecclectic thinker of the Northern Song whose teachings and arithmology has always been regarded as a curiosity and an exception even within Chinese intellectual history. This feature was clearly pointed out by the Chinese compilers of the Complete Library of the Four Treasuries (Siku quanshu) compiled in the 18 th century in Qing China in the notice about the Hwadam chip. Indeed, almost half of the miscellanies texts of the Hwadam chip consist in curt commentaries on, mostly, Shao Yong's August Ultimate going through the ages (also translated in English as Supreme Principles governing the World), the Huangji jingshi (or Huangji jinghi shu): "Explanation on seeing in The Return the mind of heaven and earth" (Pok. Kigyŏn ch'ŏnji chi sim sŏl), "On the distinctive characteristics of hotsprings" (onch'ŏn pyŏn), "Analysis of finals and initials" (sŏngŭmhae), "Postscript about the details left unexplained in the preceding analysis of finals and initials" (pal chŏn sŏngŭmhae mijinch'ŏ), "Analysis of the numbers of the August Ultimate going through the ages" (hwanggŭk kyŏngse suhae), "Analysis of the Chart of the directional positions of the sixty-four hexagrams" (yuksipsagwa pangwŏn chi tohae), "Analysis of hexagram changes" (kwabyŏnhae). All these texts refer to the Huangji jingshi, and to a lesser extant to the Yixue qimeng ("Instructing the young in the studies of the Changes"), the divination book written by Zhu Xi and Cai Yuanding. Hwadam's commentaries are given without any introduction or contextual elements. They resemble random notes taken by disciples during classes and they cannot be understood without the diagrams, tables, and commentaries of the Chinese texts.

  When reading carefully all the texts contained in the Hwadam chip, one can list the multiple references used -explicitely or implicitely-by Hwadam: the Confucian Classics (with a special focus on the Book of Documents and the three canonical Rites), the Four Books, most of the writings of the Northern and Southern Song scholars such as Zhou Dunyi, Shao Yong, Zhang Zai, the Cheng brothers, Zhu Xi, as well as Daoist texts such as the Zhuangzi, Laozi, and Liezi, and lastly several cosmological texts that are more difficult to classify, such as the Huainanzi and Yang Xiong's Elemental Changes (Taixuan jing). Yet, if one had to pinpoint the most striking feature of all of Hwadam's writings, it would certainly be the pervasive interest in the philosophy of the Book of Changes. Cosmology, astronomy, arithmology or numerology, phonology, sounds and tunes, onomastics, Confucian rites, and all the others fields of knowledge discussed repeatedly by Hwadam are all based on the rationality provided by the Book of Changes. Since the different approaches to the Book of Changes used to be taken as one major criterion that distinguishes between orthodox and unorthodox thinkers and intellectual lineages in Neo-Confucianism, it is not surprising that Hwadam was not easy to classify as a clear cut case. Being neither a strict follower of Cheng/Zhu Neo-Confucianism as his supporters tried to portray him by stressing his borrowings from Zhang Zai, Mencius or even Confucius, nor a fabulous Daoist master as popular literature liked to depict him, Hwadam basically remains a mystery. Because of the silence surrounding his biography and the paucity of his remaining writings, Sŏ Kyŏngdŏk easily conjures up the image of an appealing sarim scholar with ecclectic interests that are likely to be compared with Daoist practices or topics. But this seductive image of a self-taught hermit should not conceal the indisputable fact that Hwadam must have had very good access to Neo-Confucian literature, especially The Great Compendium on Nature and Principle (Xingli daquan) of the works of various thinkers from the Song and Yuan dynasties. This Compendium, first printed in Ming China in 1415 and given as a diplomatic present to the Korean court in the 15 th century, was printed twice under Sejong's reign in the Kyŏngsang province that is close to Kaesŏng. Shao Yong's works in particular circulated in China in this monumental Neo-Confucian compendium as well as in the Daoist Canon (Daozang). Hwadam probably read them in the Confucian Compendium or in hand-written copies from it, since he is commenting Shao Yong in the light of other Northern and Southern Song scholars. This means that Sŏ Kyŏngdŏk, whose household was poor and who had not been taught by any teacher according to his biography, must have benefited from solid networks of wealthy disciples and friends. So one might say that Hwadam was not only a sharp mind but also an extremely erudite man whose book knowledge encompassed the immense literature of Chinese Neo-Confucianism and divination techniques related to the Book of Changes. His knowledge of Buddhism and Daoism turns out to be rather shallow and must certainly come from Neo-Confucian basic criticisms. Hwadam's main field of interest was undoubtedly the philosophy of Changes and, in that sense, he is an

outstanding exception in the landscape of early Korean Neo-Confucianism. His expertise on Shao Yong is also absolutely remarkable and should be studied in more details in the future.

Going beyond the image made up by his supporters but also his detractors throughout the centuries, the attentive reader of the Hwadam chip may be able to find out some interesting and original features of the intellectual culture of the early Chosŏn period, far from the debates and themes commonly underlined to define, in a somewhat monolithic way, the Korean Confucian tradition.


Sandra Derozier

Louise Deleger

Estelle Chaix

Reda Mekdad

Mouhamadou Ba

Delphine Sicard

Valentin Loux

Hélène Falentin

Claire Nédellec

Florilege, a database gathering microbial habitats, phenotypes and uses

à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d'enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés.

Florilege -http://migale.jouy.inrae.fr/florilege/ 30/06/2020 -03/07/2020 JOBIM 2020 florilege@inrae.fr The workflow is designed to (1) extract microorganism taxa, their habitats, their phenotypes and their uses and (2) categorize the extracted information by means of taxa from the NCBI taxonomy and concepts from the OntoBiotope ontology 5 . The Florilege application combines information from other databases with knowledge from the literature (PubMed) on microbial biodiversity, to support their comparison for further analysis. In a recent study conducted at STLO, Florilege was used for the selection of species fermenting soy milk.

Context5

  Chaix E. et al. Text mining tools for extracting information about microbial biodiversity in food Food Microbiology, 2018.

  has led to an exponential growth of experimental data and publications. It is now crucial for researchers to have bioinformatics applications that offer unified access to both data and related scientific articles.Florilege uses an Information Extraction workflow to populate its database. Florilege -http://migale.jouy.inrae.fr/florilege/ 30/06/2020 -03/07/2020 JOBIM 2020 florilege@inrae.fr ://migale.jouy.inrae.fr/florilege/ 30/06/2020 -03/07/2020 JOBIM 2020 florilege@inrae.fr ://migale.jouy.inrae.fr/florilege/ 30/06/2020 -03/07/2020 JOBIM 2020 florilege@inrae.fr Conclusion 6 Söhngen C. et al. (2015). Bac Dive -The Bacterial Diversity Metadatabase in 2016. Nucleic acids research, 44 (D1), D581-D585. Florilege is integrating an increasing volume of textual and non-textual information from relevant biological databases: ➔ 659 508 Taxa -Habitat relations (575 822 PubMed, 63 534 GenBank, 639 INRAE CIRM BIA, 19 513 DSMZ through BacDive 6 ) ➔ 43 742 Taxa -Phenotype relations (PubMed) ➔ 10 408 Taxa -Use relations (PubMed) Florilege offers a powerful semantic search engine that enables ontology-based query to support Information Retrieval. Access to Florilege: ➔ a web application displays a unique set of structured information on food microbiota, publicly accessible at http://migale.jouy.inra.fr/florilege/. ➔ an API (Application Programming Interface) that allows one to automatically integrate microbe biodiversity in external information systems. API Documentation: http://migale.jouy.inra.fr/florilege-api/api-doc/.


One striking feature of the early careers of the prominent scholars-officials in early to mid-Chosŏn is the system of saga toksŏ, which lasted roughly 340 years, from the 15 th to the 18 th century. The expression saga toksŏ 賜暇讀書 literally means "to be bestowed leave to read books." In modern terms, it might be explained as a sabbatical leave, an ongoing training or even an induction program. The system had no equivalent in China or Japan, where such a practice had neither an institutionalised form nor a specific name like in Korea. It can be seen as one of the most salient Korean kings' attempts to put into practice all together the ideals of Confucian kingship, officialdom and Learning.

The system is generally said to have been created in 1426 by king Sejong (r. 1418Sejong (r. -1450)), advised on this matter by Pyŏn Kyeryang 卞季良 (1369-1430), then Academician at the Yemungwan (Office of Royal Decrees). It is deeply related to two features of Sejong's reign. Firstly, it is probably an extension of the restoration in 1420 of the Chip'yŏnjŏn 集賢殿 (Hall of Worthies). Later renamed Hongmungwan 弘文館 (Office of Compositors) or Oktang 玉堂 (the Jade Hall), the Chip'yŏnjŏn was in charge of the preservation of books and archives, as well as the composition of official texts and notes ordered by the king. This important organ was part of the Samsa (the Three Ministries), that is to say the heart of the central government, with the Sahŏnbu (Office of Inspector-General) and the Saganwŏn (Office of Special Counselors). The saga toksŏ was meant by king Sejong and his advisors to palliate the failures of the Chip'yŏnjŏn, where appointed officials were often too busy composing texts to study for themselves. The second feature related to Sejong's reign is the growth of the kyŏngyŏn 經筵 (Classics Mat lectures). These royal lectures, primarily intended to inculcate the Classics and historical texts to the king, were one of the means of checking the knowledge of government officials on a regular basis. Most of the Royal lecturers in charge of these lectures were appointed at the same time at the Chip'yŏnjŏn/Hongmungwan, and the leading ones were even members of the Sŭngjŏngwŏn 承政院 (Royal Secretariat) or the Ŭijŏngbu 議 政府 (State Council). Therefore, the main issue raised by the saga toksŏ at the time of king Sejong was, in a Confucian perspective, the management of "talented men" who should be recruited through examinations and not by recommendation, and appointed at the core organs of the bureaucracy. This exceptional sabbatical leave was expected to embody the ideal Confucian kingship and express the royal patronage over the source of all legitimacy: Learning.

Applied from Sejong's reign to the 18 th century, the system reached its peak at the end of the 16 th century. The total number of the recipients of the saga toksŏ during the three and a half centuries of its existence might have been about 250 to 300 according to remaining sources, among which two thirds (i.e. 200) were granted sabbatical leave before the end of the 16 th century. There were many interruptions of the system for various reasons, among which the lack of interest from autocratic kings such as Sejo (r. 1455-1468), Yŏnsangun (r. 1469-1506) and Kwanghaegun (r. 1608Kwanghaegun (r. -1623)), the lack of interest of scholars-officials themselves, literati purges and factional strives, and foreign invasions.

The system of saga toksŏ had many intriguing characteristics. First and foremost, there were no specific selection criteria defined in any official record. The exact number of recipients per selection, their ages and skills, the number of selections per reign, and the duration of the leave are still pretty much unclear. Yet, we can be sure about one thing: when the system began in the 15 th century, all the recipients, who were aged between 20 and 30 for the vast majority of them, passed with flying colors the mungwa examination and none of them passed the military examinations. One major aim of the saga toksŏ was to reduce the influence of master-disciple bonds as well as the number of recruitments by recommendation, in order to create a strong sense of loyalty towards the king. But, these selected scholars were all placed under the supervision of the taejaehak (Director of the Yemungwan), whose personality and personal choices were crucial. The taejaehak often short-listed a few candidates and convinced the king to select his favourites. The goal of a more objective selection of talents was not met in practice.

The second characteristic is that there were no compulsory curriculum for the saga toksŏ. But in a charged diplomatic context, the stress was put on literary and poetical compositions, for excellent literary skills were necessary for successful diplomatic exchanges.

Between the 15th and the 17 th centuries, 16 out of 18 high-ranking officials in charge of dealing with Chinese emissaries had been in saga toksŏ.

The third characteristic is that there were no strict rules to assess the work in progress.

This was a constant and rather serious problem, for it raised the question of how relevant and efficient the whole system was in the long term. Generally speaking, it seems that a report had to be submitted three times a month and the recipients were expected to accept monthly assessments (wŏlgwa) with the officials appointed at the Yemungwan (Office of Royal decrees). The results of these assessments mainly consisted in circumstantial poetry, of which only a few traces still

The fourth characteristic was that the saga toksŏ was located and moved in several places. At the beginning, the selected officials stayed at home and their leave was called chaega toksŏ 在家讀書 (studying at home). Then, the decision was made to make them study in Buddhist temples high in the mountains, outside of the capital. That was the sansa toksŏ 山 寺讀書 (studying in the mountain temples). Under Sŏnjong's reign (1469-1494) the saga toksŏ gained for the first time a specific place in Yongsan and, under Chungjong's reign, in today's Chongno area. The construction of a building, solely dedicated to the saga toksŏ, was achieved only in the 16 th century. This Tongho Toksŏdang 東湖讀書堂 (the Reading House at the Eastern Lake) was erected in Oksu, but was destroyed by fire during the imjin war. In the 17 th century, decisions were made to relocate the ghostly Reading House in different buildings, first in Yongsan and, then in Oksu. But soon the scholars were allowed to study from home and the system fall apart.

The last characteristic of the saga toksŏ, when considering the periods when the recipients were hosted in a specific building, was that material and human resources were provided by the palace supplies office. All of the recipients, who kept the emoluments of their posts while on saga toksŏ, were fed and housed at the Toksŏdang. According to the account of Yi Chik 李植 (1584-1647), chosen for sabbatical leave in 1626, they were given rice and beans, alcohol, vegetables, soy sauce and fuel, and were authorized to exchange any left overs for money to buy more food, alcohol or any other personal needs. A saddled horse was at their disposal in case they needed to go out, boats were prepared for outings and banquets.

They were supplied with servants and maids, and slaves cultivated the land specially allocated for the Toksŏdang. But life in the Toksŏdang was not always that comfortable and things changed drastically from the reign of Kwanghaegun (1608-1623).

To sum up, the system of the saga toksŏ was fairly flexible and unsettled. It mainly depended on the men in power and the good will of successive kings. This feature was both its strength and its weakness. On the one hand, the saga toksŏ paved the way to distinguished careers. In the 16 th century in particular, it was part of the cursus honorum of many important scholars-officials. Most of them were close to decision-making power and kings. But on the other hand, starting from the 17 th century, the saga toksŏ became a pointless sinecure and even a secondary reward for services rendered during factional strife. So over the centuries, it tended to be reduced to an empty name without any tangible reality or specific set location.

The whole system ended up being suppressed in the 18 th century.

However the saga toksŏ was replaced, in a certain extent, by a new system under Chŏngjo's reign (1776-1800): the chogye munsin 抄啓文臣 (the selecting and leading of civil officials). Just after ascending to the throne, Chŏngjo created the Kyujanggak 奎章閣 and ordered the State Council to select 20 talented men among the officials under age 37. The curriculum was strictly set (the Four books, the Five Classics and the Records of the Great historian) and tests were held twice a month. Selected officials were either rewarded or punished, depending on their rankings at these tests. The main differences of this system, compared to the saga toksŏ were that: 1) it was located within the palace; 2) the rules were clearly defined in an official text, the Munsin kangje chŏlmok 文臣講製節目; 3) the selected officials had to quit their positions and attendance was compulsory; 4) these men were given holidays twice a year, at fixed dates at the Yuhajŏng, within the Kyujanggak, where they were entertained by royal order with courtesans and banquets. From Chŏngjo's viewpoint, the aim of the chogye munsin was to improve the saga toksŏ then already fallen into disuse. But this new system could not outlive Chŏngjo. So one might say that the chogye munsin was the swan song of the idea of saga toksŏ, born with the first "sage king" of Chosŏn, Sejong, and that idea was to die with the second "sage king" of Chosŏn, Chŏngjo.

Taken from the viewpoint of the recipients of the saga toksŏ, it might be said that the saga toksŏ left a certain imprint in Chosŏn history. Deeply related to the complex relations between the kings, the highest officials at court, and the Confucian scholars, the saga toksŏ was affected by the tragic history of the sarim literati in early Chosŏn where two significant events occurred. The first traumatic event happened right after the coup by future king Sejo, when the vast majority of the recipients of the saga toksŏ under Sejong were eliminated. This meant that Sejong's efforts to cultivate talents were unsuccessful and the system itself was threatened from its very beginnings by a king. The second event was the muo sahwa 戊午士 禍 (the literati purge of 1498), under Yŏnsangun's reign, during which the corpse of Kim Chongjik 金宗直 (1431-1492), the former leader of the sarim scholars at court, was dug up and beheaded in public. All of his disciples, who had been selected for the saga toksŏ under Sŏngjong (r. 1469-1494), were either imprisoned or executed. However, three of them later participated in 1506 in the Chungjong panjŏng 中宗反正 bringing Chungjong to the throne. This common history of martyrdom among the recipients of the saga toksŏ may have greatly helped to strengthen a sense of identity and community among sarim scholars-officials in the 16 th century, when the saga toksŏ was extensively bestowed upon them by kings. The selfawareness or self-belief of these Neo-Confucian scholars was reflected in a new genre of painting, between landscape painting and the kyehwado 契會圖 (literati's meeting painting), in which reading and learning were the main themes underlined. It was also vividly reflected in the only substantial text remaining from the whole system of saga toksŏ throughout the centuries. It is the Tongho mundap 東湖問答 (Questions and Answers at the Eastern Lake), submitted to the new king Sŏnjo (r. 1567-1608) in the early summer of 1569 by Yulgok, Yi I (1536-1584), on saga toksŏ at the Toksŏdang.

Contrary to what was expected from an examination at the Toksŏdang, Yulgok's text was not a poetry piece, showing his literary talents. It was rather a memorial to the throne (sangso mun 上疏文), urging the king to practice Confucian kingship and implement reforms.

The text was unusual too, for it was set up as a dialogue, in a question and answer form, between a host and a visitor. The host can be understood as Yulgok, and the visitor as the king.

The Tongho mundap stages a fictional encounter consisting in a mise en abîme of the situation at the Reading House, where the king pays visit to scholars upon whom he decided to bestow leaves. This setting reminds of the figure of Mencius who used to teach various kings. It also suggests a master-disciple relationship between Yulgok, the kudo changwŏn kong 九度壯元 公 then aged 34, and king Sŏnjo, only aged 17. Contrary to the ideal of the Confucian king who must be the supreme teacher, here the teacher is the minister, whose moral task is to advise his king rather than passively practice ornemental skills under the Taejaehak's supervision.

Yulgok started his career in 1564 at age 29 under Myŏngjong's reign (1545-1567). He had already gained fame as an exceptional scholar since his childhood. One year after entering officialdom, he began to submit memorials with some of his like-minded colleagues from the Saganwŏn, Sahŏnbu, and Hongmungwan (the Samsa) to publicly criticize several personalities, such as the monk Pou 普雨 (1509-1565), the head abbot of Pongŭnsa and protégé of Munjŏng wanghu (regent: 1545-1565), Yun Wŏnhyŏng 尹元衡 (1503-1565), responsible of the ŭlsa sahwa 乙巳士禍 (the literati purge of 1545), and Sim T'ongwŏn 沈通 源 (born 1499) from the State Council, found guilty of abuse of power and bribery. In 1568, on the first year of Sŏnjo's reign, he participated in the writing of the Veritable records of Myŏngjong and was sent on diplomatic mission to China. The next year, just before starting his saga toksŏ, Yulgok was appointed Hongmun'gwan kyori 弘文館校理 (fifth counselor in the Office of the Special Counselors) and, as such, was keeping lecturing at the royal lectures.

So in the Tongho mundap, he took the opportunity to continue to address government issues and lecture the inexperienced king. Right after the saga toksŏ, he sent again, within three months, two more memorials on government issues, with some colleagues from the Hongmungwan (simu gusa 時務九事, oktang jinsimuso 玉堂陳時務疏).

The Tongho mundap is rather long (more than 16,000 sinographs) and is divided into 11 parts of different lengths. Each part is organized around a question put at the beginning by the visitor to the guest. The question is simple but the answer is more elaborate and didactic.

At the end of each part, a short sentence reminds us what the question is and summarizes the answer. Here are the 11 parts: 1) non kundo 論君道 (discussing the Way of the prince), 2) non sindo 論臣道 (discussing the Way of the minister), 3) non kunsin sangdŭk chi nan 論君 臣相得之難 (discussing the difficulties of prince and minister in understanding each other), 4) non tongbang tohak purhaeng 論東方道學不行 (discussing the fact that, in our Eastern country, the Learning of the Way is not practiced), 5) non ajo kodo pulbok 論我朝古道不復 (discussing the fact that, in our dynasty, the ancient Way is not restored), 6) non tanggŭm chi sise 論當今之時勢 (discussing the topical issues of our day), 7) non musil wi sugi chi yo 論 務實為修己之要 (discussing the fact that dealing with concrete issues is the key to selfcultivation), 8) non pyŏn'gan wi yonghyŏn chi yo 論辨姦為用賢之要 (discussing the fact that discerning who are wicked is the key to the appointment of worthy people), 9) non anmin chi sul 論安民之術 (discussing the ways to ease the people), 10) non kyoin chi sul 論教人之術 to deal with and find concrete solutions for the hot issues of the day, 3) to change laws and make reforms in all fronts (fiscal, social, economical, military, etc.). In his political recommendations, he knew his facts and displayed a keen sense of practicality. His political thought was influenced by Xunzi and he may even conjure up the images of Wang Anshi in China and Chŏng Tojŏn in Chosŏn Korea. His memorials and the Tongho mundap were all driven by the urgency of the country's situation. According to Yulgok, the country was on the brink of collapse because of serious breaches from the inside and major threats from the outside. But since Sŏnjo and other high officials did not follow his boldest reform proposals, Yulgok was not able to see his ideas put in practice in government and, thus, continuously struggled to stay in or retire from officialdom.

"

  Saga toksŏ: a royal patronage of Sage Learning in Chosŏn?"

(

  discussing the ways to teach the people), 11) non chŏngmyŏng wi ch'ido chi pon 論正名為 治道之本 (discussing the fact that the rectification of names is the root of the Way of government). This very methodical and well structured presentation of the arguments is a common feature of several texts written by Yulgok, such as the Sŏnghak chibyo 聖 學 輯 要 , a monumental synthesis of Neo-Confucianism ordered by Sŏnjo written 6 years later in 1575 and the Kyŏngmong yogyŏl 擊蒙要訣, a Neo-Confucian primer written for his students in 1577. The content of the Tongho mundap is common to most of the very large number of memorials he wrote during his twenty years of career, among which the famous manŏn pongsa 萬言封事, a sealed lengthy memorial sent to Sŏnjo five years after the Tongho mundap, in 1574, when Yulgok was on leave in the countryside. Generally speaking, Yulgok's focus in all his texts written to Sŏnjo was threefold. It was to convince the king 1) to truely understand and practice the Confucian Learning, especially the Confucian kingship, 2)

The Tongho mundap is the only remaining text composed by a scholar-official on saga toksŏ at the Toksŏdang. It is a major text of Neo-Confucian political thought and it bears the testimony of a great statesman's concern for his country. It became the symbol of the saga toksŏ. The system of saga toksŏ was implemented at first to display royal patronage upon scholars-officials and was related to the two towering figures among Chosŏn kings, Sejong and Chŏngjo. However it is one unique scholar's production that would be associated to the saga toksŏ and stands for its legacy. By taking the unexpected initiative to slightly subvert the system to perform what he thought to be his duty and lecture the king, Yulgok gave to saga toksŏ its letters of nobility. The lesson taught was that saga toksŏ was meant for Learning and Learning meant to behave according to one's own position. The minister, when he is truly a sage, advises the prince and the prince, when he is truly a sage, must rule while listening to his sage ministers. Yulgok took the saga toksŏ and his king seriously and he dramatically exposed what Confucian Learning meant when practiced correctly. He demonstrated what Sejong wanted as the ideal outcome of saga toksŏ: loyalty to king. But, by doing so, he also assumed his own moral superiority and thus affirmed his pride as a sarim scholar who was well aware of his own talents.


Dr Isabelle Sancho

Yulgok's vision of China: Finding a Korean Confucian Way" Yulgok Yi I (1536-1584) is well known as one most outstanding scholar-officials who initiated a Korean reappraisal of Chinese Neo-Confucianism. He is also admired for his commitment to various aspects of state administration, including diplomatic exchanges with Ming China. His famous Kija silgi 箕子實記 (1580) is especially regarded as having paved the way for the building of a radically new Confucian worldview in which Chosŏn Korea could free itself from the intellectual and cultural superiority of Ming and, above all, Qing China. I would like to focus my talk today on some aspects of Yulgok's protean vision of China, and show how this prominent Neo-Confucian scholar has progressively built a complex vision, for this vision of China might have precisely allowed him to define and legitimize a Korean Confucian Way.

In the Korean scholars' vision, China has mainly three faces. There is an imaginary, literary and poetical China that can be investigated through poems, official and diplomatic correspondence. There is also a philosophical and canonical China to which references are made in scholarly writings. Lastly, there is the real, contemporary China that is either an annoying and threatening neighbour or, conversely, a trustful and powerful ally. These visions of China are grounded on cultural and intellectual interests, but also on strategic, diplomatic, economic and military necessities. This complexity is notably expressed in the very variety of the terms used to designate China, which stress one feature or another. For example, here is the terminology used by Yulgok in various types of texts: 1) chungguk 中國, chunghwa 中華, chungjo 中朝 (China as the Middle in the sinocentric worldview); 2) ch'ŏnjo 天朝, hwanghwa 皇華, chunghwa 中華 (China as the source of civilization and as the model State); 3) haewoe 海外 and isŏng 異城 (the

territory of China, in contrast to Korea). Many different adjectives are also used to name the Chinese emissaries: hansa 漢使 and chungjosa 中朝使 (ethnic and geographical stress); hwasa 華使, ch'ŏnsa 天使 and okchŏl 玉節 (laudatory terms). Contrary to this varying terminology for China and its emissaries that deserve respect, Yulgok only uses the simple and neutral word chungguk'in 中國人 for the Chinese people, as a generic term. As for the Chinese emperor, he is notably impersonally named "august", hwang 皇, when contrasted with the Korean king, who is called "Prince" kun 君, for Yulgok is tied to him in the ritual and privileged relationship of prince/minister kun/sin 君/臣.

In order to study more precisely Yulgok's shifting and protean vision of China, a few texts selected from the Yulgok's Collected writings (Yulgok chŏnsŏ 栗谷全書) are of the highest interest. As an example, let's look at the poems that Yulgok wrote during his diplomatic mission to Ming China in 1568, but also several pieces that he sent or offered from 1564 to 1583 to friends and colleagues leaving for China. These poems reflect a common literary practice of that time, and thereby convey many literary topoi. Indeed, for many skilled Korean scholar-officials, China implied and equaled first the long journey over six months to Yanjing. When they look West, Korean scholar-officials are looking at the road to the Chinese capital. Some recurrent images and metaphors depict the pain and solitude of such a long journey: the ten thousand li's road, the ceaselessly revolving wheel of the chariot, the horses heading to the horizon, the loneliness and anxiety of the emissaries who are in charge of a great responsibility. Some specific places and sites in China are also recurrently cited in the poems, and play the role of the symbolic legs in the diplomatic journey: the Liaoning province just after the border, the Yongtong bridge in Hebei just before entering Beijing (yongtongqiao 永通橋), the trees around the Gate of Ji (薊門, 薊門樹, 薊樹) in the Shuntianfu 順天府 area in Beijing, and the Jade river (yuhe 玉河) passing by the residence where the Korean emissaries stayed in the imperial capital (Yuheguan 玉河館). Inside the Korean peninsula, the important sites are: the mount Paektu and the Yalu river, which traditionally symbolize the border; and just next to it, the city of Ŭiju 義州 and the residence built for the departing emissaries (Yongmangwan 龍灣館); and finally, also in the Northern P'yŏng'an province, the site of the past capital of Koryŏ, Kaesŏng, where the residence built to first welcome officially the Chinese emissaries (T'aep'yŏnggwan 太 平 館 ) was located, as well as the two mountains surrounding this site, the Song'aksan 松嶽山 and the Ch'ŏnmasan 天摩山.

Along with this both symbolic and realistic topography of the journey back and forth from China, Yulgok's circumstantial poems offer an insight into the concerns and mindsets of the Korean scholar-officials of the late 16 th century concerning China and diplomacy. One main topic since 1577 is the problem of correcting the errors concerning the genealogy of the Chosŏn founder, king T'aejo, in the official records of the Ming dynasty (chonggye pyŏnmu 宗系辨誣). This error is regarded as an insult by Yulgok, for which Chosŏn is now an old and highly civilized state that fully deserves respect. A second important concern is the defense of the Northern border, and the definition of who must hold the "key of the Northern gate" (pukmunyak 北門鑰) to secure and protect the kingdom from the Northern invasions and attacks. Yulgok then considers that it is mainly the task of China, whose military force and Sino-centric diplomatic system are the best tools that the Koreans can also use to protect themselves. These two concerns are expressing recurring topics in the Sino Korean history of diplomacy. What is much more interesting here is Yulgok's description of his own journey to China. Indeed, he never refers to any meeting with Chinese scholars, or intellectual exchange. Contrary to the image of China as the source of inspiration or culture, what Yulgok is depicting is desolated cities surrounded, and even haunted, by the noise of Buddhist chanting (목탁 소리) and barbarian banquets around gigantic pyres after hunting. The Barbarians, that is to say the Xiongnu, Xianyun of North-West Shanxi, and other nomadic people from the Gobi region, are named either according to the ancient Chinese terminology or by depreciative terms (tanu 單于, kyŏnyung 犬戎, ŭmsan kyŏnsi kun 陰山犬豕羣). This theme of the Barbarians appears in three poems out of seven. Moreover, whereas P'yŏng'ando's Korea is described by Yulgok as a peaceful and cultivated country, on the other side of the Yalu river, Liaoning and Hebei's China tends to be described as the realm of a disproportioned nature, insecurity, heterogeneity and even heterodoxy. This point leads us to tackle with Yulgok's vision of China as Chunghwa 中華, or center of culture and civilization. What is important to remember first is that China at Yulgok's time means also the success and even the predominance of the so-called Lu-Wang school in official scholarship and Neo-Confucianism. In 1582, Yulgok is appointed wŏnjŏpsa, in charge of welcoming the Chinese emissaries. At this occasion, he is notably asked by Huang Hongxian 黃 洪 憲 and Wang Jingmin 王 敬 民 to write a short commentary on one core sentence of Confucius, on the strict condition to avoid the Cheng/Zhu school's interpretation and use instead the Lu-Wang school's understanding of it. In his response, the famous Kŭkki poknye sŏl 克己復禮說, Yulgok refuses to follow this condition. He argues, in both reverent and highly ironical terms, that he is not aware of the latest, trendy developments of the Chinese scholarship and does not know that there were any outstanding Chinese Neo-Confucian scholars after Zhu Xi. This Korean attitude and pride of revering the orthodox tradition is well-known, and partly explains the later pretension of Korean scholars of being the guardians of the true Confucian school. However, one important detail must be noticed concerning Yulgok's specific case.

For him, China's heterodox tendencies are not necessarily an error. More precisely, Yulgok is using China as an argument to criticize the Korean contemporary practices. In the postface he wrote for one work of the contemporary Chinese scholar Chen Jian 陳建, the Hakpu t'ongbyŏn pal 學蔀通辨跋 (1581), he severely denounces the self-pride of some Korean scholars that is not grounded on sincere and true scholarship, but rather on laziness and lack of knowledge. In such a context, studying heterodox doctrines like the Chinese is better than settling for superficial learning. In fact, Yulgok is aware that a competition has started between China and Chosŏn Korea, and he is absolutely confident in the Korean potential and legitimacy. He is using China as an embossing tool as well as a challenging stimulus for his peers. However, it is worth noting that he is less interested in grasping or following the contemporary Chinese scholarship than in developing and The striking feature of Yulgok's representation of this canonical China is his specific use of history and temporality. In his Kija silgi, that he wrote to condense the Kija chi 箕子志 written by Yun Tusu 尹斗壽 (1533-1601) between 1577 and 1580, Yulgok explains that Korean emissaries are often asked by Chinese scholars about the history of Kija/Qizi in Korea -Yulgok himself is offered two years later to add a poem to the fu that the Chinese emissary, Wang Jingmin, composed on Kija. But they are not able to answer since they lack knowledge and proper compilation on the topic. The purpose of his Kija silgi is then to define and clarify the history of this master, in order to build a common and unique Korean memory about the beginnings of the civilization and the Confucian Way in Korea, which is independent and cut from the Chinese developments. Kija is notably called by Yulgok inhyŏn 仁賢 and insŏng 仁聖; these terms underline his holding the master-key moral quality stressed since Confucius: the ren/in 仁. Besides, the terms insŏng 仁聖, sŏngsa 聖師, asŏng 我聖, and wŏnsŏng 元聖 are all compound with the character sheng/sŏng 聖 that refers to moral quality as well, but above all to one very important idea in Yulgok reasoning: the ahistorical times of humanity, when Sage Sovereigns were appointed by Heaven. In Yulgok's texts, the core figures of this sacred and ahistorical time of humanity are Yao, Shun and Yu the Great. As for Kija, he is the last sage sovereign of that kind, since he was also endowed with specific skills by Heaven. Moreover, he is the only link between Old Antiquity, and especially Yu the Great, and the beginning of the historical period of humanity in Yulgok's perspective: the transition between Shang and Zhou dynasties. In other words, according to Yulgok, the turning point from mythical Antiquity to historical time is the very beginning of the Zhou dynasty in China and Kija's Chosŏn in Korea. It is by the way worth remembering that the only site in China that Yulgok visited and to which he dedicated a poem is the temple honoring Bo Yi 伯夷 and Shu Qi 叔齊, the two Sages who preferred to retire and starve to death on the Shouyang mountain in Shanxi (首陽山), in protestation against the bloody dynastic transition from Shang to Zhou. In this poem, the ch'ŏngjŏlsa 淸節祠, Yulgok is explaining that he can actually feel the "spiritual wind" (p'ung 風) of old Antiquity, and in various texts, he seems literally obsessed by Shang dynasty rather than the Zhou's, which is however the dynasty revered by Confucius himself. So, according to Yulgok, Kija is the common ancestor of Chinese and Korean historical civilized states (wŏnsŏng 元聖), for he gave to China the forgotten secret of Yu the Great, the Hongfan/Hongbŏm 洪範, to emperor Wu of Zhou before leaving deliberately for the Korean peninsula. To briefly conclude, in the texts of Yulgok, one iconic figure of the Korean Neo-Confucian scholar-official of the 16 th century, China is a protean and complex entity.

Most of the aspects of his vision of China (literary, political, philosophical and intellectual) are revealing the priority given to self-definition, which encompasses historical thought, philosophical ideals and diplomatic concerns at large. China is the major Other that is freely used, and that is viewed through various prisms in order to envision the Korean past, present and future. Korean Neo-Confucianism, but also the shifting relationship between Ming, Qing China and Chosŏn Korea are much indebted to the visions of China built by Korean scholar-officials like Yulgok Yi I.

  further perfecting a proper Korean tradition. So his vision of China mainly shapes his vision of Korea. This pride and self-confidence of the 16 th century Korean scholars is the key to understanding the progressive shift in their Confucian worldview and their position vis-àvis the Chinese supposed superiority and cultural advancement. The analysis of Yulgok's shifting and protean vision of China provides an interesting insight into the intellectual mechanisms that have been at work in this progressive change. Especially, his writings on Kija show a solid argumentation in favor of the autonomy, the equality, and even the superiority of Korea regarding civilization and Confucian ideals. As a Neo-Confucian scholar, Yulgok shared the common idea that the Confucian Way, the Daotong/Tot'ong 道通, designates the civilizing process of the proper mankind. The main references to this process are commonly made to Chinese history and, more precisely, Chinese Antiquity.

  Another interesting feature of Yulgok's discourse is that Kija was a righteous man who deliberately chose to flee the new Chinese dynasty of Zhou, founded by brutal force and violence, and create his own state (kuk 國) in Korea. This state has been shaped with affection and benevolence, as in the ideal Confucian vision, and civilization started then to flourish in Korea. One main feature of the civilization stressed by Yulgok is rites and ethics, Confucian ethics. In the rather long and precise description of the history of the Ki family's rule in Korea, Yulgok contrasts the peacefulness and the ethical practices and mindsets of Korean people with the instability, violence and guile of Chinese people of the period beginning with the Warring States. The hazards and the final collapse of Ki family's successive kingdoms of Kija Chosŏn and Mahan, after 1120 years of sage rule (Yulgok is calculating minutely), are mainly due to the chaos generated by troubled Chinese history. To sum up, from 1568 when he first wrote a text on Kija (the Kija chŏn 箕子殿), Yulgok developed little by little a specific discourse on China, civilization, and the Confucian Way in various texts, including the famous Sŏnghak chipyo 聖學輯要 (1575), the Kija silgi 箕子實記 (1580) and the Ch'a Wangch'ŏnsa Kija myobu un 次王天使箕子廟賦韻 (1582). He notably used the figure of Kija, revered in Henan and P'yŏng'ando (the ancient fiefs of Kija in China and Korea), to demonstrate the common beginnings of the history of the Confucian Way in both China and Korea. The most fascinating feature is that Kija is less a Confucianin the sense of directly connected to the historical school of Confucius, than the last Sage sovereign of Antiquity. Besides, because Kija decided to leave China and settled down in the Korean peninsula, his descendants implemented a civilized, ethical and benevolent state, from which contemporary Chosŏn kingdom is directly linked. The supposedly Chinese civilization and culture, or in other words the Confucian ideal state and society, is then a notion cut from geographical and national contingencies. It only depends on the men who are trying to practice it in reality (sil 實), like Kija, whatever their country. The Confucian Way is an ideal lost from the old and ahistorical Antiquity that the two cultured states under heaven have to follow in mutual respect: China of course, but also her equal, Chosŏn Korea.


Isabelle Sancho

Panel: "Beyond Communication: the Scope of Epistolary Culture in Chosŏn Korea" "Self-Narration and Epistolarity in The Complete Works of Yulgok."

Paradoxes of epistolarity

When trying to grasp what it could have meant to be a Confucian in Chosŏn Korea, epistolary texts taken in a broad sense are a valuable yet bewildering corpus for the historian.

At the crossroads between historical sources and literary achievements, they raise critical methodological questions, for they are related to the problematic of the self, or subjectivity. This issue, linked to the questioning about structures and agency, or collective norms and individual freedom, is also fundamentally related to the debatable opposition between the supposed authenticity expected from testimonies of the self and the inescapable 'artificiality' of the self-fashioned 'self' reflected in these self-narratives. Besides epistolarity has fuzzy contours and studies generally point at the paradox of a genre that may ultimately be characterized by the negation of its own characteristics. Some scholars have thus proposed to define it as a mode, rather than a genre. To illustrate this point, let me remind you of a few genetic and most significant markers of any text that might be labeled as 'epistolary': 1) a communicative purpose, 2) the materiality and written nature of the communication, 3) three essential functions (informative, expressive, argumentative), 4) strong stylistic features such as opening and closing with a signature, set phrases, dialogic form, hyperbolic writing style giving the impression of an unmediated expression of thoughts and feelings (ethos of sentimental transparency), 5) self-referentiality (letters frequently make reference to themselves as material objects), 6) indications about the context of enunciation 6) topoi like health, good wishes, friendship or love, physical separation, and longing for the absent addressee, but also confession. But all the above-mentioned features often happened to be blurred, or they simply become irrelevant, depending on the state of preservation as well as the formal presentation of the epistolary documents, whether they are incomplete or damaged manuscripts or, conversely, in carefully edited miscellanies.

Ensuing problems are generally twofold. The frequent absence of answers and the loss of parts of a thorough correspondence lead to a fragmented and disconnected reading of the communication originally at stake. Dialogue then becomes monologue, and epistolary writings -which are always circumstantial-are severed of their contexts and fall within the realm of biography or even autobiography. The second difficulty results from editorial decisions that had deliberately altered the original texts (including rewriting and drastic cuts) and rearranged heterogeneous writings on a basis of arbitrary criteria. Epistolary writings are divided into sub-genres identified by different names and classified under different stylistic categories (prose, poetry, divers, etc.). It is then difficult to find them out in large compilations and identify them as 'epistolary.' But the most significant reason why epistolary writings tend to lose their epistolarity, basically understood as a communicative mode, is certainly the self-fashioning that is consubstantial with any self-narration process. Because of its very nature of written expression (the solemnity of writing is often backed up with rewriting and editing) as well as the author's self-awareness, epistolary writings stand for the most sophisticated form of ego-documents or self-narratives, calling for even more cautious interpretation than other types of testimonies of the self.

Another characteristic of epistolarity that makes it a paradoxical communicative mode is the complex triangle formed by the writer, the addressee and the reader. Correspondence is commonly divided into public or open letters and personal or private ones to be read only by the addressee. However these 'personal' letters were circulated, read by large circles, copied, compiled, and published. So instead of resorting to such a porous dichotomy, it should rather be stressed that letters (and epistolary writings in general), as messages 'sent out,' are basically to be opened, that is to say to be read. Behind the couple formed by the writer and the addressee, who are bound by implicit agreement of confidentiality and authenticity, stand many faceless shadows, the readers who are not the addressees. Yet these shadows play a crucial role in the implementation of a specific reading practice (habit) of epistolary writings, which in turn affects the original epistolary -communicative, dialogic-nature of the documents.

The munjip as a synecdoche of the Confucian master: the Yulgokchŏnsŏ

Most of the epistolary writings available today from Chosŏn Korea were consciously transmitted in the collected works of scholars-officials and, more broadly, any worthy (or wealthy) people. The production of these compilations had been increasing exponentially throughout the dynasty, especially from the 17 th and 18 th centuries onwards, and munjip making was certainly one strong characteristic of the Chosŏn period. Considered as the material testimony and legacy of important figures, they were erected as real monuments whose very existence testified to the glory of the people to whom they were dedicated. To say it figuratively, the munjip is a synecdoche of the Confucian master or the munjip is the man himself. Traditional theories of literature certainly back up this statement, when one considers that it is in the writings (both in their content and visible -notably calligraphic-form) that the heart/mind of a man was thought to be reached.

The case of Yulgok, Yi I's munjip is particularly interesting for our discussion. First, the history of its compilation gives an enlightening insight into the mechanisms, strategies and problems through which descendants and/or disciples had been going while compiling and publishing epistolary documents. To make a long story short, there had been several editions The second reason why Yulgok's reference munjip is significant here is its very special status in the history of Chosŏn Confucianism. As can be easily noticed, the name of the compilation is not chip 集 but chŏnsŏ 全書. This name was deliberately taken after the ErCheng quanshu, the complete writings of the Cheng brothers. Song Siyŏl wanted by this means to set Yulgok up as the founding father of the orthodox tradition to which himself claimed to belong. One should also add that Song personally wrote a chronological biography (yŏnbo 年譜) of Yulgok, coupled with that of Sŏng Hon. Just like Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi, become one double-voiced person through the use of a convenient buzz-word ('the-two-Cheng') by Zhu Xi, Song Siyŏl wanted to pair Yulgok with Ugye and set them both up as the founders of his own philosophical school and political faction, the Noron. An interesting historical footnote is that the munjip of Song Siyŏl himself, by far the largest and most impressive compilation of any Confucian scholar-official from the Chosŏn period (Tasan's works were not compiled in a printed edition before the 20 th century), was named 'Songja taejŏn,' just after the Zhuzi daquan compiling the complete works of Zhu Xi. So Yulgok, caught up in the wake of Song Siyŏl's enthronement as the Korean Zhu Xia process officially sanctioned by kings Yŏngjo and Chŏngjo -, became from the late Chosŏn period an icon of Korean Confucianism. His munjip thus became not only a monumentum keeping the memory of the great man he was supposed to have been, but also a true exemplum demonstrating and testifying to his moral stature as a true Confucian 'master.'

Brief inventory of the epistolary writings in the Yulgokchŏnsŏ

One might then wonder what happened to the epistolary documents, which would certainly be commonly listed among the best testimonies of the character of a person, within the particular framework of the Yulgokchŏnsŏ. A brief inventory shows that they are scattered throughout the munjip and rather difficult to identify because of the various names under which they are sometimes concealed. A first set of texts, the obvious one, is located in the sections of official correspondence (sŏ 疏劄, kye 啓, ŭi 議, and soch'a 疏劄) from kwŏn 3 to 8 but also in kwŏn 2 of the Supplements section (sŭbyu 拾遺); and also in the 'letters' section (sŏ 書) from kwŏn 9 to 12 and in kwŏn 2 and 3 of the Supplements. Besides, a less visible set of texts can be found, one by one, in the poetry section thanks to their titles bearing characteristic epistolary features: 送… ("sent as a gift"), 別…("parting [with]…"), 寄… ("sent to"), …次韻…首 (rhymed pieces composed in response to). Digging deeper into the munjip one can also find epistolary writings under the categories of sŏ 序which are words of advice given to a friend at parting (贈…序, 別…序,送…序)-, sŏl 說 (one single occurrence), and also eulogies, chaemun 祭文.

Lastly, bits of correspondence are recorded in the chronological biography. The first set of texts (official and personal correspondence) is the most important because of its total size.

The official correspondence, sent to king Sŏnjo, counts 131 texts and the personal letters (sŏ 書), listed in chronological order and addressed to 24 scholars, among whom very famous names like Song Ikp'il (38 letters), Sŏng Hon (33 letters), Chŏng Ch'ŏl (25 letters), Yi Hwang (5 letters), and Ki Taesŭng (1 letter), totalize 139 texts. But these texts are also important because of their order of appearance within the munjip, in the first parts of the Chŏnsŏ and its Supplements. They were clearly expected to feature a personality carefully fashioned by the editors: that of an influent, respected and respectable high-official and Confucian scholar. It should be added that the few excerpts of correspondence quoted in the chronological biography massively consist in philosophical discussions, which are presented as important, remarkable steps in Yulgok's life. Besides, it is also noteworthy that many memoirs listed in the official correspondence are in fact only given by their titles without any content. The reason is that they are parts of one of the most problematic writings of Yulgok for the successive editors (an otherwise fascinating example of ego-document): the kyŏngyŏn ilgi, his memoirs of court life. Indeed, its content was potentially harmful to the families and factions of the protagonists appearing in the episodes narrated in it, for Yulgok had been directly taking part in the birth of late Chosŏn factionalism.

All the epistolary writings contained in the Yulgok chŏnsŏ share most of the features that I alluded to previously, while discussing the paradoxes of epistolarity. To mention only one of them, the answers are missing and, worse, the majority of them had not even been transmitted in the existing munjip of the addressees. However, a few particularities should be underlined. Firstly, Yulgok's writing style is more hyperbolic and emotional than that of some of his pen-friends and contemporary fellow Confucians, especially Sŏng Hon or Yi Hwang.

This characteristic also appears in his official correspondence, especially the letters refusing appointments. Secondly, three major recurring themes clearly predominate: his bad health, Confucian Learning, and friendship. These topoi certainly mirror his desire of cultivating the good will of his addressee (and reader), which is common practice in correspondence, but they are rendered, again, through strikingly emotional writing. One is even tempted to say that Yulgok's epistolary writing, as manifested in the Yulgokchŏnsŏ, is mainly consolatory, except for a few poetic pieces given as gifts to acquaintances like a Buddhist monk or some prose texts with clear didactic tone. So epistolarity in this munjip strongly conjures up visions usually created by autobiography and complicates interpretative work. Besides elements of contextualization are often lacking, and any attempt at broad network analysis is difficult to

  of Yulgok's collected writings. The first edition of his munjip, entitled Yulgoksŏnsaeng munjip, in 11 kwŏn, was printed with woodblocks at Sohyŏnsŏwŏn in Haeju in 1611, 27 years after Yulgok's death. It is based on the unfinished compilation work started by Sŏng Hon, with the help of Yulgok's disciples among whom Kim Changsaeng, and completed by Pak Yŏryong. It is divided into two volumes, respectively containing prose and poetry. Its specificity is that memorials to the throne had been highlighted and placed at the beginning of the compilation, and poetic pieces classified according to their stylistic features, not in chronological order. But this modest edition was not satisfying for Yulgok's disciples. So Pak Sech'ae has been preparing diverse addenda from 1672 to 1681, travelling from Haeju to Kangnŭng and painstakingly gathering together all the remaining writings or copies attributed to Yulgok as well as various testimonies and fragments in other scholars' munjip, diaries, and literary collections. The sokchip 續集 in 8 kwŏn and woejip 外集 in 8 kwŏn were then printed in 1682 in Chŏnju by governor Sin Iksang, and the pyŏljip 別集 in 6 kwŏn in 1686 in Pyŏngyang. These additional volumes contained unpublished documents such as letters and writings related to the Haeju community compact, but not the two masterpieces of Yulgok, the Sŏnghak chibyo 聖學輯要 and Kyŏngmong yogyŏl 擊蒙要訣 which had been already printed separately and had circulated widely since the reigns of Sŏnjo and Injo. But the printing of these three supplements provoked a scandal without precedent. Song Siyŏl, who had been corresponding with Pak Sech'ae about the project of compiling and publishing more of Yulgok's writings, rose up against them, considering that Pak Sech'ae had deliberately betrayed him. So he even tried to forbid their circulation and started compiling another extensive munjip, called Yulgok chŏnsŏ. This new version of Yulgok's munjip was actually achieved by Song Siyŏl's disciple Yi Chae 李縡 in 1744 in 38 kwŏn and it was finally supplemented and printed with movable types in 1749 in 44 kwŏn. The revised and slightly augmented edition of this work, a woodblock printing based on the previous edition in order to meet the increasing demand rapidly, came into being in 1814 in Haeju. It is the reference edition of Yulgok's collected works, still commonly used and quoted today. In it, Song Siyŏl had gathered all the texts from the three supplements of Pak Sech'ae under the title 'chŏnsŏ' adding however the Sŏnghak chibyo and Kyŏngmong yogyŏl, but, putting forward doubts about authorial authenticity, he left aside a few texts, like the T'aegŭk mundap 太極問答 and some civil service examination papers. Of course, texts like the Sun'ŏn 醇言 (the commentary of the Daodejing attributed today to Yulgok), the love letter given to the kisaeng Yuji 柳枝 in 1583, and the ŏnhae of the Four books had not been included. As for the Tonggŏ kyesa 同居 戒辭 and Kosan kugokka 高山九曲歌, originally written in vernacular Korean by Yulgok, they had been translated into Classical Chinese by Song Siyŏl for this edition.

  carry out. But, to sum up, all these remarks echo common features underlined by most of the studies about epistolarity. So what is remarkable in Chosŏn and Yulgok? By way of conclusion, I would argue that it is the reading practice, the 'reading pact' established by the Yulgok chŏnsŏ and munjip in general. Studying the munjip of a few great figures, taken in the portrait gallery of the Munmyo, is certainly a prerequisite to any understanding of the history of Confucianism. Even though munjip are far from being the only sources available to the historian, especially the one interested in either genetic editing or social history for example, they do give privileged access to those men commonly called Confucians. But one should always keep in mind the limitations of what can be said earnestly about 'the man' behind the monumentality of the munjip. By sorting out epistolary writings in a certain order of priority, munjip affect the reading and understanding of the reader who would be heedless of the paradoxes of epistolarity. Studying epistolarity means being haunted by uncertainty, but this feature precisely makes the literary reading of and the historical inquiry into epistolary documents

deeply enjoyable; and to paraphrase Confucius, what would be better than 'learning while enjoying'?