This article discusses the home-management customs since the old days and as a continuum, the acceptance process of foreign home-economics. Home-economics is a study which looks into the management of homes and efficient housework, reflecting on the i...
This article discusses the home-management customs since the old days and as a continuum, the acceptance process of foreign home-economics. Home-economics is a study which looks into the management of homes and efficient housework, reflecting on the images of modern home with a basis on west industrialization. This western home-economics became general in Japan, which was the late starter of industrialization, and it was accepted in the Great Han Empire when the western and Japanese
home-economics were con-temporarily accepted.
The Great Han Empire could respond autonomously in the process of adopting home-economics. This is because in contrast to the western home-economics, which appeared within the structure of industrial society, the home-management theory had existed in the Great Han Empire as a continuum of the historical tradition. Therefore, there is a need to consider the characteristics of pre-modern home-management theory in order to figure out the acceptance and the process of the discussions of the process of home-economics in the Great Han Empire period.
Chosǒn Dynasty’s home-management theory emphasized the educational function at homes, and the education here was possible through the cooperation of the husband and wife. Chosǒn Dynasty’s homes, which education was the priority, dramatically changed due to the social changes during the late of Chosǒn Dynasty. So called, ‘Bunhobyoulsan (dividing homes and dividing estate)’ and growth of a patriarch(父家長) and peasant(小農民) led to the increase of each homes. These social changes were not limited to Sadaebu(gentleman-scholar, Scholar-official), but it spread out even to the ordinary people.
Small scale of each home increased and the husband-wife centered homes expanded, so the cooperation between husband and wife became significant. Each home was required a general home-management knowledge, and home-management theory became social knowledge by gathering the function transitions of homes due to social changes.
The social changes during the late Chosǒn Dynasty became the foundation of socio-cultural background of the modern Korean reformation period, and the development of commodity-money economy and productivity improvement led to the promotion of industries incentive plan to enhance the national prosperity and defense.
At this time, homes gradually grew apart from economy of production and were separated internally and externally and the mother assumed full charge of education at home. Because of the tradition of having an emphasis on home-education, the education of children was regarded important, and the attention on the education of women, who were entirely responsible for home-education, increased. The emphasis on women’s education led to establishments on girl’s schools, and this is when home-economics was adopted for women education.
The process of propagating Home-Economics can be divided into two areas. These are the Americanized home-economics that was spread during missionary work and the Japanese home-economics which the literate stratum accepted. The fact that Japan’s modernization was strongly led by the country and that Japan is also part of the East Asia was appealing to the literate-stratum. They actively accepted the Japanese home-economics for women education.
The discussion of home-economics during the Great Han Empire was accomplished by having an equivalent directivity called ‘patriotism’, and the literate-stratum had distinctive opinion about the home-economics practice methods. The literate stratum were distinguished into cultural evolution home-management theories and Gubon sincham(Eastern way and western instrument) home-management theory about Home-Economics cognition. The cultural evolution of home-management theory accepted Japanese home-economics and ideology, imitating Japanese home and education. Meanwhile, Gubon sincham home-management theory inherited the mother-status as teachers inheriting the traditional home-management ideas.
The two home-management theories coexisted showed the potential of developing into the ‘home-economics of the Great Han Empire’. The so-called, ‘home-economics of the Great Han Empire’ is a study of home and includes the connection between philosophy and ideology, which were originated from the traditional home-management theories, and this enabled it to organize home-management techniques from the adopted Japanese Home-Economics.
However, the discussion of home-economics of the Great Han Empire was limited due to the loss of national sovereignty. The home-economics under the Japanese occupation was focused on lessons of practical exercise and simple housework skills. The tradition of home-economics of the Great Han Empire period was shut out due to Japanese government, and the literate-stratum’s discussion on home-Economics was prohibited.
Keywords: Home education, Home-Economics, Home-Management Theory, Education for women, Cultural evolution Home-Management Theory, Gubon sincham(Eastern way and western instrument) Home-Management Theory