광해군의 대외정책과 그 논쟁의 성격 = The Nature of Court Disputes over King Kwanghae’s Foreign Policy in Early Seventeenth-Century Choson Korea

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

The most significant attribute of the dispute over foreign policy in King Kwanghae`s court was the confrontation between King court officials. Considering that factional strife intensified violently since the treason case of 1589, it is significant that all factions lined up with each other and stood against the throne throughout the five-year dispute (1618-1622). The main reason for the confrontation was that King Kwanghae and his officials drew up very different plans to cope with the situation. Neither of them denied the possibility of a Manchu invasion of Chos.n, but the problem was how to cope that possibility. King Kwanghae maintained that Chos.n should prevent any possible military conflict with the Manchu. To this end, he stressed communications with Nurhaci. Court officials, on the other hand, contended that being allied with the Ming would be the best strategy because they believed that the Manchu would not be capable of invading Chos.n as long as the Ming-Chos.n alliance remained solid. For this reason, they strongly opposed all policies that might do damage relations with the Ming: they would not even consider a policy of secret communications with the Manchu. Why did the court officials, regardless of factional affiliation, unanimously oppose the king? What does this imply about the nature of Chos.n society of the time? It is human nature to calculate loss and gain before making an important decision, and such calculations are usually based on one`s judgment of the situation and one`s interests. So then, what made King Kwanghae and his court officials view the situation differently and not share a common set of interests? This article provide analytic answers to those questions.