Re-examining Familiar Daily Life in the Traditional Era

Korean Studies Advancement Center to Hold Large-Scale Academic Conference on "Cultural Transition and Changes in Daily Life"
Event Scheduled for November 20-21

The Korean Studies Advancement Center (President Jeong Jongseop), with support from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, will hold an academic conference on 'Cultural Transition and Changes in Daily Life during the Traditional Era' at the International Conference Hall of Andong Culture & Arts Center on November 20 and 21.

The Academy of Korean Studies to Host Large-Scale Academic Conference on 'Cultural Transformation and Changes in Daily Life' on the 20th and 21st

This academic conference, which brings together 20 researchers across four fields-politics, economy, society, and culture-to reinterpret daily life in traditional society from new perspectives, offers a rare opportunity to observe the transformation of traditional lifestyles in one place.

◆ Reconstructing 'Traditional Daily Life' through Four Key Themes

The conference will analyze how daily life and culture evolved during the traditional era from multiple angles, focusing on four core themes: exile and penal institutions, disasters and wars, folk beliefs and religion, and science and technology.

In the field of politics, the conference will shed light on the reality that exile was not merely a political downfall but a crisis for families and a cause of separation, as revealed through diaries written in remote places of exile. In addition, it will examine how mechanisms of governance, surveillance, and reformation operated, through discussions on the Joseon prison system, the role of the police bureau, and changes in depictions of punishment.

The economic field will explore the response systems of the time, focusing on natural disasters that shook Joseon society. It will address the disaster response methods of grassroots communities, such as dragon god beliefs, rain rituals, and relief policies, and reveal the realities of daily life during wartime and postwar recovery through the diaries and records of intellectuals during the national crisis of the Imjin War.

The social field will broadly highlight the roles that various beliefs-such as shamanism, Buddhism, Catholicism, and Donghak-played in the daily life of the traditional era. The conference will also closely examine the structures of prophetic and popular beliefs, which have been difficult to approach academically, to reveal the underlying mechanisms of religious culture in everyday life.

In the cultural field, the focus will be on the reality of science and technology, including the activities of government astronomers, astronomical observations in Joseon, gunpowder weapon production, artisan crafts, and mapmaking. Rather than simply recounting the history of technology, the conference will emphasize the interconnectedness of daily life and scientific technology, presenting the multi-layered nature of technological culture in the traditional era.

◆ "A Precise Restoration of Traditional Daily Life"... Efforts for Popularization Continue

Jeong Jongseop, President of the Korean Studies Advancement Center, stated, "Traditional daily life and culture have been continuously reconstituted amid the flow of change," adding, "This academic conference is a meaningful occasion to closely examine those vivid transformations."

The presentations from this academic conference will be published next year as the 'Comprehensive Series on Traditional Daily Life.' The conference is open to the public free of charge for all citizens interested in daily life history and traditional culture.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.