강좌소개
This course explores Korean Confucianism not as a completed, fixed doctrine, but as a living philosophical practice and a "civilizational project" transmitted through reading and texts. By tracing the trajectories of two giant figures at the center of Chosŏn intellectual history, Hwadam Sŏ Kyŏngdŏk and Yulgok Yi I, we examine how their thought and lives aligned. The course highlights the dynamism of Chosŏn Confucianism through the stark contrast between Hwadam, who sought moral integrity in withdrawal and cosmological reflection, and Yulgok, who aimed to integrate self-cultivation with statecraft through active political engagement. Students will directly read their memorials, letters, and major writings, encountering a wide range of philosophical topics from debates on heterodoxy to the everyday practice of rites (Ye) and friendship. Furthermore, it provides a profound perspective to reflect on our ethical and social relationships today by re-evaluating Korean Confucianism not merely as an acceptance of Chinese thought, but as a thousand-year historical process and a unique path (The Korean Way).