If you ask the Koreans what are their equivalent of "Romeo and Juliet", it will likely be the love story between Chunhyang (춘향, 春香) and Lee Mongryong (이몽룡, 李夢龍).
Set in the late 18th Century of the Chosun Dynasty, Mongryong is the son of the Governor of Namwon while Chunhyang is the daughter of a retired courtesan. Despite the stark difference in their social status, it doesn't stop Mongryong from falling in love with Chunhyang when he first sees her playing the swing during Dano (단오, 端午). As the love between them grows deeper, one day, Mongryong has to leave for Seoul with his father who is seeking higher office in the capital. However he promises that one day after he passes the state exam and becomes a court official, he will come back to take her as his legal wife. Time passes and Governor Byun comes to know about Chunhyang's beauty and wants her to be his courtesan. When Chunhyang refuses, the infuriated Governor Byun orders his guards to beat her and throw her into jail. In the meantime, Mongryong passes the state exam and comes back to Namwon as a royal emissary. With the authority bestowed upon him, Mongryong saves Chunhyang and brings Governor Byun to face the justice.
It seems that many enduring love stories almost always have to end up in a tragedy. But the love story between Chunhyang and Mongryong goes against the grain of thing and yet continues to touch the heart of many Koreans. In this story, love alone doesn't win hearts. It is the keeping of the promise to love one another that makes this story enduring. In this world that we live in, it is always easy to fall in love but quite another thing to keep a promise. With every promise broken, this world may perhaps grow fonder of Chunhyang and Mongryong.
I was first introduced to Chunhyang during my Basic level 3 Korean class. Then, our teacher brought a video tape of the movie "Chunhyang Dyeon" (춘향뎐, 春香伝) to class as part of our cultural lesson. We watched the movie mostly in fast forward mode as there wasn't enough time to watch the movie in its completeness. From the cultural lesson, I also learnt that the story of Chunhyang was orginally told through pansori (판소리). Taking it literally, "pan" means a place where many people gather and "sori" means sound. Pansori is a genre of traditional Korean music that is performed by a singer and a drummer.
I have our teacher to thank for introducing me to this story. If she has not believed in teaching the Korean language together with the culture behind it, my Korean learning journey will have been much less rewarding. Many thanks for this "fragrance of the Spring" (봄의 향기).
Set in the late 18th Century of the Chosun Dynasty, Mongryong is the son of the Governor of Namwon while Chunhyang is the daughter of a retired courtesan. Despite the stark difference in their social status, it doesn't stop Mongryong from falling in love with Chunhyang when he first sees her playing the swing during Dano (단오, 端午). As the love between them grows deeper, one day, Mongryong has to leave for Seoul with his father who is seeking higher office in the capital. However he promises that one day after he passes the state exam and becomes a court official, he will come back to take her as his legal wife. Time passes and Governor Byun comes to know about Chunhyang's beauty and wants her to be his courtesan. When Chunhyang refuses, the infuriated Governor Byun orders his guards to beat her and throw her into jail. In the meantime, Mongryong passes the state exam and comes back to Namwon as a royal emissary. With the authority bestowed upon him, Mongryong saves Chunhyang and brings Governor Byun to face the justice.It seems that many enduring love stories almost always have to end up in a tragedy. But the love story between Chunhyang and Mongryong goes against the grain of thing and yet continues to touch the heart of many Koreans. In this story, love alone doesn't win hearts. It is the keeping of the promise to love one another that makes this story enduring. In this world that we live in, it is always easy to fall in love but quite another thing to keep a promise. With every promise broken, this world may perhaps grow fonder of Chunhyang and Mongryong.
I was first introduced to Chunhyang during my Basic level 3 Korean class. Then, our teacher brought a video tape of the movie "Chunhyang Dyeon" (춘향뎐, 春香伝) to class as part of our cultural lesson. We watched the movie mostly in fast forward mode as there wasn't enough time to watch the movie in its completeness. From the cultural lesson, I also learnt that the story of Chunhyang was orginally told through pansori (판소리). Taking it literally, "pan" means a place where many people gather and "sori" means sound. Pansori is a genre of traditional Korean music that is performed by a singer and a drummer.
I have our teacher to thank for introducing me to this story. If she has not believed in teaching the Korean language together with the culture behind it, my Korean learning journey will have been much less rewarding. Many thanks for this "fragrance of the Spring" (봄의 향기).
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