16 Ko Yŏngsuk: A Rash Statement: Rebuttal to Yi Kwangsu
[“Yi Kwangsu Ssi ŭi Mangdam,” Sin Yŏsŏng 6, no. 11 (1932): 14–16]
Among those who wish to become great men, some seem to think that they can achieve the status of hero by blindly imitating the life of a hero, without taking into consideration their own situation and personality traits. The heroes and the great men of the past, especially scholars and artists, wrote books of meditation and proverbs from their experiences. It is not particularly surprising that Yi Kwangsu, who has brazenly proclaimed himself to be Korea’s most representative writer and a leader of the nation, especially for its young people, has written a book of ruminations plus ten commandments. However, those who want to lead others cannot become great men merely by imitating the lifetime achievements of past heroes. Equipped with a sharp mind and an acute talent for observation, such an individual must thoroughly examine the historical trends and the workings of social structures. He should also have a passionate consciousness for action to fight side by side with the grassroots [against social injustice]. No hero can exist outside the context of history and society. Therefore, any leader must consider the context of his times!
So I wonder if Mr. Yi Kwangsu is some kind of a dimwit because his thoughts do not reflect historical developments or changes in social reality. He does not seem compelled to work for the good of the masses. And yet, he dares to present the people with this very outdated message in the form of his thoughts and commandments, which go against all historical trends and contradict social reality! Yi is continuing a historical trend, but the format is outdated, and the content is even more obsolete. So let us examine Yi Kwangsu’s fantasy as it relates to women.
One can find Yi’s “Ten commandments for New Women” on the first page of the inaugural volume of the new magazine, Man’guk puin (Women of the World). What did he claim there? The first item says, “Pay attention to hygiene, nutrition, and exercise, and live an orderly life to maintain your health.” This is thoughtful advice and a serious admonition. However, does he think that Korean women are so ignorant that they do not know how to practice hygiene, eat properly, or lead orderly lives for the good of their own health? How else can we understand this statement from Mr. Yi, who must be blind to social reality in order to engage in such absurd discourse? Does Mr. Yi not understand that women know very well how to take care of their health, but simply do not have the time or money to do so? Of course, there are women who have the means to do it, but they are the wives of the bourgeoisie or highlevel salary men. So, perhaps in the mind of Yi Kwangsu, the term “New Woman” refers only to this category of well-to-do women. I realize that Yi Kwangsu is the editor-in-chief of a newspaper run by the bourgeoisie. Maybe that makes him their spokesman.
Items 3, “Save your first love for your husband,” and 4, “For the sake of national economy, buy Korean products,”30 exude Yi’s old-fashioned feudal consciousness. By adhering to the doctrine of “first love to husband,” he intends to turn women into men’s possessions. Isn’t this indicative of his feudal state of mind? Of course, sexual love should be reserved for the husband. However, do women today have to be relegated to the subordinate status as possessions, simply because they are expected to preserve their virginity for their husbands? It seems that in his mind women are primarily possessions of men. He is also lecturing New Women about the use of Korean products for the sake of the national economy. New Women are moving from one frontier to the other. When Yi asks them to replace their new clothes with old-fashioned cotton clothes, or give up dress shoes and go back to wearing straw or rubber shoes, it is nothing but rash, anachronistic babbling! It might have been good if New Women could follow Yi’s suggestions, but today’s New Women have already been exposed to the civilization of vanity. Such a lecture is useless nonsense. How could he possibly not know this reality? Ah ha, Yi is not simply a spokesman for the bourgeoisie. He is a spokesman particularly for the indigenous, national, bourgeois class. As the capitalist who provides Yi with his livelihood is in the textile business and produces rubber shoes, maybe he is promoting these products.
What else does Yi tell us to do? Item 9 says, “If you are unmarried, do your best to choose the right spouse. If you are married, do everything in your power to ease your husband’s mind.” That sounds fine, but does he mean to imply that today’s woman has nothing to do other than to choose a spouse or assist her husband? More than anything else, if she is aware of historical and social realities, she should be passionate for social development and be ready on the frontline of the social movement for women who lead inhumane, barbaric lives under feudal morals and capitalism. How could we possibly expect Yi, who is a spokesman for the national bourgeoisie and has already lost his will to act [for society], to think of broader issues beyond marriage?
What Yi Kwangsu advocates in his “Ten commandments” may be an appropriate guide to the wives and concubines of bourgeois men or the wives of well-to-do men. His advocacy makes sense in that he is a spokesman for a class that can enjoy life by faithfully conforming to certain guidelines.
Mr. Yi! If you are interested in becoming a leader, then you should stop pretending to be a hero and stop making passé, anachronistic decrees in the form of commandments or anything else. You must realize that a leader is someone who has a strong will to take action and knows how to fight together with the masses. However, this type of life is absolutely impossible for you. Therefore, Mr. Yi, you must acknowledge your own limitations and give up your arrogant attitude.
Yi Kwangsu still maintains a large readership. I am not certain what impact his trite statements will have on readers, but I would urge caution among his readers in how they heed his rash talk.
The commandment Ko Yŏngsuk intends to cite here is actually item number 5 in Yi Kwangsu’s Ten Commandments. The original essay by Yi does not have a number 5 in the printed text. This may be the reason why Ko refers to it as item number 4.↩︎