Chung Hyo Ye: Tales of Filial Devotion, Loyalty, Respect and Benevolence from the History and Folklore of Korea

Korean Spirit and Culture #3

by Diamond Sutra Recitation Group (edited b

148 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Caitlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

{3.5 stars}
Lovely! Lots of interesting folk and historical tales. I think I would’ve liked this more if it was a picture book like the Irish fairytale book I got last summer, or if the writing went into a bit more depth. But, for what it was, I enjoyed reading these stories!

[Polina Kim (polinaspages) · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting material for familiarizing yourself with Korean culture. However the writing is not great and it really is a booklet rather than a proper book, so I wouldn’t really recommend it to anyone seeking a literary experience

[Vanessa M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was thoughtfully put together--including Korean folklore and anecdotes. This is book three in the Korean Spirit and Culture series.

[Anne Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has short stories about the Korean culture. It would especially be interesting to anyone who would like to know more about this culture and its history. I love how Koreans go above and beyond in respecting their parents and elders. They are highly loyal to their families and country. Sharing wealth such as grain in times of famine is not unheard of. I hope many of these practices and traditions continue to be passed down through the generations.

[Aeriel Halstead · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was a great introduction to a number of cultural myths, legends, and histories. As someone who is Korean but raised in America, I can see so many of these values in the way my mother lives. It was interesting to see how these stories are related to the culture that has developed. I really enjoyed this.

[nelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's interesting to read Korean folklore but I couldn't enjoy it as much because the it seemed rather informative than actual tales (they way they're written). I liked a few though and I like how they represent those 4 elements in different backgrounds and from different points of view.

[Chloe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this for an essay competition and didn't really have no motivation for reading it. I missed the deadline and don't want to continue the book. Was interesting in some aspects though and taught me a bit about the culture.

[Naomi Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finally finished this series of non-fiction books exploring Korean history and culture. A fascinating look at some Korean values, with folk and historical accounts as examples. I learned a lot and really, truly, enjoyed reading this entire series.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really my bag...

[Belle Meade School]

951.9

[John Eliade · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm always a fan of folk stories because they illustrate two things: the stories and concepts that unite us all as human beings (see The Hero With a Thousand Faces) and the concepts that distinguish us separated in our islands of culture (a good example might be Folktales Of Bhutan, but there are plenty of others).

This is a great entry in the "Korean Spirit and Culture" series, even if it does (in my opinion) display some of the darker aspects of Korean culture.

"Chung Hyo Ye" is a reference to aspects of Korean culture (mostly derived from a theological basis in Confucianism). "Hyo" refers to filial piety, or unflinching loyalty to one's parents. "Chung" to the loyalty to country. And "Ye" is living a virtuous life. I'll discuss each in turn:

"Hyo," is such an important concept in Confucianism that I had to consistently remind myself that the tradition of "saint narratives" exists in all cultures. For example, Bodhidharma, the Indian patriarch of Buddhism who spread Chan (later Seon in Korea and Zen in Japan) to China was said to have fallen asleep during his meditation so he chopped his eyelids off. A Catholic Saint (I can't remember which one) avoided being married to a lord who wanted her for her beauty that she cut her eyes out in an attempt to keep herself pure for God. After those examples of historical characters who most assuredly didn't decapitate themselves, but are merely meant to show the extreme lengths to which we should commit ourselves to religious life and practice, stories of children just accepting their parents' beatings, sacrificing their health, and running in front of weapons to save their parents' lives makes a lot more sense. That said, not all of the stories were horribly gruesome and disgusting in the way these parents tell stories to children to tell them they're not being good enough children, there was the really sad story of Chong. I was happy to see that it was the longest (and one of the most famous) story in this section and represents a two-way street of love between parent and child, as opposed to the usual "be a good child, sacrifice your life for your parents BECAUSE you're a bad person otherwise." So... that was at least nice.

"Chung" is about loyalty to country. A typical proto-nationalism. Not hard to see where this was going, and while a lot of the tales in this section are more archetypal (with probably loose bases in history, think of the ways we tell George Washington stories in America, or how Joan of Arc or Robin Hood have entered popular western imagination) than factual, it is a bit eye-raising to see the Japanese being represented as an invading army way back in the Three Kingdoms period (this... can't be true, can it? Was Japan united in any fashion in the 11th Century?). Other than that, some of these stories don't hide their feudal origins and the loyalty to one's country is often clearly "loyalty to the king" despite the fact that in modern terms, that's something entirely else.

There's a brief section with a couple stories about fraternal loyalty, which is nice. It talks about brothers and siblings being loyal to one another.

And then the last section, "Ye," is about as common as they come. The stories are nice, don't get me wrong. But they're pretty run of the mill ideas about honesty, generosity, and humility.

I recommend seeking out this book especially for those interested in mythology. For those interested in Korean culture, you'll see where the common understanding of a lot of Korean mores and memes come from. (For example, extrapolate the Hyo and Chung sections, and then read Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea followed by Korea: The Impossible Country.) You get a real sense of what common Koreans think and understand as their nation's history and culture rather than an academic sort that might come out of other types of books.

[Fariza · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were stories that I can relate to that showed great examples of filial devotion and respect. However, there were certain stories that I've considered as ridiculous and shouldn't be done by any human. It is interesting to read some of familiar stories like Hungbu and Nolbu and the story of the good brothers. This book did showed some of Korean cultures and tradition.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Agreat collection of stories and histories. The sections of explanation for the importance in Korea were also well done.