Women In Korea Essay

Throughout the history of women in Korea, there has always been a belief that women is inferior to men as there were many restricted conditions. This review will focus on the gender movement changes in the position for women 's advancement in Korea, approximately during the first half of the 20th century. This review will also link the changes in the progress of women 's advancement with the reading The Making of the New Woman in Pak Wanso’s “Mother’s Stake 1” by Choi Kyeong Hee. Furthermore, discuss how women were receiving more attention from the public due to the changes in values and beliefs. This includes the shift of family structure, the opportunity on education and the establishment of employment.

At the beginning of the 20th century,

Confucianism has always been influential towards education between gender inequalities in traditional Korean society. At the time, education was more concentrated to males as females had to follow the patriarchal social system. According to Gelb and Palley (1994), the confucian image of women authorizing education was limited as it was believed that women did not profit in domestic matters. Since the independence of Korea established in 1945, the pathway in relation to education equality balanced. Education was no longer limited to men, but also women. As a result, more women were able to be educated due to an increasing acceptance of gender equality (Gelb & Palley, 1994). Due to this development, more traditional women wanting their child to be educated in order to modernize equality and improve females’ individualism (Choi, 1999). This is because they were unable to access education in the past, causing them in a low status. They know that education can lead to a better future. Therefore, the reading “Mother Stake 1” purposely display Omma strategies to provide education for her daughter. Omma provided educational access for her daughter for success in future.This is because education is believed to be the way of gaining equality and employment that would lead to honourable

Korean women were not allowed to be engaged in any sort of jobs. Their job was to be either a daughter, a wife or a mother. Majority of married women had to rely on the support provided by men in their family (Gelb & Palley, 1994). The only way for women to be able to prosper independently is the ability of their own access to economic resources. However, the Confucian ideal of strict sexes made it extremely unlikely for women to be independent regardless of their social statuses. The reading “Mother stake 1” perfectly explain women struggle to be independent in the traditional society, without relying on the men of their family. However, it also explains how women can gain independence as time progresses. For example, Omma abandoning her traditional lifestyle to becoming a manual labor, for the sake of her own independency. Until the late 20th century, women’s position in employment changed significantly due to the movement that seeked for gender equality. Since 1960, Korea rapidly boosted their economic growth from the transformation of an agricultural society to a industrializing nation. Because of this extraordinary economic industrialization of the country, such condition provided women with increased on opportunities of employment (Gelb & Palley, 1994). According to Kim Ae-sil (1990), there were no more than 50,000 womens that were employed in 1963, but by 1989 there’s been an increase over 800,000