바로가기메뉴

본문 바로가기 주메뉴 바로가기

The Review of Korean Studies

Joseon and Her People Shown in the Travel Report of Campbell in the Late 19th Century

The Review of Korean Studies / The Review of Korean Studies, (P)1229-0076; (E)2773-9351
2008, v.11 no.1, pp.47-66
https://doi.org/10.25024/review.2008.11.1.003

  • Downloaded
  • Viewed

Abstract

The travel record on Joseon by the British diplomat Charles William Campbell was sent to the British prime minister together with a letter of then British Consul-General Hillier, which was published as a ‘travel report’ and submitted to the British parliament. This paper synthetically analyzes the characteristics of the travelogue and what Campbell felt about Joseon and her people after his travels to the north of Joseon in 1889. Campbell’s travelogue succeeded in the same writing style that was found in the travelogue of the Englishman William Richard Carles who had surveyed the northern area of Joseon some years earlier, and inspired the English captain A. E. Cavendish in his private journey when he visited Joseon two years later. Campbell traveled to both Geumgangsan (Mt. Geumgang) and Baekdusan (Mt. Baekdu) during this journey, a rare case for foreigners at that time. He confirmed that the religious mind of the Joseon people was strongly projected on these two mountains. While Campbell indicated that the conditions for trade with Western countries were not matured yet, he positively evaluated that there was a latent ability for the people of the lower classes to contribute to the vitalization of trade. He also grasped that the underground resources of Joseon were worth being noticed from the viewpoint of British trade. There is no doubt that Campbell’s travelogue was described for the benefit of Great Britain. Nevertheless, he described the then domestic situation of Joseon rather objectively according to what he had seen and felt. His travelogue is of significance as it provides a clue to a synthetic survey on what attitudes the common people of Joseon had during the turbulent period of the latter part of the nineteenth century.

keywords
Campbell, travelogue, Joseon, Great Britain, Geumgangsan, Baekdusan, people of the lower classes, trade

Reference

1.

Bax,Bonham Ward., (1875) The Eastern Seas: Being a narrative of the voyage of H. M. S. “Dwarf”in China, Japan and Formosa. With a description of the coast of Russian Tartary and Eastern Siberia, from the Corea to the river Amur, John Murray

2.

Bird,Isabella L., (1898) Korea and Her Neigh, John Murray

3.

Campbell, Charles William., (1889) Report by Mr. C.W. Campbell of a Journey in North Corea in September and October, Printed for Her Majesty’s Stationery Office by Harrison and Sons

4.

Carles,William Richard., (1888) Life in Corea, Macmillan and Co

5.

Cavendish, A. E., (1891) Korea and the Sacred White Mountain; Being a Brief Account of a Journey in Korea in 1891, George Philip & Son

6.

Griffis,William Elliot., (1882) Corea, The Hermit Nation, Scribner

7.

Hall,Basil., (1818) Account of a Voyage of Discovery to the West Coast of Corea, John Murray

8.

Lee, In-hwa., (1994) Hangukgwa geu iut nara, Doseochulpan Sallim

9.

Oppert,Ernst Jakob., (1880) A Forbidden Land: Voyages to the Corea, with an account of its geography, history, productions and commercial capabilities, G. P. Putnam’s Sons

10.

Ross,John., (1891) History of Corea, Ancient and Modern: With description of manners and customs, language and geography, E. Stock

11.

Savage-Landor, Arnold Henry., (1895) Corea or Cho-sen: The land of the morning calm, Macmillan

12.

Shin, Bok-ryong, tr., (2000) Joseon-gwa gui iut naradeul, Jipmundang

13.

Shin, Bok-ryong, tr., (1999) Eunjaui nara han-guk, Jipmundang

14.

Shin, Bok-ryong, tr., (1999) Joseonpungmulji, Jipmundang.

15.

Shin, Bok-ryong, (1999) Goyohan achimui namra joseon, Jipmundang.

16.

Shin, Bok-ryong., (1999) Joseon seohae tamsagi (Account of a Voyage of Discovery to the West Coast of Corea). [Hall, Basil. 1818. Account of a Voyage of Discovery to the West Coast of Corea. London: John Murray.],

17.

Williamson,Alexander,, (1870) Journeys in North China, Manchuria, and Eastern Mongolia: With some account of Corea, Smith, Elder and Co

18.

Choe, Suk-gyeong, (1997) Gaehanggi seoyangini bon han-gugin han-guk yeoksa (Korean People and History Seen in the Eyes of Westerners). The Korean Culture Research 30,

19.

Jo, Yoong-hee, (2007) The Adventures of Two British Nationals in Choso?n during the Late 19th Century: With a Special Focus on Cavendish’s Account of his Voyage to Mt. Paektu. Paper presented at a workshop organized by the Academy of Korean Studies, SOAS, and the British Association for Korean Studies, London,

20.

Grace Koh, (2006) British Perceptions of Joseon Korea as Reflected in Travel Literature of the Late Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Century, The Review of Korean Studies

21.

Lee,Gwang-rin., (1991) Bishop yeosaui yeohaenggi, The Journal of the Chin-Tan Society

22.

Lim,Jang-hyeok, (2002) Gaehanggi seoyangini bon han-guk munhwa (Korean Culture Seen in the Eyes of Westerners). In Korea Sketch, The National Folk Museum of Korea

23.

Park,Dae-heon., (1996) Seoyangini bon joseon (Joseon Seen in the Eyes of Westerners), Hosanbang

24.

Royal Geographical Society, (1927) Obituary: Mr. C. W. Campbell, C.M.G. The Geographical Journal

25.

Shin,Bok-ryong, (2002) Gaehanggi seoyanginui hangukgwan (The View of Westerners toward Korea during the Period of Opening Ports), The National Folk Museum of Korea

26.

Wang, Han-seok, (1998) Gaehanggi seoyangini bon han-guk munhwa: bishopui han-gukgwa geu iutnaradeureul jungsimeuro (Korean Culture Seen in the Eyes of Westerners: Focusing on Bishop’s Korea and Her Neighbors). The Comparative Cultural Research, no. 4,

The Review of Korean Studies