Two-sided Ways to Remember Gungye and His Dynasty in Joseon

This article is an attempt to examine the context and aspects of the Joseon dynasty’s memory of Gungye and his dynasty, focusing on the duality of indifference and interest. Joseon was a period that was quite separated in time from the Later Three Kingdoms. Basically, it is a time when there are remarkably few opportunities to take interest in the history of the Later Three Kingdoms. Nevertheless, they were mentioned quite frequently during the Joseon Dynasty. However, a closer look at the way in which they were mentioned revealed that they were mostly a mediocre repetition of existing factual information. Above all, it was confirmed that the logic of the Neo-Confucian criticism followed the previous negative evaluation. This was regarded as a result of ‘indifference’ in a paradoxical context. Interest in them was rather active in the private sector. Those who actively used history to show off their family lineage noted that Gungye was from the royal family of Silla. And they seem to have shown a strong interest in the aspect that Gungye was the founder and monarch of a country. This appealing explanation that their ancestors were part of a royal family with a long history soon led to Gungye being called by some families. Along with the gap in time, Gungye and his dynasty were freed from the Goryeo name, and thus received a more colorful perception in the Joseon Dynasty.