Sadaejuui

Sadaejuui (Korean: 사대주의; lit. dealing-with-the-great ideology) is a largely pejorative Korean term which evolved in the mid-20th century from a more widely used historical concept.^[1]

Sadaejuui
Hangul	사대주의
Hanja	事大主義
Revised Romanization	Sadaejuui
McCune–Reischauer	Sataechuŭi

The contemporary term sadaejuui was derived from the Chinese shi da (Korean, sadae) as used by the philosopher, Mencius.

Etymology

The term is a compound phrase. Sadae literally means "dealing with the great" ^[2] and can be interpreted as "Loving and admiring the great and powerful".^[3] Juui means "ideology" and it is conventionally translated as "-ism."^[4]

The term "sadaejuui" was invented by early 20th century Korean nationalists.^[5] The antecedents of this modern term is the historic term "sadae" (事大), which comes from the word "以小事大" in Mencius's book, which means "service to the great by the small" or "a small kingdom accommodates a large."^[1]

• 梁惠王下

齊宣王問曰：交鄰國，有道乎

孟子對曰：有。惟仁者為能以大事小。是故，湯事葛，文王事昆夷。惟智者為能以小事大。故大王事獯鬻，句踐事吳。以大事小者，樂天者也。以小事大者，畏天者也。樂天者保天下，畏天者保其國。《詩》云：『畏天之威，于時保之。』

• Mencius - Liang Hui Wang II

The King Xuan of Qi asked, saying, 'Is there any way to regulate one's maintenance of intercourse with neighboring kingdoms?'

Mencius replied, 'Yes, there is. But it requires a perfectly virtuous prince to be able, with a great country, to serve a small one - as, for instance, Tang served Ge, and king Wen served the Kun barbarians. And it requires a wise prince to be able, with a small country, to serve a large one - as the king Tai served the Xun Yu, and Gou Jian served Wu. He who with a great State serves a small one, delights in Heaven. He who with a small State serves a large one, stands in awe of Heaven. He who delights in Heaven, will affect with his love and protection the whole kingdom. He who stands in awe of Heaven, will affect with his love and protection his own kingdom. It is said in the Book of Poetry, "I fear the Majesty of Heaven, and will thus preserve its favouring decree."^[6]

Overview

Sadaejuui conflates an attitude of subservience with the political realism which accompanies the prudent recognition of greater power.^[1] Sadae describes a foreign policy characterized by the various ways a weaker nation-state such as Korea acknowledges the strength of a greater power such as China. Sadae is made manifest in the actions of the weaker nation-state as it conveys goodwill and respect through its envoys.

The utility of the sadae concept in Korea was recognized ^[7][2] and demonstrated in the relationship of mid-Joseon Korea towards the Ming dynasty of China.^[8] Joseon made every effort to maintain a friendly relationship with Beijing for reasons having to do with both realpolitik and an idealized Confucian worldview in which China is perceived as the center of a Confucian moral universe.^[9]

The kingdom of Joseon accepted its place in a Sinocentristic world order.^[10] The Joseon foreign policy was organized around maintaining stable Joseon–Chinese relations in the period from 1392 through 1910. It contrasts with limited trade relationships or kyorin diplomacy (교린정책; 交隣政策; lit. neighborly relations) in regard to Joseon-Japanese relations in this period.^[11]

The concept of sadaejuui was central in the writings of polemicist Shin Chaeho. His ideas and voice became prominent features of Korean nationalism.^[12] Sin is known for having argued that the sadaejuui inherent in Confucian historiography served

• to devalue the ethnic origins of the Korean people and state ^[13]
• to subjugate Korean history within a Confucian interpretive framework ^[13]

See also

• Tribute
• Gyorin
• Melian dialog
• Samguk Sagi
• Analogous concepts:
  • West British
  • Little Russian

Notes

1. Armstrong, Charles K. (2007). The Koreas, p. 57-58., p. 57, at Google Books
2. Pratt, Kieth L. et al. (1999). Korea: a historical and cultural dictionary, p. 384.
3. Alford, C. Fred. (1999). Think no evil: Korean values in the age of globalization, p. 150., p. 150, at Google Books
4. Duchatel, Mathieu. Nationalisme et sentiment nationaliste en Corée (Nationalism and Nationalist Sentiment in Korea). IEP Paris, DEAA comparative des Aires Politiques, p. 4 n1.
5. Mitchell, Anthony. "Happier Economy Better Than Larger Economy," Korea Times (Seoul). October 12, 2008.
6. Liang Hui Wang II, Chinese Text Project
7. Michael J. Seth (2019). A Brief History of Korea: Isolation, War, Despotism, and Revival: The Fascinating Story of a Resilient but Divided People
8. 구도영 (Koo Do-young). 중종대(中宗代) 사대인식(事大認識)의 변화 - 대례의(大禮議)에 대한 별행(別行) 파견 논의를 중심으로 ("Changes regarding ‘Perception of Sadae’(事大認識) that became apparent during the reign of King Jungjong - Examination of Discussions over the issue of dispatching a special envoy(別行) about the Grand ceremony(大禮議) in Ming(明) dynasty’s court"),] 역사와 현실 제62호, 2006.12 (History and Reality, No. 62,　December 2006). pp. 3-405.
9. Mansourov, Alexandre Y. "Will Flowers Bloom without Fragrance? Korean-Chinese Relations," Archived 2008-01-08 at the Wayback Machine Harvard Asia Quarterly (Spring 2009).
10. Michael J. Seth (2019). A Brief History of Korea: Isolation, War, Despotism, and Revival: The Fascinating Story of a Resilient but Divided People
11. Kang, Etsuko H. (1997). Diplomacy and Ideology in Japanese-Korean Relations: from the Fifteenth to the Eighteenth Century, p. 49.
12. Robinson, Michael. (1984) "National Identity and the Thought of Shin Ch'ae-ho: Sadaejuüi and Chuch'e in History and Politics," Journal of Korean Studies, Vol. 5, pp. 121–142.
13. Robinson, p. 129.

References

• Alford, C. Fred. (1999). Think no evil: Korean values in the age of globalization. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801436666; OCLC 247000674
• Armstrong, Charles K. (2007). The Koreas. London: CRC Press. ISBN 9780415948524; ISBN 9780415948531; OCLC 71808039
• Kang, Etsuko Hae-jin. (1997). Diplomacy and Ideology in Japanese-Korean Relations: from the Fifteenth to the Eighteenth Century. Basingstoke, Hampshire; Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-312-17370-8;
• Levinson, David and Karen Christensen. (2002). Encyclopedia of Modern Asia. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. ISBN 978-0-684-80617-4; OCLC 49936055
• Mansourov, Alexandre Y. "Will Flowers Bloom without Fragrance? Korean-Chinese Relations," Harvard Asia Quarterly (Spring 2009).
• Pratt, Keith L., Richard Rutt, and James Hoare. (1999). Korea: a historical and cultural dictionary, Richmond: Curzon Press. ISBN 9780700704637; ISBN 978-0-7007-0464-4; OCLC 245844259
• Robinson, Michael. (1984) "National Identity and the Thought of Sin Ch'ae-ho: Sadaejuüi and Chuch'e in History and Politics." Journal of Korean Studies 5: 121–142.
• Robinson, Michael. (1988). Cultural Nationalism in Colonial Korea, 1920–1925. Seattle: University of Washington Press. ISBN 9780295966007; OCLC 18106164
• Michael J. Seth (2019). A Brief History of Korea: Isolation, War, Despotism, and Revival: The Fascinating Story of a Resilient but Divided People. ISBN 9780804851022