Im Che (; 1549 – 1587) was a

literate Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...

Confucianist Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

Yangban The ''yangban'' () were part of the traditional ruling class or gentry of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The ''yangban'' were mainly composed of highly educated civil servants and military officers—landed or unlanded aristocrats ...

Joseon Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...

Works

Im penned the following

sijo ''Sijo'' () is a Korean traditional poetic form that emerged in the Goryeo period, flourished during the Joseon Dynasty, and is still written today. Bucolic, metaphysical, and cosmological themes are often explored. The three lines average 14 ...

upon the death of famed

gisaeng Kisaeng (Hangul: 기생, Hanja: 妓生, RR: ''Gisaeng''), also called ginyeo (Hangul: 기녀, Hanja: 妓女), were women from outcast or slave families who were trained to be courtesans, providing artistic entertainment and conversation to men ...

Hwang Jini Hwang Jini or Hwang Jin-Yi (; 1506 – 1560), also known by her gisaeng name Myeongwol ("bright moon", ), was one of the most famous gisaeng of the Joseon Dynasty. She lived during the reign of King Jungjong. She was noted for her exceptional ...

. The following two poems were exchanged between Im Che and his lover,

Hanu (한우; 寒雨). Im was known for his liaisons with Hanu and Hwang Jin Yi. The term in line 3, ch'an bi (찬비), literally translates as "freezing rain." It uses the same Chinese characters as the poetess' name (寒雨), but with a different pronunciation, and was intended by both poets as a

pun A pun, also known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophoni ...

. Hanu's particular gift is to echo the style of the original that Im wrote to her, while improving on it with a teasing, very human tone. The translation employs a formal tone to match Im's original; and then follows with the simpler and more lyric style used by Hanu. In both cases, the line "rain has frozen" seemed to best communicate the

double entendre A double entendre (plural double entendres) is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to have a double meaning, of which one is typically obvious, whereas the other often conveys a message that would be too socially ...

of the originals. When about to die, he grieved and left the words below.

Kō Bun'yū Kō Bun'yū ( ja, 黄文雄; born 1938), also known as Huang Wenxiong ( zh, c=黃文雄, p=Huáng Wénxióng, poj=N̂g Bûn-hiông), is a controversial Taiwanese author, now resident in Japan, who is well known for his staunch anti-Mainland Chin ...

introduce this line as Im Che's indignation because in the history, this is not only

barbarians A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by some to be less c ...

outside of the

Great Wall The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand Li (unit), ''li'' wall") is a series of fortifications that were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against Eurasian noma ...

, but even

Tibetans The Tibetan people (; ) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Tibet. Their current population is estimated to be around 6.7 million. In addition to the majority living in Tibet Autonomous Region of China, significant numbers of Tibetans liv ...

from southwest conquered Chinese world once, or occupied the capital and threatened the city, however only Korea never even became a threaten to China. What Korea do is to treat Great China with the utmost courtesy and show loyalty to father.

References

Korean Confucianists 16th-century scholars 1549 births 1587 deaths 16th-century Korean poets {{Korea-bio-stub