開港前朝鮮知識份子對西洋地理的認知與考辨: 以李圭景(1788‐1865年)和其《五洲衍文長箋散稿》為研究中心

I Gyu‐gyeong was the important scholar for practical learning in late period of Joseon Dynasty(1392‐1910). As his grandfather I Deok‐mu was one of the important officer in Joseon as well as the member of the Yeonhaengsa mission, a lot of books from China or Joseon local were founded at his home. These books provided the strong background for IGyu‐gyeong to read those books and learnt various knowledge from them, such as the traditional Confucianism intellectual thought, technology and folk culture in East and West. The learning experiences were recorded by I and edited his notes, named as “Ojuyeonmunjangjeonsango”五洲衍文長箋散稿. This book included 60 volumes and expressed his idea and own view for different knowledge, including the geography, astronomy, folk cultures and traditional knowledge. He especially recorded a lot of his reading experiences for Western Knowledge and Geography. It can be showed that how Joseon intellcetuals understood about the Western knowledge by the books from China or the translated Western books.

Therefore, it will focus on the background of “Ojuyeonmunjangjeonsango”to reveal how the western knowledge, particularly the geographical knowledge transmitted to Joseon by Yeonhaengsa and how those intellectuals’ attitudes towards the West were constructed after they read those books and learnt about those knowledge. These research outcomes will also be used to reflect the level of Joseon understanding about the real world before 1876 port opening.