Publishing the 'Reading Classics in Korean Class' series
Before reading "Park's Story"

A relationship formed through baduk and the flute
Si-baek marries Park Cheo-sa's daughter
Mrs. Park! Ah, Mrs. Park!
Mrs. Park, show your ability
Si-baek, Jang-won passed the civil service examination
Mrs. Park sheds her shell and becomes a paragon of wealth.
Enjoying the elegance of a spring day
Shibaek, the governor of Pyeongan, became a benevolent ruler.
Ki Hong-dae infiltrates Joseon
Barbarians invade Joseon
Mrs. Park kills enemy general Yonguldae
Mrs. Park and General Lim's revenge
Mrs. Park becomes Lady Jeongryeol and enjoys a time of peace.

Story within a story
Wedding in the Joseon Dynasty - When will the groom be seen?
Women of Joseon _ Asking a Joseon Woman
Women who want to be beautiful _ Beauty is suffering
The Shameful History of the Byeongja War - Justification or Practicality, That is the Question
Joseon's Fantasy - Imagination is another magic!

Deep Reading _ Stories of Female Heroes Created by the Times
Read Together _ What if you transformed into Mrs. Park?

References

Mrs. Park, who was treated badly because of her ugly appearance,
Shed your shell, become a peerless person, and save the country.

Mrs. Park is a female hero who saves a country on the brink of war.
Because of her ugly face, she is despised by her husband and relatives, but she discovers her true beauty through mysterious talents.
Although the Byeongja Horan was actually a defeated war, in this book, it was a refreshing victory thanks to the efforts of Mrs. Park.
Wasn't Mrs. Park, who comforted the people who had suffered the horrors of war and rebuked the incompetent rulers, the true hero that people of old had in mind?

1.
The ideal female hero created to overcome the scars of war

《Park's Story》 is a work set against the backdrop of the historical event known as the Byeongja Horan.
But in contrast to the actual war, which ended in defeat, the novel ends in a refreshing victory.
Although the author is unknown and the exact date of creation is unknown, it is estimated that Park's Tale was created around the late 17th century.
The people, who had to experience another war before the wounds of the Imjin War had even healed, suffered great pain and suffering.
Moreover, the humiliation of being defeated by the Qing Dynasty, which they had usually looked down on as barbarians, was a reality that both the nobles and the common people wanted to deny.

《The Story of Park》 turns a war that was a miserable defeat in reality into a victory, albeit within the fictional narrative space of a novel.
Through stories of defeating enemies with transcendent power and taking exhilarating revenge, it provides comfort and hope to the people of the time who were steeped in a sense of defeat.
Thanks to this, “The Tale of Park” gained explosive popularity and became the third most beloved classic work with multiple versions, after “The Tale of Chunhyang” and “The Dream of the Nine Clouds.”
In this book, among the many different versions, the translation is based on the “Park’s Story” included in the “Ancient Novels in Printed Version” compiled by the Institute of Korean Studies at Dongguk University, with the addition of content from “Myeongwolbuinjeon” and the ancient version of “Park’s Story” owned by Son Nak-beom.

This novel, unusually, features a 'woman' named Mrs. Park as its hero.
It's a very unconventional protagonist setting for a story about Joseon society, where women didn't have much social activity.
By featuring female heroes with abilities and strengths superior to those of men, it directly criticizes the rigid male-centered social structure and incompetent male rulers that led to the horrors and defeat of war.
It could be said that women, who suffer more than anyone else when war breaks out, find vicarious satisfaction in venting their oppression and resentment through Mrs. Park.
Mrs. Park, who works solely on her own strength without relying on men, goes beyond the confines of the home, and saves society and the country, boldly reveals the hidden desires of women and raises healthy issues for society.

2.
Our own unique fantasy imagined and drawn by people of old

Many people think that 'fantasy', which involves achieving dreams through fantastical and surreal stories, can only be found in Western novels such as Harry Potter or The Lord of the Rings.
At first glance, our classic novels and fantasy may seem far apart.
But fantasy novels are not the exclusive domain of Western stories.
Strange powers, inexplicable energies, amazing transformations, and unimaginable situations are all present in our classic work, "The Tale of Park," which was written over 300 years ago.

First of all, Mrs. Park sheds her ugly appearance in an instant and transforms into a beautiful woman.
Additionally, in the garden called Pihwadang, they cultivate trees and all kinds of grass, and transform them into spears, swords, and countless soldiers to defeat the enemy.
He demonstrates the mystical ability to make a ceremonial outfit overnight, wash a skirt with fire, and raise a poor calf into a thousand-mile horse.
In the scene where the jade fire ship is used to create a fiery wind and defeat the Qing generals, this imagination and fantasy reaches its peak.
Mrs. Park's supernatural abilities and mysterious magic served as a refreshing tonic to those weary of reality, and also became a force that maximized their dreams and hopes.

《Park's Story》 also sharply criticizes lookism, which is the practice of judging people by their appearance.
In our classic novels, as well as in countless old tales, the beauty of one's appearance is often portrayed as a reflection of one's abilities and character.
But Mrs. Park's case is different.
When she first appears in the world, her appearance is so ugly that it is impossible to regard her as human.
Everyone around her is blinded by her ugly appearance and cannot see Mrs. Park's wise judgment, extraordinary abilities, and broad personality, and they look down on her.
The husband and relatives who later act in the opposite way and behave cowardly in front of the beautifully transformed Ms. Park show the arrogance and duplicity of humans who judge and treat people based on the single standard of appearance, while also criticizing the social climate that does not treat women as complete individuals.

3.
The National Association of Korean Language Teachers' Association's "Reading Classics in Korean Class" project celebrates its 10th anniversary!

Classics are the archetypes of culture, loved by people all over the world, transcending time and space, and are also the roots of new stories emerging today.
The 'Reading Classics in Korean Language Class' series, which has been planned and published since 2002, is a regrettable reality in which our classics, which are as valuable as Western classics, are being neglected by our youth because they are difficult and inconvenient to read.
Korean language teachers from the National Association of Korean Language Teachers and well-versed classic scholars have joined forces to rewrite our classics in an easy-to-read, flavorful, and entertaining way for everyone to enjoy and read. As a result, they have become a new direction and role model for our classics, changing our preconceptions about them and even our culture of reading them.
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the publication of 'Reading Classics in Korean Class,' we are presenting our classics in a new and fresh way with additional text and illustrations.