중학교 영어 2 (동아출판 윤정미) 연계 글

At Yanghwajin, a quiet cemetery in Seoul, you may see visitors standing in front of one grave. Some of them leave flowers, and others read the words on the stone. The grave belongs to Homer B. Hulbert, an American educator. He loved Korea so deeply that he wanted to stay in Korea even after his death.

Hulbert came to Korea in 1886 to teach at Yugyeong Gongwon, a new school run by the royal government. There he taught English and other new subjects to young students. While he was teaching, he also studied Hangeul. To him, its letters seemed so easy that anyone could learn them. He later wrote that hardly any alphabet in the world could match Hangeul in simplicity.

In those days, most books in Korea were written in Chinese characters, which took a long time to master. Hulbert, however, wrote a world geography textbook entirely in Hangeul. It was called Samin Pilji, and its title means "what scholars and ordinary people must know." With this book, his students could learn about faraway lands in their own alphabet.

Hulbert also cared about Korea's future. Later, he saw Korea losing its freedom, and he could not stay silent. He helped Emperor Gojong try to tell the world about Korea's situation. He traveled abroad for the emperor and wrote about Korea in English. His efforts did not save Korea, but they showed that Korea had a true friend.

Near the end of his life, Hulbert said that he would rather be buried in Korea than in Westminster Abbey. Westminster Abbey is a famous church in London, and many great people of Britain are buried there. Being buried there is a great honor. His wish came true, and today he rests at Yanghwajin. The next time you hear people talking about friends of Korea, remember this teacher.