Look at the painting on the right. Do you see the Chinese character, hyo(孝)? Do you also see a carp, a geomungo, and a fan? This kind of painting is called Munjado*, and it is a type of folk painting that was popular in the late Joseon dynasty. In Munjado, there is usually a Chinese character with some animals or objects.

One of eight Chinese characters appears in Munjado. They are hyo(孝), je(悌), chung (忠), sin(信), ye(禮), ui(義), yeom(廉), and chi(恥), and they represent the values that were important to people of the Joseon dynasty.

The animals or objects in Munjado are not just decorations. They often are symbolic. For example, carp in the paintings of hyo symbolize respect for parents because of an old story. The story goes as follows.

Once upon a time, a man lived with his old mother. One winter, the man’s mother became ill and couldn’t eat anything. On one very cold day, the mother said to the man, “It would be wonderful if I could eat fresh fish.”

The man went out to the river, but it was completely frozen. It was impossible for him to catch any fish. The man was so disappointed that he cried out to the sky, “What should I do? Please help me.” Then the ice melted, and three carp suddenly came out of the water. The man went back home and cooked the fish for his mother. Then his mother got well.

There are other examples of symbolic objects in Munjado. They are bamboo in the paintings of the character chung(忠) and lotus flowers in the paintings of ui(義). Bamboo does not bend. It stays green in all kinds of weather. For these reasons, bamboo came to symbolize loyalty to the king. In the case of lotus flowers, they grow in muddy ponds but still bloom beautifully. They thus became a symbol of a person’s will to fight for justice despite difficulties.

Munjado was much more than a painting to people of the Joseon dynasty. It reminded them of important values that greatly influenced their behaviors and attitudes. In particular, for children, Munjado was a study tool. Through it, children in the Joseon dynasty could learn the importance of harmony in family and society.