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Post by ajk on Mar 18, 2008 13:01:52 GMT -5
For anybody who's wondering about the Jeongjong character, as I was: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeongjong_of_JoseonThis is well worth reading; it's brief and it provides some good historical background that hasn't been provided in the series (at least not yet). |
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Post by Knov1 on Mar 18, 2008 13:31:33 GMT -5
I agree. That's a good read. The info deals with things that happened during the early years of Joseon so it's not spoilers about GKS.
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Post by Candylover on Mar 18, 2008 16:17:29 GMT -5
For anybody who's wondering about the Jeongjong character, as I was: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeongjong_of_JoseonThis is well worth reading; it's brief and it provides some good historical background that hasn't been provided in the series (at least not yet). How King Taejong (Lee Bang-Won; the father king of princes in GKS) killed his two younger brothers (16 and 17 years old each) born from his step-mother, Queen Kang (this incident - the coup of Lee Bang-Won in 1398 - is called the First War of Princes in Korean history) was well portrayed in the 1996 drama, Tears of the Dragon. Although the drama is not available on DVD, we can find some video clips of it on the net, and fortunately I stumbled upon one where the two princes begged their lives from their elder brother, Lee Bang-Won in vain. Video Summary: After slaughtering all people who backed his two younger brothers as the successors to the throne, Lee Bang-Won goes out to find the two princes. First, he finds the 16 year-old crown prince (Bang-Suk), who immediately kneels down at his feet and begs his life saying "Save my life, my dear brother. I never wanted to be a crown princess. Please forgive me!" But Bang-Won's men drags the crown prince out and execute him. Next, he finds the 17-year-old prince (Bang-Bun), who also kneels down and begs for his life crying out "My dear brother, I'm innocent. Please save my life." Bang-Won hesitates for a minute and says "Yes," and his brothers bows repeatedly in his joy. In spite of the negative suggestions of his men, he releases his brother saying "I cannot find it in my heart to do it." Soon his eldest brother Lee Bang-Gwa (to be King Jeong-Jong) walks up to him along with Lee Bang-Gan (in armor), another elder brother of Bang-Won. Bang-Gwa heartily appreciates Bang-Won's mercy, but Bang-Gan chases his younger brother shouting "It's no time to show mercy" and kills him to get rid of the source of possible troubles in the future. The narrator says "According to Annals of the Chosun Dynasty, Lee Bang-Won said he didn't want to kill his brother princes, and it was his men that was responsible for the deaths of his brothers. But everyone who knows about the First War of the Princes knows that it is a sheer execuse itself for killing his teenager brothers." Video: tinyurl.com/yquyf6 |
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Post by ajk on Mar 19, 2008 14:40:57 GMT -5
Thanks so much, Candylover--that's a great post. It provides more background to help understand the brief reference to the Second Princes' Rebellion. This series is apparently going to presume that the viewer has some pre-existing historical knowledge, which is a problem for many of us non-Koreans. So any help we can get is much appreciated. Thanks again.
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