A Study on the Portrayal of Jo Ja-yeom and So Gyeong-su Couple in the <JoSsiSamDaeRok>: A marriage between a virtuous daughter and a filial son

This research examines the characters Jo Ja-yeom and her husband So Gyeong-su from the Korean classical novel <JoSsiSamDaeRok>. Ja-yeom is portrayed as an exemplary virtuous woman, receiving special love and recognition from her father. Gyeong-su is depicted as a perfect man, endowed with abilities, temperament, and appearance, embodying filial piety and fraternal love. By illustrating the lives of virtuous woman Jo Ja-yeom and perfect man So Gyeong-su, who endure hardships and maintain filial piety and fraternal love, the research interestingly presents the ideal couple envisioned by the elite class. The villains are numerous and the scale of the evil woman’s wickedness is large and persistent, effectively highlighting the couple’s hardships. The relationship also showcases rare dynamics such as a husband regarding his wife as a mentor, and portrays the significance of a woman who is a paragon of virtue, can foresee the future, extricates herself from crises, and is both close to and recognized by her father.