Between February 8 and April 19, the East Asian Studies Department held a seminar that included 5 sessions that provided a critical approach to the main studies on slavery in the Joseon dynasty, together with a review of the documentary typology used in the different studies. This seminar aimed to bring the participants closer to the fundamental bibliography on slavery in Korea during the transition period between the Joseon dynasty and the 20th century, although it included bibliography from earlier periods in order to create enough context to understand the evolution of this institution in Korean society and culture.

Responsible Researchers (PIs): Dr. Luis A. Botella, Dr. Antonio J. Domenech and Dr. Aurelia Martin Casares.

Sessions:

• Introductory session (February 2): Slavery in Korea, introduction and key debates.
• Session 1 (February 22): Slavery, society and economy. Social structure in Joseon and the place of the nobi in society and economy. Joseon dynasty social censuses and Reconstruction of slave markets in perspective.
• Session 2 (March 3): Slavery and women. Women, gisaeng, and female nobi within Joseon society. 10:00-13:00h.
• Session 3 (April 26): Liberation attempts and abolitionist discourses in Joseon: from ideas to feelings. Commemorations, emancipations and political discourses.
• Session 4 (May 5): The daily life of slaves and cultural discourses about them. Some cases of slaves who wrote and mainly the diaries of the yangban lords were discussed, along with court documents as sources to approach this reality.