| Jimin Baik / 2nd assignment / About Festival / Thursday 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Korean Festival, Chuseok
Korean festivals are mostly about family gathering and respecting their ancestors. One of the biggest celebrations in Korea is Chuseok, which is similar to Thanksgiving Day. Chuseok is so important that every single family member gathers in their hometown only for this festival. This special holiday takes place on lunar August 15th. Although Chuseok is also the longest official vacation in Korea, people hardly rest, since many things have to be bought and prepared several weeks before the day.
To get ready for this festival, lots of things should be bought from 2 or 3 weeks before Chuseok. First, people buy some Korean herbs such as Gosari, Doraji, and Mu to make Namul, Korean traditional herb salad. Then, to make the most basic kind of Korean traditional fried food called Jeon, eggs, meats, tofu, and vegetables should be bought. Next, to make Songpyeon, Korean traditional rice cake, flour, black beans, sesame, and sugar are needed. Also for Toranguk, Korean traditional soup made with taro, people buy taro, beef, and Korean radish. Last but not least, people should buy special instruments for the traditional ritual, called Jesa. These instruments include Hyang, which is Korean incense, Jegi, which is traditional plates for special rituals, Byongpung, which is Korean folding screen, and Jeongjong, which is traditional alcohol. Although this might seem too much for some people who are not familiar with Chuseok, at least these things are truly needed to celebrate Chuseok in traditional way.
Now that all the ingredients were bought, it's time to prepare dishes for Chuseok. People start cooking at least 3 days before the festival. On the first day, they cook Namul. All the Korean herbs should be trimmed and washed very clean. Then people steam the herbs and season them with minced garlic and various Korean spices. On the second day, people make Jeon. For round-shaped Jeon, which is the most basic kind, minced pork and beef, minced vegetables, minced garlic, mashed tofu, and eggs should be mixed altogether. Then people make a number of bite-sized round pieces with the mixture. Then they coat them with flour, dip them in the eggs, and fry them. On the third day, people make Songpyeon. First, they should knead the dough with flours, eggs, and some water. After separating the dough into bite-size, they stuff the pieces with sesames and sugar or black beans. When the pieces are steamed, the long preparation is finally over.
On the day of Chuseok, people commit the Korean traditional ritual called Jesa early in the morning for their ancestors. They start the morning of Chuseok preparing Toranguk. To welcome the dead in the house, all the doors should be opened and Hyang should be lit to help the dead find the house. Every dish should be served in Jegi, and the dishes should be placed on the table according to the traditional order. Also, Byongpung should be unfolded behind the table. To start Jesa, the oldest male in the house pour Jeongjong in Jegi, turn it around above Hyang twice and half counterclockwise, and put it on the table. Then everyone makes a Korean deep bow twice, and a half bow at the end. After this bow, every male offers Jeongjong to their ancestors in turn according to their age, and he and his family members make the same bow. When the turn is over, the oldest male offers Jeongjong again, and everyone makes the same bow for the last time. Now Jesa is over. Everyone relaxes and share the foods. Especially, every adult should drink a bit of Jeongjong, because drinking alcohol that was offered to the ancestors is considered of gathering fortune inside our body.
Chuseok is a perfect opportunity to meet family members and respect ancestors for Koreans. Usually the festival lasts for 2 or 3 days, and a huge amount of food is consumed. Some people also share the food with their neighbors and friends, since they prepared too much. For this reason, Chuseok reflects Korean cultural background that emphasizes the affection between people, whether they are dead or alive.
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Monday, March 19, 2012
Jimin Baik / 2nd assignment / About Festival / Thursday 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
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Cho, Hyun
ReplyDeleteI believe your writing is very faithful in explaining the process of ‘Chooseok’. However, I think you listed Korean words in excessive amount, which might disturb readers from understanding the festival itself. Readers who are not accustomed to Korean culture would hardly appreciate the writing and might lose interest in reading it. I think revising your writing by reducing some information(unfamiliar Korean words) can make your writing even more perfect. Except for that, I like your writing because I can see how much you devoted to researching the topic.
Seunghyun Lee
ReplyDeleteI have opinion similar to Cho's. You did very good job but your essay contains too much details. You used lot of Korean words, and it's little confusing.
However, it is well organized in logical sequence.(buying things to prepare chuseok, preparing dishes, the day of chuseok) Moreover, your conclusion is good because a evaluation is included.
Jimin Baik / Second Draft of 2nd assignment / About Festival / Thursday 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
ReplyDeleteThe Korean Festival, Chuseok
Korean festivals are mostly about family gathering and respecting their ancestors. One of the biggest celebrations in Korea is Chuseok, which is similar to Thanksgiving Day. Chuseok is so important that every single family member gathers in their hometown only for this festival. This special holiday takes place on lunar August 15th. Although Chuseok is also the longest official vacation in Korea, people hardly rest, since many things have to be bought and prepared several weeks before the day.
To get ready for this festival, lots of things should be bought from 2 or 3 weeks before Chuseok. First, people buy some Korean herbs to make Korean traditional vegetable dish. Then, to make Korean traditional pancake, eggs, meats, tofu, and vegetables should be bought. Next, to make Korean traditional rice cake, flour, black beans, sesame, sugar, and pine needles are needed. Also for Korean traditional taro soup, people buy taro, beef, and Korean radish. Last but not least, people should buy special instruments for the traditional ritual, called Jesa. These instruments include Korean incense, Korean traditional vessels, Korean folding screen, and Korean traditional alcohol. Although this might seem too much for some people who are not familiar with Chuseok, at least these things are truly needed to celebrate Chuseok in traditional way.
Now that all the ingredients were bought, it's time to prepare dishes for Chuseok. People start cooking at least 3 days before the festival. On the first day, they cook Korean traditional vegetable dish. All the Korean herbs should be trimmed and washed very clean. Then people steam the herbs and season them with minced garlic and various Korean spices. On the second day, people make Korean traditional pancake. First, well-minced pork and beef, chopped vegetables, smashed garlic, mashed tofu, and eggs should be mixed altogether. Then people make a number of bite-sized round pieces with the mixture. Then they coat them with flour, dip them in the eggs, and fry them. On the third day, people make Korean traditional rice cake. First, they should knead the dough with flours, eggs, and some water. After separating the dough into bite-size, they stuff the pieces with sesames and sugar or black beans. When the pieces are steamed with pine needles, the long preparation is nearly over.
On the day of Chuseok, people commit Jesa early in the morning for their ancestors. They start the morning of Chuseok preparing Korean traditional taro soup. To welcome the dead in the house, all the doors should be opened and Korean incense should be lit to help the dead find the house. Every dish should be served in Korean traditional vessels, and the dishes should be placed on the table according to the traditional order. Also, Korean folding screen should be unfolded behind the table. To start Jesa, the oldest male in the house pours Korean traditional alcohol in a Korean traditional vessel, turns it around above Korean incense twice and half counterclockwise, and puts it on the table. Then everyone makes a Korean deep bow twice, and a half bow at the end. After this bow, every male offers a vessel of alcohol to their ancestors in turn according to their age, and he and his family members make the same bow. When the turn is over, the oldest male offers the alcohol again, and everyone makes the same bow for the last time. Now Jesa is over. Everyone relaxes and shares the food. Especially, every adult should drink the alcohol a bit, because drinking alcohol that was offered to the ancestors is considered of gathering fortune inside our body.
ReplyDeleteChuseok is a perfect opportunity to meet family members and respect ancestors for Koreans. Usually the festival lasts for 2 or 3 days, and a huge amount of food is consumed. Some people also share the food with their neighbors and friends, since they prepared too much. For this reason, Chuseok reflects Korean cultural background that emphasizes the affection between people, whether they are dead or alive.