Chunhyangjeon
Sung Chunhyang
The heroine
The virtuous, poetic daughter of Wolmae, whose faithfulness to her husband holds firm against a tyrant's threats.
Chunhyang, whose name means Fragrance of Spring, is the young woman Namwon knows for both her beauty and her virtue. She is poetic, fearless, and dignified. When Mongryong first sees her on a swing at the Dano festival, she is laughing with her maid Hyangdan, but she is also careful. She will not be summoned across a public park by a stranger.
Chunhyang is the daughter of Wolmae, a retired kisaeng, so her social standing is lower than that of the noble scholar who loves her. She does not let that define her. She believes that true poetry is the honest mirror of the heart, and that a vow spoken from the heart endures. Her loyalty is her defining trait, and the story tests it to the limit.
“A loyal subject cannot serve two kings, and a faithful wife cannot serve two husbands. Cut me into pieces, but I will never yield!”
In the story
Contains spoilers.
Chunhyang and Mongryong marry in a private vow under the moon, and enjoy a brief season of happiness. When his father is promoted to Hanyang and forbids the match, she sends him off with a jade ring and a promise to wait. Months later the new magistrate, Byeon Hakdo, summons her to his banquet. She refuses, saying a faithful wife cannot serve two husbands.
She is beaten with paddles, locked in a heavy cangue, and thrown into an underground cell, but she does not yield. The night before her execution, a ragged beggar comes to her cell, and she weeps for his hardship rather than her own. The next day he reveals himself as the Royal Inspector. Chunhyang and Mongryong are reunited as husband and wife, and she is saved.
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