1991년 가족법 개정 이후 종중과 제사 관련 대법원 판례에 나타난 유교적 가부장제 분석

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine Supreme Court precedents based on Confucian patriarchy through clan (Jong-joong) and ancestor worships (Je-sa) since the Family Law amendment in 1991. In traditional Korean society, the clan was the patrilineal kinship community for serving ancestor worship and presided over the everyday lives of members. Because continuity of the patrilineal was an absolute proposition, ancestor worship was an important ritual in those days. Therefore clan and ancestor worship are key concepts to analyze Confucian patriarchy in Korean society. The analyzed Supreme Court precedents in this study were 40 cases, which were opened in the Supreme Court site from 1991 to 2018. The results are as follow. Korean society is changing from Confucian patriarchy to gender equality. In particular, daughters, who were not considered as a member of the patrilineal clan due to Confucianism, became recognized as a member of the clan after Supreme Court precedents in 2005. In addition, the elders first rule in the clan was not as important as in the past. And the eldest son was not normally considered as an ancestor worship supervisor. However, the minority in the Supreme Court insisted that Confucian patriarchy norms are an example of a unique Korean tradition. These findings suggest that the amendment of Family Law is necessary but not sufficient to create gender equality and a democratic society in contemporary Korea.