Even today, we look back at Korean seonbis and Japanese samurais to seek our spiritual grounds. While their values served similar functions in the historical context of each country, the socio-political backgrounds of seonbis and samurais vary significantly, and so does the form of their existence. It goes without saying that these two groups of men highly regarded moral values such as loyalty and sincerity, but there is a significant difference in the ways in which their values were executed. Through comparing the two nationally acclaimed drama, Sayuksin of Korea and Chūshingura of Japan, this article discusses the distinction between their ethics by asking the question: what did they die for?
1. Introduction
2. The seonbi
3. The samurai
4. The loyalty of the forty-seven rōnin
5. The loyalty of Sayuksin
6. Conclusion
References