The Impact of Confucianism on Gender (In)Equality in Asia
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NOTE
THE IMPACT OF CONFUCIANISM ON GENDER
(IN)EQUALITY IN ASIA
JULIET Y. MUN*
INTRODUCTION
This Note will first discuss how Confucianism has significantly influenced
Asian countries such as Korea, China, and Japan,' and how this has caused major
gender inequality and discrimination. Second, it will explore how recent
legislation and social policies, including parental leave, childcare, and enforce-
ment against gender discrimination, have not been sufficiently effective in
implementing gender equality. Lastly, this Note will aim to explain the ways in
which gender equality may be achieved through a reduction in the influence of
Confucianism, reinterpretation of Confucianism, and demographic changes.
I. THE CONFUCIAN IDEOLOGY AND THE SPREAD OF ITS INFLUENCE IN ASIA
Confucianism was developed by one of the most preeminent philosophers in
China, Confucius.2 The ideology is centered on the teaching of moral values
which emphasizes the harmonious value of inter-personal relations.3 Confucian-
ism defines five distinct relationships and promotes virtues that are deemed
* Georgetown University Law Center, J.D. 2015; Georgetown University, A.B. 2011. I would like to
thank Professor James V. Feinerman for encouraging me to pursue this topic for my Asian Law and
Policy Studies Seminar course and his thoughtful comments on an earlier draft of this paper. I am grateful
to the editors and staff of the Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law for their helpful comments and
suggestions throughout the publication process as well as the Edward Bennett Williams Law Library staff
for their research assistance. © 2016, Juliet Y Mun.
1. See, e.g., David A. Ralston et al., The Impact of National Culture and Economic Ideology on
Managerial Work Values: A Study of the United States, Russia, Japan, and China, 28 J. INT'L Bus.
STUDIES 177, 179, 201 (1997) (stating that Confucianism has been a primary influence ... within
Eastern culture and that Japan's cultural heritage [is] based on Confucian philosophy); Insook Han
Park & Lee-Jay Cho, Confucianism and the Korean Family, 26 J. COMPARATIVE FAMILY STUDIEs 117, 119
(1995) (Confucianism is not a formal religious institution in Korea but rather a code of latent ethics and
values that has profoundly influenced the society for nearly two millennia.); Sor-Hoon Tan, The
Pragmatic Confucian Approach to Tradition, 51 HISTORY & THEORY 23, 25 (2012) (It is not an
exaggeration to portray Confucians as self-appointed custodians of Chinese culture and tradition.)Yan
Bing Zhang et al., Harmony, Hierarchy and Conservatism: A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Confucian
Values in China, Korea, Japan, and Taiwan, 22 COMMC'N RESEARCH REPORrS 107, 108 (2005)
(explaining that the influence of Confucianism spread from China to Korea and Japan and that deliberate
efforts to promote and maintain Confucianism are evident in these societies).
2. Angella Son, Confucianism and the Lack of the Development of the Self Among Korean American
Women, 54 PASTORAL PSYCHOL. 325, 328 (2006).
3. Tan Soo Kee, Influences of Confucianism on Korean Corporate Culture, 36 ASIAN PROFILE 3
(2008).
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The Impact of Confucianism on Gender (In)Equality in Asia
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