Freelancer Lee Si-eun (32)’s family stopped holding ancestral ancestral ancestral rites for the holidays three years ago. He had been holding ancestral rites in the traditional way every year, but after Lee’s mother declared, “I can’t do this anymore카지노,” they decided to do away with it after a family meeting with her. This is because there was a consensus that female members had suffered unnecessarily preparing the ancestral rite table. Instead, she replaced it with light meals out with her family around the holidays. Mr. Lee said, “I think the meaning of the holiday has deepened as the fact that families get together is important.”
The annual holiday tradition of ancestral rites, which had become a symbol of ‘family discord’, is gradually disappearing. In particular, it was found that more families said they would not hold a ancestral rite during Chuseok this year than those who did. It is analyzed that the social atmosphere is gradually changing through the coronavirus pandemic.
According to a survey conducted by Lotte Members on 4,000 consumers in their 20s to 50s on the 17th, 43.7% of respondents said they would hold a ancestral rite during Chuseok this year, which was less than the 56.4% of respondents who said they would not celebrate Chuseok. Rather, the number of families holding ancestral rites has become a minority. The Rural Development Administration survey is similar. The proportion of respondents who said they held a ancestral rite during the Lunar New Year holiday last year was 39%, a 26.9 percentage point decrease from 2018 (65.9%) before the coronavirus. Compared to 2020 (44.5%), it fell by more than 5 percentage points.
The causes are complex. First of all, as generations change, an atmosphere less bound by traditions and customs spreads throughout society. Mr. Gu (32), an office worker, said, “Last year, ancestral rites were no longer held at my home. My grandfather was against it at first, but after 10 years of persuasion, he accepted that the culture had changed.” In some cases, ancestral rites were abolished upon the marriage of a child in order to avoid burdening the new daughter-in-law.
There is also an analysis that the culture of visiting hometowns for holidays has faded during the COVID-19 period. Mr. Han (30), an office worker, said, “During the height of the coronavirus pandemic, my family could not gather together, so we did not naturally celebrate ancestral ancestral rites. Now, we have settled into gathering together for a meal in Jeonju during the holidays and resting individually during the holidays.”
It is analyzed that the fact that women’s economic activities have increased, including the number of employed women compared to the past, has also had an impact. The female employment rate in August was 54.7%, the highest ever (as of August) since related statistics were compiled. The employment rate gap with men is 17.2 percentage points, the lowest ever. It is interpreted that voices objecting to the traditional method of ancestral rites, which mainly required women to prepare food for the family, have also grown.In Korea, which has entered a very low birth rate society with a total fertility rate of 0.78 last year, it is highly likely that traditional cultures such as ancestral rites will continue to decline. Accordingly, the Sungkyunkwan Ritual Establishment Committee proposed a plan to simplify the ancestral rite table early this year. This is to eliminate factors of discord between families that may arise during the process of preparing unnecessarily large amounts of food and to ensure that the ancestral rite culture can persist. Sungkyunkwan said, “Ultimately, we want to inherit a happy traditional culture without family discord, conflict between men and women, or conflict between old and young.”