The thesis involves presenting two concepts that marked Korean history. The first concept are
female entertainers, or so-called kisaeng, who, as women, have had a unique position over
periods of Korean history. Although they themselves belonged to the lowest class, after training
they became elegant and one of the more educated women in at that time very patriarchal
society. One of the services they offered was also a sexual offer, which distinguished them
greatly from other prominent Korean women. The second concept discussed in the dissertation
is about the so-called comfort women. During World War II, Japan designed comfort systems
across much of Asia to try to restore the fighting spirit to soldiers and make their solitary
military life easier. The victims, who were enrolled under the pretext of working in factories,
some also abducted, suffered the pain of rape both during the operation of such departments
and even after the collapse of the comfort system, when Japan finally admitted defeat after the
war. Because of constant denying of this system, the victims decided to let the public know
about these crimes in the 90s. However, according to the victims, these apologies are highly
controversial, so the problem is still being continued into the present. So the aim of the thesis
is to demonstrate the change in sex work marked by Japanese expansionism in the 20th century.
The thesis is divided into an analysis of both the female ententeiners kisaengs and the rape
victims of Japanese soldiers so-called comfort women. By exploring these keywords, it is
possible to discern that the comfort system did not evolve from the kisaeng system, which is
still a controversial topic in South Korea.
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