Sexuality in South Korea has been influenced by culture , religion , and westernization. Viewpoints in contemporary society can be viewed as a conflict between the traditional, conservative older generation and the more liberal and 'modern' generation. Due to this conflict, several issues in Korea, including sexual education, homosexuality, and sexual behavior are highly contested. Women have been marginalized throughout Korean history.
Historically, Korean society was patriarchal , especially due to Confucianism. Only the women of the ruling class could enjoy the same privileges of the men in the same class. Although men were allowed to have multiple wives, women were expected to maintain chastity and were compelled to remain unmarried if their husbands died.
The aforementioned societal norms began to be enforced during the Joseon Dynasty. For instance, chastity of widows was enforced by forbidding the sons and grandsons of remarried women from taking the Gwageo. However, women were entitled to inherit property. In the family, women were expected to take care of the family finances. Women from lower class had jobs such as mudang , or shamans ; folk healer ; kisaeng.
Female shamans outnumbered male shamans, and women were usually only examined by women folk healers. Women were excluded from schools until , when Ewha Hakdang was established. During the Goryeo Dynasty — , monogamy was supported while divorce and remarriage were common. Marriage with those with both the same surname and family origin was forbidden, and is still forbidden today.
During this time, early marriages were common. Early marriages were often arranged and can be traced back to the Three Kingdoms of Korea period 57 AD Children about 10 years old could be presented to another family; this was done for both boys and girls. In the Joseon dynasty, the legal age for marriage was 15 for boys and 14 for girls. When a child assumed responsibility for the child's family, the child could marry at the age of The society commonly believed that a higher age for marriage was associated with inappropriate sexual activity.
