CALIFOR.'HA STA'rE UNIVEH.SITY, NORTHRIDGE ADJlLPTA'TION OF KOREAN CEREMONIAL Df<ESS INTO AMERICAN DRESS S'I'YLES A thesis submitted in partial satisfaction of the· requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Horne Economics by Sara Soon Yoo June 1981 The thesis of Sara Soon Yoo is approved: Ann~.-stasch, Ph.D. F~ances P. ~?ite, M.S. Nancy Ve ASwens, Ph.D. , Commit ee Chairman California State University, Northridge ii In gratitude for her continuous assistance, this thesis is dedicated to Dr. Nancy J. Owens iii ACKNOlvLEDGMENTS The author wishes to express her appreciation to Dr. Nancy J. Owens for her guidance and assistance in the completion of this thesis, to Mrs. Frances P. White for her help in draping the garments, and to Dr. Ann R. Stasch for her help in the final analysis of this thesis. Special thanks go to all of the women who com- pleted the questionnaire and thereby made this study possible. A special acknowledgment of thanks goes to the faculty members in the Department of Home Economics for their confidence and encouragement. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page DEDICATION . iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iv LIST OF TABLES . vii LIST OF PLATES . viii ABSTRI\CT X Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION . 1 Justif ica t.ion 2 Objectives ... 2 Null Hypotheses 3 Research Hypotheses 3 Assumptions 4 Limitation . 4 Q) H.EVIEW OF LITERATURE . 5 Korean History • 5 Fabrics 8 Korean Women's Ordinary Dress 13 Korean Women's Ceremonial Dress 26. Colors of Costume 38 3. PROCEDURE • • • • .. lllf • •• 42 4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION . 44 Description of Respondents . 44 v Chapter Page Knowledge of and Experience with Korean Costume 46 Opinions on Garments Shown . 48 s. SU.f\Wu"\RY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOi:-Ii-lENDl\TIONS • • • 53 Recommendations for Further Study 58 REFERENCES 59 APPENDIXES A. QUESTIONNAIRE WRITTEN IN ENGLISH QUESTIONNAIRE l\!RI'I'TEN IN KOREAN 62 B. SKETCHES, DESCRIPTIONS AND PICTUHES OF GARMENTS • • • 69 c. LIST OF TABLES . 80 vi LIST OF' TABLES Table Page 1. Descriptive Data on the Respondents . 45 2. Question 4: Have you ever seen traditional Korean ceremonial costumes? vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? (Korean responses only) 82 3. Question 5: If Yes (to #4), what kinds of ceremonial costumes have you seen? vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? {Korean responses only) 83 4. Question 6: Have you ever worn traditional Korean ceremonial costumes? vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? (Korean responses only) 84 5. Question 7: How often do you wear traditional Korean clothes? vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? (Korean responses only) 85 6. Question 8: How many traditional Korean dresses do you have? vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? {Korean responses only) 86 7. Question 9: Could you recognize a Korean woman's social status by looking at her traditional Korean dress? vs vii Table Page Question 2: lvhere were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? (Korean responses only) 87 8. Question 10: If Yes (to #9), what would help you to determine her social status? vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? {Korean responses only) . 88 9. Question 11: If these styles were available on the ready-to-wear market, would you choose to wear any of them to replace your American dresses? (for each garment) vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? (Korean responses only) 89 10. Question 12: If these styles were available on the ready-to-wear market, would you choose to wear any of them to replace your traditional Korean garments? (for each garment) vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? (Korean responses only) . • . 92 11. Question 13: Please rank them in the order in which you like them, with your favorite ranked as 1 and your least favorite ranked as 5. vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years have you lived in the United States? (Korean responses only) . 95 12. Question 14: For each of the garments, please indicate with a check (X) which aspect(s) of viii Table Page the garment you like. (for each garment ) vs Question 2: Where were you born? Question 3: How many years h~ve you lived in the United States? (Korean responses only) • • . 96 ix LIST OF PLA'l'ES PLATE Page I. NUBI-CHOGORI . 15 II. SOJI.1-CHOGORI . 15 III. KEKI-CHOGORI . 16 IV. HOEJANG-CHOGORI . 16 v. SM1-HOEJANG-CHOGORI . 18 VI. BAN-HOEJP~G-CHOGORI . 18 VII. CHIHA . 19 VIII. CHAN GOT . 21 IX. SOKOT . 23 x. PAGI . 23 XI. DAN-SOKOT 23 XII. BUS UN . 25 XIII. TANGJU . 27 XIV. YUNJU . 27 XV. SUJU . w . 27 XVI. JIN-SHIN . 28 XVII. NAJ1.1AKSHIN . 28 XVIII. MITURI . 29 XIX. JIPSIN . 29 XX. JUKOUE . 30 XXI. WONSl\11. 32 XXII. WHALOT . 34 X PLATE Page XXIII. TA..l\JGOUE 36 XXIV. QUEEN'S ORDINARY CLOTHES 37 xi ABSTRACT ADAPTATION OF KOREAN CEREMONIAL DRESS INTO AMERICAN DRESS S'fYLES by Sara Soon Yoo Haster of Science in Home Economics May 1981 Five garments were adapted into modern American styles from traditional Korean women's ceremonial garments by draping them on a dress form. A questionnaire was utilized to obt.ain Cauca.sian and Korean women's opinions about traditional Korean women's ceremonial garments and the derived garments. A collection of five garments with the questionnaires was presented to women who lived in Los Angeles and were members of Korean Protestant churches or the Presbyterian Church in Encino~ The garments designed varied in style from day dresses to formal evening wear. The women viewing and wearing the garments responded to the questionnaire during the modeling of the dresses. A higher percentage of Korean than Caucasian women preferred these dresses. Caucasian women preferred the color of the garments and the Korean women preferred the style of the garments. The garment to which both sets of xii \ ~- ' -, women responded most favorably was the blue silk one adapted from the queen's ordinary clothes. There was a significant difference between the numbers of Caucasian and Korean women who had worn Korean ceremonial costumes previously. There was no significant difference in preference among the Korean women who had lived in the United States for different lengths of time. It '"as concluded that there is a need for dresses specifically designed for Korean women and that clothing manufacturers and pattern companies should be made aware of this need. xiii ' . Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION The essential characteristics of a nation and its customs can be seen by the clothing that the people wear in daily life, with cultural trends being illustrated through upper-class costume {Suk, 1971, p. 7). According to Lillian B. Matthews (1979), writing about the dress and values of women, Dress is the modification human beings make in their appearance. The study of dress, therefore, is a factor of material culture and can provide insights useful in interpreting other aspects of behavior. Analysis of dress in its broadest meaning contributes to the understanding of individual and group social roles, as well as alterations in other cultural forms {Matthews, 1979j. Since dress directly reflects the cultural and social background of a society, research solely on dress and on clothing material cannot be accomplished. An understanding of the history for that particular society is needed. Although Korea has its own traditional costumes, there exists practically no evidence of ceremonial dress prior to the Yi dynasty. However, literature and arti- facts illustrating the dress styl~s and the textiles of the Yi dynasty are available. Therefore, most of the information included in this study originated from or was 1 2 related to the Yi dynasty. For this study, five garments were adapted into modern American style from traditional Korean women's ceremonial garments, with the designs draped on a dress form. Justification Studies available in the English language on Korean dress have been either historical studies on traditional dress or descriptive studies done with women subjects who live in Korea. Many Korean women are now living in the United States, especially in Southern California. Most wear western dress, which is foreign to their heritage. The question addressed in this study was whether styles with a western look derived from Korean traditional dress would be more acceptable to Korean women living in the Los Angeles area than was regular western dress. Objectives The objectives of this study were: 1. to identify traditional Korean women's gar­ ments which would lend themselves to design adaptation for western styles; 2. to create, by draping, original garments which were inspired by traditional Korean 3 dress; 3. to determine the degree of acceptability of these styles to Korean women living in the Los Angeles area; and 4. to determine the acceptability of these styles to Caucasian women living in the Los Angeles area. Null Hypotheses 1. There is no significant difference in the acceptability of the garments between women of Korean heritage and women of Caucasian heritage. 2. There is no significant difference in the acceptability of the garments designed, depending upon the number of years women of Korean heritage have lived in the United States.