American Missionaries in East Asia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

American Missionaries in East Asia - Essay Example to teach formal education and sensitize the Koreans about the capitalism rule that was befalling Asia in 1800s since there were local schools, already established before missionaries’ arrival, though it only offered informal education to woman and girls (Hyaeweol 78). This was during the era of Tokugawa. They used educational institution to influence the feminist in Japan and china who did not believe in Christianity. Research exercises conducted by Korean missionaries focused only on political and theological matters, taking little considerations on matters pertaining to gender. Missionaries learned that the Korean women were rising up from their hibernation state and were looking aggressively for something to keep them occupied. They contrasted between the valueless world characterized by limited Christian concepts and a Christian world which was peaceful, optimistic and morally pure (Hyaeweol 94). Though the missionaries still believed that a woman’s place is in the traditional home setting, they also believed that women should not be restrained by traditional boundaries within a household. Therefore, they used educational institutions to encourage Korean women to take part in formal education where new ideas could be introduced to them, especially ideas of definite career fields like medicine, sports and other professional fields, which were conventionally unachievable to Korean women. In this regard, education institutions were the best option for missionaries in their efforts of reach out to Korean women. Apart from training the professionally, missionaries also wanted to portray out that formally educated women were liberated and modern. During their early times in East Asia, missionaries used â€Å"enlightened† western woman as an example of enticing Koreans into accept the modernized way of living. Typically, western women were perceived as being inherently enlightened as they were well versed with affairs around the world. Western women actively