離婚의 社會學的 考察

Abstract

The Purpose of this study is to ascertain from the present day attitudes toward divorce how the social position of women and the fanction of the famicy and kinship system have changed. The means used in this research project is limited to case study involving 68 divorced and separated women who live in seoul. Even though this survey involves only women, it enables us to understand Korean Society in many ways. One of the things that comes out is that divorced women here have many more disadvantages than divorced women in the west. Traditionally korean society does not allow divorce. Today, as society is changing under the influenece of the west, a woman now has a right to divoice, that is she has this means to get out of domestic discord and conflict between husband and wife, However social and economic conditions prevent the actual use of this right. Men and women are all equal legally, but in actual practice this is not true. After divorce a woman has many more social, economical, and psychological problems than a man does. Also the problem of the raising of the children generally falls on the woman. Among the causes of divorce the main reason is the unfaithfulness of either one of the spouses. The next one is the discord caused by differences in character and attitudes. Divorce for the latter reason is gradually increasing. Society still does not admit divorce as a normal procedure, and so the divorced woman has many handisaps in her social Life. Divorce not only affects the socialization of children, but it also prevents woman's remarriage which could solve her economic and psychologcial problems after divorce. After divorce the support and aid previously given by the kinship system is gradually weakend. This is also true as the family system changes from an extended one to a nuclear one. According to the traditional way of acting a woman's own parents do not usually interfere in her marital Life. However, generally they are the only ones who help a divorced daughter. This help is also gradually decreasing.