The Japanese invasion of 1592 and the Manchu invasion several decades later had a profound impact on Korean literature. Yi Sunsin’s Nanjung ilgi (“Diary of the War”) and his sijo, Pak Il-Lo’s Sŏnsangt’an (“Boat-Passage Lament”), Yu Sŏng-Nyong’s Chingbi rok (“Record of Learning from Mistakes”), and Kang Hang’s Kanyang nok (“Record of a Shepherd”) all recount the Japanese invasion and illustrate its trials and tribulations. Works such as Sansŏng ilgi (“Diary Written in a Mountain Fortress”) by an anonymous woman of the Chosŏn court, sijo by Kim Sang-Hŏn and the trio known as the Three Scholars, and Yun Kye-Sŏng’s Talch’ŏn mongyu rok (“Record of a Dream Visit to Talch’ŏn”), P’isaeng mongyu rok (“Record of P’i’s Dream Journey”), and Kangdo mongyu rok (“Record of a Dream Visit to Kangdo”) keenly express the situation at the time of the Manchu invasion and its aftermath.

Literature in Chinese evolved in two directions: one represented an attempt to shake off traditional social norms and standards while the other sought to restore them. The literary activities of Kwŏn P’il and Hŏ Kyun developed in the former direction, while those of Yi Chŏng-Gu, Sin Hŭm, Yi Sik, Chang Yu, and other scholar-bureaucrats writing in Chinese evolved in the latter direction. The sirhak (“practical learning”) school, which included Pak Chi-Wŏn, turned its attention to contemporary realities and introduced a lively writing style. Among the sirhak group, Chŏng Yak-Yong strove to produce verse with a folk song flavour, while Shin Wi used individualized expression in an attempt to breathe new life into poetry written in Chinese.

During this period a new movement emerged that aimed to produce poetry about the customs and contemporary realities on the Korean peninsula. This movement was reflected in the writings in Chinese of those groups—government functionaries, petty clerks, village residents—collectively known as the wihangin. The wihangin, among them Chŏng Nae-Gyo, Chang Hon, and Cho Su-Sam, formed fellowships of poets and composed poetry with great enthusiasm. They referred to their poems as p’ungyo (“poems of the people,” also called talk songs) and published a number of collections of these works (e.g., Sodae p’ungyo [1737; “Poems of a Peaceful People”]).

Great changes took place in how literature was viewed. Hŏ Kyun discarded the moralist views evident in his early work and advocated a literature of natural sentiment, and Kim Man-Jung argued that folk songs sung by woodcutters and laundry women held more worth than literature written in Chinese. During the 18th century, Hong Man-Jong, in his Sihwa ch’ongnim (“Collection of Remarks on Poetry”), ventured to critique vernacular poetry, and Hong Tae-Yong set forth a new theory of literature in his Ch’ŏngi ron (“Theory of Nature’s Secrets”). Pak Chi-Wŏn sought in literature a method for criticizing the realities of the times.

Sijo continued to be composed by scholar-bureaucrats. Yun Sŏn-Do wrote poems marked by beautifully refined language but also a blunt sensibility toward contemporary realities. Another scholar-bureaucrat, Kwŏn Sŏp, concentrated solely on sijo at the expense of other poetic forms; his works show a never-ending awareness of self and custom. Yi Chŏng-Bo wrote of the pleasure of removing oneself from worldly cares. Quite a few of his works take up the theme of love—a rarity in the poetry of scholar-bureaucrats. Yi Se-Bo, a member of the royal family who wrote some 450 sijo, wrote on varied subjects and themes, including matters of government.

The active participation of the wihangin in the creation and performance of sijo during the 18th century resulted in an expansion of the class of people responsible for the form’s production. Professional singers who were among the wihangin formed singing groups, developed principles for composing sijo, and produced sijo collections. These collections—examples of which include Kim Su-Jang’s Haedong kayo (“Songs of Korea”) and An Min-Yŏng’s Kagok wŏllyu (“Anthology of Korean Songs”) as well as Kim Ch’ŏng-T’aek’s Ch’ŏnggu yŏngŏn (“Songs of Green Hills”)—contained poems that had previously been transmitted only orally as well as songs that had in the past been recorded in book form. These collections also included new works by contemporary authors and, overall, contributed greatly to the elevation of the sijo form. Kasa, for its part, became more complex and diverse. Unlike early Chosŏn kasa, which were comparatively lyrical, during the 19th century there appeared long kasa concerning travel, such as Hong Sun-Hak’s “Yŏnhaeng ka” (“Song of a Journey to Beijing”). Long kasa of manners, such as “Nongga wŏllyŏng ka” (“Farmers’ Works and Days”), “Hanyang ka” (“Song of Hanyang”), and “Ubu ka” (“Song of Three Foolish Men”), were popular. There were in addition quite a few examples of ch’ŏnju kasa, or poems concerned with religious doctrine. Kyubang kasa also appeared; this genre, written by anonymous women, treats a variety of matters, such as family etiquette, the instruction of children, and the loves and sorrows of family life.

The diverse yadam form includes stories of individuals involved in historical events. After the appearance of Yu Mong-In’s Ŏu yadam (“Tales of Ŏu”) in the 17th century, numerous yadam were edited and compiled in collections such as the anonymous Ch’ŏnggu yadam (“Tales from the Green Hills”), Yi Hŭi-Jun’s Kyesŏ yadam (“Tales of Kyesŏ”), and Yi Wŏn-Myŏng’s Tongya hwijip (“Tales from Korea”), all published during the 19th century.

Fictional narratives in Chinese, which began with Kŭmo shinhwa, led to Hŏ Kyun’s “Chang Saeng chŏn” (“Tale of Mr. Chang”) and “Namgung Sŏnsaeng chŏn” (“Tale of Mr. Namgung”) in the 16th and 17th centuries. Also appearing at about this time were kajon (pseudo-biographies) that personified emotions, such as Chŏng T’ae-Je’s Ch’ŏngun yŏnŭi (“Exposition on the King of Heaven”). Such works as Ch’angsŏn kamŭi rok (“That Goodness Be Manifest and Righteousness Prized”), Kuun mong (1687–88; “A Dream of Nine Clouds”), and Ongnu mong (“Dream of the Jade Chamber”) achieved popularity in both Chinese and Hangul editions. Pak Chi-Wŏn’s “Yangban chŏn” (“Tale of a Yangban”) and “Hŏ Saeng chŏn” (“Tale of Mr. Hŏ”), each a short narrative in Chinese with a carefully arranged structure and distinct themes, give voice to social criticism. Both take as their focus members of the yangban, the highest social class during the Chosŏn dynasty. The works of Yi Ok, who was writing in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, show a similar level of workmanship.

Hanjung nok (1795–1805; “Record of Sorrowful Days”) is an elegant account of the tragic experiences of Lady Hong, princess of Hyegyŏng Palace, and carries on a tradition of palace memoirs written by Korean women. Pak Tu-Se wrote stories in the vernacular that describe contemporary manners. Vernacular fiction began with Hŏ Kyun’s Hong Kil-dong chŏn (“Tale of Hong Kil-Dong”), which was written in the early 17th century. Widely read in the 18th and 19th centuries were such fictional works as Cho Ung chŏn (“Tale of Cho Ung”) and Yu Ch’ung-Nyŏl chŏn, stories set in China that depict the struggles of heroes to save that country; and Sukhyang chŏn (“Tale of Sukhyang”), in which the female protagonist overcomes various trials. Within this latter tradition, which has its origins prior to the 18th and 19th centuries, there accumulated works with a serious thematic awareness and refined expression; Kim Man-Jung’s Kuun mong and Sa sshi namjŏn ki (c. 1689–92; “Madame Sa’s Journey to the South”) are well-known examples. Works of fiction such as Nam Yŏng-No’s Ongnyŏn mong (“Dreams of Jade Lotuses”) appeared, and the publication of series of linked fictions, such as Myŏngju powŏlbing (“Treasure of Bright Pearls in the Moonlight”), testify to the mass popularity of such works in the 18th and 19th centuries. Vernacular fiction was widespread and was commercialized in woodblock editions.

Responding to popular tastes, the oral narrative known as p’ansori was transformed in the late 17th and early 18th centuries from a narrative performance that incorporated shamanistic chants into a vehicle for treating popular customs and everyday life. The professional entertainers known as kwangdae quickly took up this developing form as their livelihood. The p’ansori repertoire consisted originally of 12 madang, or song cycles, but by the time of King Kojong, the final Chosŏn monarch, who abdicated in 1907, the p’ansori enthusiast Shin Chae-Hyo had compiled these songs into six cycles: Ch’unhyang ka (“Song of Ch’unhyang”), Hŭngbo ka (“Song of Hŭngbo”), Shim Ch’ŏng ka (“Song of Shim Ch’ong”), Sugung ka (“Song of the Water Palace”), Karu chigi t’aryŏng (“Ballad of a Ghost’s Revenge”), and Chŏkpyŏk ka (“Song of the Red Cliff”). On the surface, the p’ansori works seemed generally to promote such customary virtues as loyalty, filial piety, and female virtue, but they also used satire to implicitly criticize contemporary society. Following the increasing popularity of vernacular fiction during the 18th century, p’ansori works reappeared in fictional form, as in Hŭngbu chŏn (“Tale of Hŭngbu”) and Shim Ch’ŏng chŏn (“Tale of Shim Ch’ong”). Forms of traditional folk drama—narrative shaman chants, puppet plays, and mask plays—likewise used satire to criticize contemporary society. Also appearing during this period were works such as “Hapkangchŏng ga” (“Song of Hapkang Arbor”) and “Kŏch’ang ka” (“Song of Koch’ang”), which occupied a middle ground between folk song and kasa and featured rebellious, antagonistic content.