The attitude of living in seclusion in East Asia culture has a different character from the Western one. Hermit's life in Western culture generally has a religious character to imitate Christ or Apostles, but the life in seclusion in East Asia is mostly due to social and economic reasons. Under this social and political background, a phenomenon where intellectuals-in-chief appear on a large scale who wants to live in seclusion turning their back on the world starting from 16th century in our history. The most typical people appeared in this phenomenon of 16th century are Nammyeong(南冥) Jo Sik(曺植) and Daegok(大谷) Sung Woon(成運) of all people. In case of Nammyeong and Daegok, peoples of considerable amount around or disciples following them have academic traditions and a strong nature to live in seclusion, this seems like one of the natural phenomena appearing from the initial step of conflict between Nammyeong and Deagok's ideas and study propensity and the orthodox soˇngnihak(性理學) and the following result from the actual and political ups and downs. Generally feeling the critical moment of the era itself and deal with it through Confucian disciplines and studies, those persons comparatively freely teated with fields that were regarded as a heretic by the orthodox philosophy as well as prepared their location. In result, in a standpoint of the orthodox philosophy, there were confusions in prescribing their character. However, those two people's seclusion (from the world) is sending out its color in the philosophy history of Chosuˇn because they chose hermit's life as a firm view of life from the beginning, apart from the most cases that seclusions were chosen without any choice due to a political knock-out. At the same time, its importance in philosophy history is very big in that their life aim as a hermit presents one of hermits' life aims which appear as 'a symbol of an intelligence out of power' on a large scale in our 16th century. From a historical point of view. there are two kinds of hermits. One is freedom-oriented hermits who wants to enjoy their life without any restrictions from anyone and the other one is an abstinent type of hermits selection the way of seclusion and disciplining themselves rigidly for the purpose of avoiding an extreme situation of political and social actuality. If we say Nammyeong is more approaching to abstinent type, Daegok would be close to the freedom-oriented type. After a while, this difference can be come out as a difference from their ordinary life attitude to scientific and ideal view of world or literary aesthetic sense. But the actual hermit type variously existing in the middle of these two extremes, compromising this freedom-oriented type and abstinent type. This is generally shown as a type pointing abstinence in material way and free seclusion life in spiritual way. In conclusion, Nammyeong and Daegok are the typical persons who showed hermit's life in the 16th century which appeared in earnest as an influential art of intellectuals' living. Not compromising the prevailing state of the society and the trend of that times, lived according to their belief and way with maintaining a strong spirit and belief, so they let a model of strongly independent character which are rare come into our spiritual history.

Most studies on Nammyeong Jo Sik's literary works have been focused mainly on the discussion about his poems and aesthetic sense on which his literature was based. Moreover, researches on his prose unlike that on poetry have made little progress, especially with no studies on epitaphs, which are considered important among his prose in classical Chinese. This thesis is to examine Nammyeong Jo Sik's style of writing and the underlying aesthetic sense, focusing on his epitaphs, which most researchers have had little interest in so far. When he wrote epitaph, Nammyeong Jo Sik put great emphasis on frank narration among other things, which is to describe the truth about the dead person in question. Besides, he stressed two points; first, to know the dead concerned very well and to frankly describe the fact about the dead person without flattering attitude, under any circumstances. We can prove that he applied these rules to the writing of epitaph. Above all, it is clear in the fact that among about 22 epitaphs, most of them were for his own father, relatives, close friends and relatives of his pupils whose family history and specific situations he himself knew very well. Secondly, as shown explicitly from the epitaph for his deceased father, he faithfully followed his own rule not to flatter a dead person by exaggerating or making an excuse. In addition to the rule of truth, he exalted epitaph to the high place of literary works not only by narrating the fact frankly, but also freely expressing his own feelings. At this point, it is worth mentioning the episode concerning the epitaph he wrote for the late father of Guam(龜巖) Yi Jeong(李楨), who was one of major scholars living in Yeongnam(嶺南) province and Nammyeong Jo Sik kept in contact with. As Guam Yi Jeong sent the epitaph to T'oegye(退溪) Yi Hwang(李滉), asking for correction, this led to an indirect argument between T'ogye Yi Hwang and Nammyeong Jo Sik. Exceptionally T'oegye Yi Hwang corrected a lot the epitaph written by Nammyeong Jo Sik, severely criticizing the form and content of the epitaph. Naturally, Nammyeong Jo Sik did not accept the criticism of T'oegye Yi Hwang, because they were much different in a philosophical inclination and view of study as well as literary taste and style. Consequently, they both showed great opposition to each other's style and aesthetic sense concerning the epitaph beyond compromise. Nammyeong Jo Sik thought that he was not so much literarily successful, but he himself was the successor of 'ancient prose'(古文) tradition, while he criticized T'oegye Yi Hwang's style naming it 'popular prose'(今文) despite his success in the world. On the other hand, T'oegye Yi Hwang criticized Nammyeong Jo Sik's epitaph for his consistently changing rule, mentioning that there are certain rules of epitaph narration, which are the fixed rule and changing rule. Form this controversy between the two persons concerning epitaph writing, we can understand to some extent the thought of men of noble family in the early Chosen dynasty period concerning epitaph as an important form of prose in classical Chinese.

1. Jo-Sik was a great Confucain scholar of the Lee Dynasty in 16th century. He didn't enter government service for all his life but devoted himself to his studies out of office. Although the king appointed him to provincial governor several times he refused to be an official. 2. He wrote about 200 poems. This paper aims to appreciate his poems as romanticism. He wrote poems in the base of a strong discontent with social phenomena of those days but he didn't describe the evil practices realistically. He only attempt to rise above the discontented reality. He was an idealist rather than a realist, which led him to write Romantic poems. 3. He loved the Mt. Jiri more than any other man. Mt. Jiri was described in his poems as a huge pillar supporting heaven. he had a desire to take after the Mt. Jiri. Mt. Jiri. was the objective correlative with his Romantic ideal.