How did Samguk sagi use legends while emphasizing human history?

The Samguk sagi (1146), compiled by the scholar Kim Pu-Shik, represents a significant shift in Korean historiography by moving away from the traditional emphasis on supernatural legends in favor of a focus on human history. While earlier works often prioritized the miraculous, Kim Pu-Shik utilized the methods of what might be considered modern historiography to establish a Confucian-based ideology of governance.1

Despite this rationalist approach, the Samguk sagi does not discard legends entirely. Instead, it incorporates them as source material to support its historical narrative. Notably, many of these legends are preserved within the yŏlchŏn, or biography, section of the work, where they serve to illustrate the lives and deeds of historical figures within a structured, human-centered framework.1