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What subjects did kasa poems address before the Japanese invasion of 1592?
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Before the Japanese invasion of 1592, the kasa poetic genre—typically written by members of the yangban (Confucian upper class)—addressed a variety of subjects. These works, which were generally about 100 lines long, focused on themes such as:
- Female beauty1
- War1
- Seclusion1
- Retirement from public life2
- Banishment2
- Travel2
During this formative period, the kasa form borrowed stylistic elements from Chinese lyric poetry (tz'u) or rhymed prose (fu). Notable examples from the 15th and 16th centuries include Chŏng Kŭk-In’s "Sangch’un kok" ("Hymn to Spring"), Cho Wi’s "Manbun ka" ("Song of Fury"), and the works of the 16th-century poet Chŏng Ch’ŏl, such as "Sŏngsan pyŏlgok" ("Song of Mount Star") and "Kwandong pyŏlgok" ("Song of Diamond Mountains").12