| Jeong Cheol | |||||||||||
| Term Start: | 13 March 1590 | ||||||||||
| Term End: | 24 February 1591 | ||||||||||
| Predecessor: | Yi San-hae | ||||||||||
| Successor: | Ryu Seong-ryong | ||||||||||
| Term Start1: | 8 December 1589 | ||||||||||
| Term End1: | March 1590 | ||||||||||
| Predecessor1: | Jeong Eon-sin | ||||||||||
| Successor1: | Sim Su-gyeong | ||||||||||
| Birth Date: | 18 December 1536 | ||||||||||
| Country: | Joseon | ||||||||||
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Jeong Cheol (; 18 December 1536 – 7 February 1594) was a Korean statesman and poet. He used the pen-names Gyeham and Songgang, and studied under Kim Yunjae at Hwanbyeokdang. He was expelled by the Easterners. He was from the Yeonil Jeong clan .
He is prominent in the gasa and the sijo, which are forms of classical Korean poetry.
The following two poems are an exchange between Jeong Cheol and the gisaeng Jinok. Jeong is playing on Jinok's name, which means Genuine Gem. First he calls her a gem (ok; 玉), then suggests she is an imitation (beon-ok; 燔玉) and finally finds her to be genuine (jin-ok; 眞玉).
Jinok replies by playing on the name of Jeong Cheol (鄭澈), first calling him iron (cheol; 鐵), then suggesting he might be false iron (seop-cheol; 攝鐵) and finally discovering he is genuine iron (jeong cheol; 正鐵). Unquestionably bawdy, this exchange is one of the finest examples of satire in sijo — a poetic form that placed high value on wit, double entendre and word play.
Other Works: