A civil service examination system, open to both hereditary aristocratic families and petty officials in the provinces, was instituted in 958 to recruit new civilian officials to staff the bureaucracy. Among the three types of examination, the first tested the candidate's ability in literary composition in shi (old-style poetry), fu (rhymeprose), sung (eulogy), and ce (problem essays); the second in the Confucian classics; and the third in miscellaneous subjects. Although knowledge of both classics and literature was recommended, more emphasis was attached to the ability to write poetry and prose in literary Chinese. By 992 the royal academy (kukchagam) was established in the capital to teach classics and such other subjects as statutes, mathematics, and calligraphy. The model of this academy was followed by schools in the provinces. Private academies for the education of the sons of the upper class arose as well, beginning with the academy established by Ch'oe Ch'ung (984–1068) and followed by eleven others. This rise of official and private centers of learning made knowledge of the classics and literature essential for the educated. The prestige attached by the lettered upper class to proficiency in literary composition during the Koryŏ dynasty is reflected in the number of successful candidates for the composition examination (over 6,000) against that for the classics examination (450).

POETRY

With the examination system in place, old-style poetry and parallel prose gradually gave way to new-style poetry and old-style prose.