Diplomatic envoy of the late Joseon Dynasty left its own experience in Japan as a travel record. And so, this travel record is recognized as a kind of personal, subjective experience record. However, the record left by the diplomatic envoy in its actual travel route was utilized as a diplomatic guideline containing diplomatic practice. In addition, travel record of diplomatic envoy of the late Joseon dynasty has a significant value in that it contains wide knowledge toward Japan being accumulated for a long time.
When observing ‘Ilbonnok’ written by Seong, Dae Jung in terms of generation of knowledge toward Japan, first of all, it could be realized that this essay was written by being deviated from a writing mode of travel record that was written by accumulating existing knowledge. Seong, Dae Jung excluded the record of previous travel record to the maximum and even in case of writing existing knowledge, he generated a new Japanese knowledge by confirming/correcting such knowledge or adding his own evaluation. In addition, he left a new information that was not found in existing travel record as a record by having positively explored Japan and associated with Japanese intellectuals.
And Seong, Dae Jung paid his attention to understand Japan comprehensively rather than just to enumerate a fragmented knowledge of Japan and such thought is well represented in his ‘Ilbonnok’ as well.
While writing a travelogue, he narrated it by connecting a specific region with its topography. In this travelogue, he studied whether such topographical features has a relation with politics, economy, culture and ethnicity of Japan. In addition, he helped the Joseon intellectuals understand Japan comprehensively by writing a specific subject to which he paid attention as diary or travelogue and then summarizing such records by attaching a separate text. And this knowledge toward Japan substantially helped the Joseon intellectuals understand Japan in a way that such knowledge was connected with a situation of Joseon or a relation with Joseonn, not just ended with providing an information for other country.
While recording knowledge toward Japan in his ‘Ilbonnok’, Seong, Dae Jung did not think his record to be perfect. A new knowledge of Japan recorded in ‘Ilbonnok’ reflected an intention of Seong, Dae Jung who tried to generate more perfect knowledge of Japan by supplementing previous travel record rather than its meaning itself.