China has traditionally been a class society with strict divisions between ‘scholar, farmer, artisan and merchant’. The merchant class who engaged in commerce was in a low social status position. However, this strict social class underwent a major change thanks to the development of commerce in the Ming Dynasty and the rise of the trend of Jingshizhiyong. As a result, the merchants, who had been in a position of expanding their scope from a merely supporting role in society, later clearly revealed their role by newly establishing their own identity through various social participation. In particular, since the mid-Ming Dynasty, changes in perception of wealth have been widely accepted in Chinese society as social changes and interests at that time have coincided, leading to the emergence of a new class of status. Therefore, at the same time as the status of merchants rose in society as a whole, it was an opportunity to break away from the traditional idea of looking at the rich in the past and change new perceptions. In addition, as the perception of commerce has changed significantly, social functions have also attracted attention, and the status of merchants has risen.

중국은 전통적으로 ‘사농공상’이 엄격한 신분사회로 상업에 종사했던 상인계층은 사회적 지위가 낮았으나, 이러한 엄격한 사회계급은 명대 상업의 발전과 경세치용 사조의 흥기에 힘입어 큰 변화를 겪게 되었다. 이에 따라 단지 사회적으로 조연의 입장에 있었던 상인들은 이후 다양한 사회참여를 통해 자신의 정체성을 새롭게 정립 함으로써 자신들의 역할을 분명하게 드러내게 되었다. 특히, 명 중기 이후 당시의 사 회적 변화와 이해관계가 맞물리면서 치부에 대한 인식 변화가 널리 받아들여져 새로 운 신분계층이 출현하게 되었다. 또한 상업에 대한 인식이 크게 달라지면서 사회적 기능 역시 중시되어 상인의 신분과 지위를 상승시키는 결과를 가져왔다.