YEONGJU, SOUTH KOREA — When he looks out from the time-frozen world of Korea’s oldest private Confucian academy, Park Seok-hong sees the rest of the country “turning into a realm of beasts.” He points to recent news as evidence: young people swearing at elderly passengers in the subway and children jumping to their deaths to escape bullying or the pressure of hyper-competitive school life.

“We may have built our economy, but our morality is on the verge of collapse,” Mr. Park said. “We must revitalize it, and this is where we can find an answer.”

Mr. Park is chief curator of Sosu Seowon, a complex of 11 Confucian lecture halls and dormitories that first opened in 1543 in this town 160 kilometers, or 100 miles, southeast of Seoul.

In South Korea, where the word “Confucian” has long been synonymous with “old-fashioned,” people like Mr. Park have recently gained modest ground with their campaign to reawaken interest in Confucian teachings that stress communal harmony, respect for seniority and loyalty to the state — principles that many older Koreans believe have lost their grip on the young.