Composed as a satire on a gathering of dead-weight, pretentious gentlemen, all intent on their honorific titles, the poet names each in turn: Saengwŏn Wŏn, Chinsa Sŏ, Ch'ŏmji Mun and Sŏksa Cho. Singular and plural pose a problem since hanmun does not have such markers. The “all the rats” expression in line two clinched the argument. Wŏn, Sŏ, Mun and Cho are common Korean family names.
The hanmun reads:
Sunrise: monkeys appear on the hill.
Sunset: mosquitoes come in force under the eaves.
Cat passes; all the rats die.
Night: fleas bite in bed.
Combined with the Korean the reading becomes:
Sunrise: Master Monkey appears on the hill.
Sunset: Master Mosquito comes in force under the eaves.
Cat passes; Master Rat dies.
Night: Master Flea bites in bed.