Session 1 (July 27) - Jennifer Jung-Kim, UCLA

[Marina Forbes]

I was very pleased with today’s presentation by Dr. Jung-Kim and the lovely discussion.

I always encourage my students to think about their personal response to the source:

            What feelings and thoughts does the primary source trigger in you?

What questions does it raise?

What do you see/hear that you didn’t expect?

           What more do you want to know, and how can you find out?

So here are my thoughts:

I was introduced to S. Korean culture by Choon-Mi, my friend from S. Korea 25 years ago. She was famous for her lavish parties with delicious Korean food. She would start cooking 3 days prior to the reception, and she would always wear her beautiful Korean national garments and play traditional Korean music softly as a background. “Have you eaten well?” is a common greeting in S. Korea, used the way you may ask “How are you?” I love kimchi, I buy a 32oz jar of kimchi from Kimchi Pride and Foods (Prospect Park, NJ) for $5.99 at the local supermarket. Everybody in our family has a Samsung smart phone, we have a Samsung TV in our living room and an LG refrigerator in the kitchen. Last year when we were shopping for a new car we were considering Kia and Toyota, we ended up buying a Toyota hybrid.

Watching a presentation I learned that the S. Korean government promotes Korean food as “healthy” and offers free samples to people in the US. I was surprised by a cultural trend of eating alone and watching a TV reality show of young beautiful petite Korean girl eating an enormous amount of food at the restaurant. I was impressed that people are interested in “formal monastic meals” prepared by the monks/nuns.

I can relate to the Taegukgi: The Brotherhood of War, a 2004 South Korean wartime action film which portrays the story of two brothers who ended up fighting on opposite sides in the Korean War. It reminded me the Russian Civil War, where the brother was against brother, and father was against son…

I am very impressed how fast S. Korea could contain Covid-19 with the large-scale testing, contact tracing, isolation and quarantine procedures. 1.5mil people were tested, 1% positivity rate and only 293 deaths. S. Korean people were trusting the government on doing the right thing to fight the Corona Virus! And success in the battle against Covid 19 helped to elevate the image of S.Korea and its government.

I was also impressed that in the middle of Pandemic South Korea's 21st legislative elections were successfully held on April 15, 2020. All 300 members of the National Assembly were elected, 253 from first-past-the-post constituencies and 47 from proportional party lists. They were the first elections held under a new electoral system.^[1] The two largest parties, the liberal Democratic Party and the conservative United Future Party, set up new satellite parties (also known as bloc parties) to take advantage of the revised electoral system. The reforms also lowered the voting age from 19 to 18.  

I thought that a question “How can S.Korea use its soft power to be a world leader, to be more inclusive and welcoming of diversity and help others?” can be related to a South Korean television series (2019-2020) Crash Landing on You which provides a positive and accurate depiction of N. Koreans. I was watching 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, S. Korea where  North Korea agreed to participate in the Games despite tense relations with South Korea; the two nations paraded together at the opening ceremony as a unified Korea, and fielded a unified team (COR) in the women's ice hockey.

I was happy to share that I am very impressed with the role of Yumi Hogan in the fight of the State of Maryland with Corona Virus and Hogan's artwork, primarily abstract landscapes (blending Maryland and Korean landscapes) in Sumi ink on Korean Hanji paper, which have been shown in the US and around the world. (Yumi Hogan (Korean: 호건 유미) (née Kim; born December 25, 1959) is a Korean–American artist. She is the First Lady of the State of Maryland as the wife of Larry Hogan, the Governor of Maryland. Hogan is the first Korean American first lady of a U.S. state and the first Asian American first lady in the history of Maryland.)

I understand that the popular culture has emerged as a core component of the nation’s economic competiveness which extends to interests in cultural influences and cultural diplomacy. Korea started to penetrate N. American countries with its popular music and online gambling. Korean Wave popular culture can generate a new version of Cultural Imperialism that is deeply embedded in cultural nationalism and its ideological position going against cultural diversity and soft power of attraction.

I would love to learn more about Korean culture, including traditional arts and traditional music, even though K-pop music has successfully entered the continent since 2011.

I just wonder what your thoughts are about some of these popular facts about S. Korea:

1. Children born in South Korea are considered “one year old” when they are born, and will turn two on the next Lunar New Year. 100 days after their birth, a celebration is held for the baby.
2. Red ink is considered bad luck in South Korea. Writing a person’s name in the color signifies the person is dead, or will die soon.
3. The number 4 is considered bad luck as it is written the same way as the Chinese character for death. The number is often replaced with the letter “F,” such as when using an elevator.
4. Teaching is one of the most prestigious and well-paying jobs in the country. On average, teachers make $2,500 per month with teachers at private schools and universities making more.

[Marina Forbes]

Hi Cheryl,

I just wonder what has been a monetary contribution to the BLM by the American selebrities so far?

 

 

[Deborah Johnston]

While in graduate school in the late 1980's, I remember reading an article by Joseph Nye about American soft power in the context of post 1989 American military decline.  It is fascinating to now look at the Korean wave in that context.  In particular, to think about how a nation is intentional about the creation of soft power such as what South Korea has done.  The fact tht Korea is ranked high in so many areas such as digital access, enterprise, culture, education, and government was interesting.  I was also interested in Professor Jung-Kim's comments about how Korea needs to be more inclusive and welcoming with respect to refugees, expats from developing countries, and other minority groups.   Like many nations which are more homogeneous, issues of racism have surfaced either due to lack of exposure, or feelings of superiority, or colonial aspirations/ backlash.  I want to talk to my students more about soft power and how that is developed and maintained.  With "great" power comes great responsbility (so said Spiderman's Uncle).  To this end, what responsiblity does the K-Pop industry have towards rectifying some of the wrongs that were addressed in the readings and in our discussion yesterday around the treatment of African Americans.  I have been shocked at the use of blackface in Asia, as well as by other carcicatures and treatment of blacks.   I commend I know BTS and CL for making public statements and creating a funding channel for BLM for their fans.   Given the fan base, but also the visibility of K-Pop amongst global youth, it seems critical that more in the industry step up.   Movies like Parasite provided a social commentary about class that could then be discussed on a global scale with its Academy nominations.  I appreciate the post above as well with the NYT link to the activist role that other K-Pop fans have taken in political activism in the US as well.   Thinking back to the 1990s when MTV was the global media game--- when MTV tried to move into different countries, there was much discussion about which music vieos could be shown or not.  In discussions with the VP of marketing, he told stories of Madonna videos not allowing shoulders to be shown in Saudi Arabia, or other videos not allowing cows to be blown up in India, or a Portuguese percentage rule of content in Brazil.  But the discussion seemed to always come back to American generated content and how it would ride the global wave.   With the rise of Bollywood, and Nollywood, that changed.  And now Netflix' role in promoting K-Drama seems to be a response to not only the demand but also a recognition that the US is not the only generator of popular media content.  As an American-Canadian living in China, this is both humbling and inspiring.  I look forward to introducing more of this into my classes such as Theory of Knowledge as we talk about how cultural knowledge is valued and spread. 

[Marina Forbes]

I've just finished reading the article titled "The economics of Korean reunification" from World Finance (July 26, 2019), and I just wonder what your thoughts are on a possibility of bringing the two Koreas together, please see https://www.worldfinance.com/special-reports/the-economics-of-korean-reunification

[Emily Efland]

Thank you for sharing this article! It could be really interesting to discuss with students the overlap between Eurocentric beauty standards in the US, and beauty standards in Korea. It could also provide a jumping off point to think about interpersonal oppression (how people interact with women who don't conform to dominant beauty standards) vs. institutional oppression (how institutions treat women who don't follow these standards). For example, what overlap (if any) do students see between women in South Korea who were fired from their jobs for not upholding the standards, and Black children in the US who are forced out of school because of their hair? What about dress codes in US schools vs. Korean schools? Lots of different directions to go in!

[Deborah Johnston]

These resources really helped me understand the perspective of my students the last few years and how that changed, but didn't change.  In doing a unit this spring with my students on Protest Music and the Civil rights movement / human rights issues we focused primarily on the US, but looked at other global (non-Chinese issues) as well.  As you may know, American rap is very popular amongst Chinese youth and they loved the early protest songs as well.  But their favorites were Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, Alicia Keyes, Foster the People, American Idiot, Macklemore, Black eyed peas and H.E.R., amongst others.   Many spoke powerfully about the social issues that these songs raise-- class divide, race, LGBQ, gun violence etc. and believe that there is a place in music for activism.   So I think that when we see BTS and CL make statements it is a good sign and I think the global fandom will respond.   One of the students chose to focus on the Escape the Corset movement in South Korea which is a fascinating protest movement that young women (and some men) have joined in order to rebel against the K-Beauty standards.  My Chinese students related to the face lightening beauty regimens and connected this to other songs from the US which talked about body image.  I am anxious to connect this to the BTS campaign I learned about here after learning about their Love Yourself campaign/ song.  

[Deborah Johnston]

Just wanted to add a general note about how much I enjoyed the rich discussion during the Monday session.  As I mentioned, the Korean wave is new content for me so I spent hours and hours over the weekend reading and watching and listening to the materials, continuously going down rabbit holes.   The overview provided by Professor Jung-Kim was really helpful as a starter.  I was so impressed at the wealth of knowledge shared during the session -- the fluidity of the connections between culture and politics, the resources for K-Drama and K-Pop, and the young adult literature titles.  In the past 48 hours, I have managed to share this information out already to friends, family and in another teacher workshop.  

[Rebecca Blankenship]

Hi Natalie, 

Have you read Loveboat Tapei by Abigail Hing Wen?  It's YA and my students love it.  I am not aware of any heritage type programs for Americans abroad.  The State Department sponsors the FLEX program that brings high school aged students from former Soviet Block Countries, Eastern Europe and Central Asia to the US.  Students live with US families and study at US high schools.  We hosted a student from Kazakstan many years ago.  She is still family to us.  They program is fully funded for those students including travel, living stipend, etc.  It is highly competetive to get accepted into FLEX.  So there are some efforts made to extend US soft power in that way.   

[Megan Hsiao]

Natalie, thanks for sharing your mom’s experience of Hallyu. It’s fascinating to see how middle aged women fall into Hallyu and chase these K-stars by attending concerts and K-clubs. It’s amazing to see the power coming from the community of these k-pop fans. When I was at college, I used to watch K-dramas but then found the stories and the actors/actresses were all too beautiful to ressit. You could end up spending hours and hours watching these dramas because once you started, you couldn’t help but keep watching it until the end. Feeling tired of spending long hours sticking to the screen, I stopped watching K-dramas a long time ago and it really helped to not fall for Hallyu. I think it will be interesting to have the students talk about what the U.S soft power is. For example, we have Disney/Hollywood movies, prestige US.colleges, fast food chains, etc. It will also be important for the students to reflect about how the US could do more to promote our country.

 

[Megan Hsiao]

Thanks to Dr. Jung-Kim’s presentation, reading/video resource and the live discussion on Monday, now I have a better and more comprehensive understanding of Korean popular culture and soft power. I am planning to use the “What is K-pop” video ( and some parts of Dr. Jung-Kim’s presentation if permitted and possible) as the introduction background in the lesson. On the one hand, Korean Wave as a soft power successfully promotes Korean globalization internationally. On the other hand, the scandals behind the K-pop companies and the Korean entertaining industries (many Korean female singers/actresses are suffering from sexual abuses) might not be bringing people’s attention as it should be. Teaching at an all-girls high school, I think I would like to address these negative issues of K-pop and make these girls be aware of it. The other article mentioned by Jiaxing in the forum, which discussed C-pop versus K-pop, is also very relevant for my Chinese class students.(Thank you, Jiaxing!) Further studying about the Chinese members in K-pop groups will help them understand the relations between South Korea and China. There are a few super K-pop fans in my class and whenever k-pop music is played in class, they seem to dominate the discussion and could go off topic, which also makes the other students who don’t like or don’t know k-pop feel uncomfortable. As a teacher, I think it’s important to respect both groups--the k-pop fans and the non-kpop fans. Teaching K-pop as a project is especially engaging in the Chinese language class, but it’s more meaningful if learning about this topic enhances their critical thinking in terms of knowing the country of Korea, China and the US but not merely enjoying the music.

[Alma Ochoa]

I honestly had not heard of K-Pop till viewing the lectures.  I did hear and listen to the song Gangnam Style when it was trending in the airwaves.  However, I’m not one to follow trends and look into bands, actors and or actresses for that matter; so I was not aware that the artist of Gangnam Style is Korean. 

In the reading I found it interesting that South Korea was ranked “among the worlds 13^th largest economies but still does not have its own unique identity.”  Professor Jung-Kim did clarify that my interpretation of this was incorrect.  However, after thinking more about it I still found it interesting after doing some research on Korea in which I learned that we have a lot of things here in the U.S. and yet, I think most of us do not know that these items actually were invented and come from Korean.  This makes me wonder if this is because of Korea’s lack of advertising or whether it is due to U.S. censoring or simply due to lack of people’s interest in knowing where things come from.

As far as incorporating K-Pop into my math class and having my students learn more about Korean culture I could do a stats lesson and have students do some research to find out what items that we have and use regularly come from Korea.  Then have them do some kind of poll and see if I’m actually mistaken and more people actually know more about Korea in my school community than I am aware of and make different types of graphs with that data as well as have students share with the class things they discovered in their researched about Korea.       

[Alma Ochoa]

Megan, I love that you would like to bring attention to the exploitation, suffering  and sexual abuse of Korean females.  I believe this is a huge issue not only in Korea but throughout the world.  This is something that many women and children are victims of.  Only by bringing this out to the open and talking about it will people be able to work together and find a solution to end this.     

[Alma Ochoa]

Juana, I agree with you; it is interesting how Korea promotes K-Pop through soft power and would like more people to come to Korea yet it is extremely difficult to obtain naturalization.  In doing a little research I found this is not uncommon.  There are many countries where it is almost impossible to become a citizen.  It would be interesting to find out countries’ reasoning as to why they would not want people to stay their permanently.     

[Ray Clark]

As I read your comment, you gaave me a good idea for connecting current events in the US & the world together with protest movements, but also bringing in the historical context  (i.e. BLM w/ the civil rights movement, but also groups like BTS & their stans being largely responsible for Tiktok fans getting tickets for Tulsa.  I also like the categories that you mentioned, such as gun violence, LGBTQ etc.  I took notes of the artists that you said were your students favorites, and I think you gave me a good base to work with as I work on a unit.  I was not aware of the Escape the Corset movement until this class, but I am going to investigate this more as well.

[Ray Clark]

The numbers in Korea (of foreigners gaining citizenship are nothing like countries such as Canada, or the US, etc, but they are letting more people acquire citizenship & residency.  When I was last there in the late '90s, there was one guy (I believe Irish) who was very famous for a while because he spoke beautiful Korean, and became a citizen, but around 2001 or so , they changed some laws, and I had an acquaintance who was going through the process.  I don't know how it is at present, and I lost track of my former collegue, but I think these trends change as Korea becomes even more globally-conscious.

 

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