Session 3 - 10/5 (morning), Jennifer Jung-Kim

[Dennis O'Connell]

I enjoyed hearing Jennifer Jung-Kim and benefitting from her knowledge of the Korean peninsula.  It was facinating to hear how Korea was not split in two until much more recent times.  From the Koryo Kingdom (918-1392) through the Choson Kingdom (1392-1910) Korea had a hierarchical society (Royal family, Yangban - scholar officials, Chungin - middle people, Commoners - peasants + artisans + merchants, Lowborns, and Slaves). 

As others have mentioned in this discussion already, it was interesting to see the influence of Christianity on the peninsula.  As Jennifer Jung-Kim spoke about the General Sherman, an American vessel that made its way to Pyongyang only to be attacked and destroyed by the Koreans, I was reminded of a video produced by Voice of the Martyrs about a Welsh Protestant missionary by the name of Robert Jermain Thomas who was also on that ill-fated voyage. 

Returning to the idea of a unified Korea, it is understandable that with such a long history of only ONE Korea, that many on both sides of the current North/South divide yearn for some form of reunification.  

[Dennis O'Connell]

I am so interested to incorporate the use of these two books into my third grade classroom.  I am still trying to come up with the best ways to do this, but I envision a lively discussion among my students about what it would mean if you were forced to change your name to some new foreign name.  I want to include photos of the Olympics involving the Korean Sohn Kee Chung who was wearing the Japanese uniform and was referred to as Kitei Son (his forced Japanese name).  How would you feel if you were forced to change your name?  What could you do to resist?  Would you, like the characters in Lost Names, try to find some foreign name that at least incorporated some significant meaning from your birth name?  Would you still compete in the Olympics if you were forced to wear an enemy's uniform?  Even though the Japanese were taking credit internationally for the Olympic victory, how did winning the Olympic gold medal bring pride to Koreans who were under Japanese occupation?

[Angela Chong]

I was also thinking of the various levels of control with regard to the different management styles with Imerialism in World History. So much of WOrld History is European centered, I discussed how the French wanted those they controlled to become French, but even they didn't make their subjects change their names. While I tried to include places in the world that aren't often the focus, like Asia, the focus tended to be more on Southeast Asia. Including background on Japan will definitely help students understand it existed before the attack on Pearl Harbor. It makes it even more impactful the change that happened for Japan after World War II.

The impact of Imperialism and Colonization are still felt today. I discuss this a lot in Ethnic Studies. We're starting a Unit on Colonialism/Colonization next week. I remind them regularly that the only reason we speak English or Spanish in this part of the world is colonization. Since I taught World History last year and now am going back to Ethnic Studies it's helps me focus things a bit more and prepare them for those major themes next year. 

[clay dube]

Angela and others are right about Christianity being more important in Korea than elsewhere in Asia (apart from the Philippines, where the colonial experience lasted centuries). It may be useful, however, to remember that most South Koreans are not Christian, though most South Korean immigrants to the US are. Christianity is expanding in South Korea. Here's an interesting set of demographic points from the Pew Research Center:

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/08/12/6-facts-about-christianity-in-south-korea/

[Dennis O'Connell]

Thanks for that interesting article!  While the article was written in 2014, the data used for the article was collected in 2010.  Do you think the percentages have stayed pretty much the same over this past decade?  I can't think of any, but can you think of any factors which would influence the numbers of reported Christians, Buddhists, nonreligious, etc. to change?  

[Kurt Hansen]

Conquering enemies use many different ways to bring conquered countries in line. Sometimes its prisons, work camps or death and sometimes it’s as simple as changing their hairstyles or giving them names that fit the new regime. Putting an enemy in prison creates a web of enemies, friends, families and extended relatives. It also creates martyrdom for the imprisoned. Something as simple as forcing people to wear a certain hairstyle as the Manchu did or changing family names, as the Japanese did, create a slow submission to the conqueror. In the story, Lost Names, they are punished for using old names and the habits created end up being hard to disassemble. As time passes and generations move on these changes can create the desired effect of assimilation until the original name and nationality is something out of history and a vague memory. The problem is that it doesn't seem to work. Nationalism and familialism run deep. The Manchus reigned for over 200 years yet Chinese nationalism in one form or another won out. The colonization of Korea by Japan lasted a mere 35 years and even though it is divided, it built itself up and created a world economic power and kept its strong national ties to its long heritage.

[Kurt Hansen]

Lost Names:

Names have been lost all over the world. I never knew of the renaming process in Korea under Japan’s occupation. Colonization has caused  a large amount of the world’s population to change surnames. The Spanish were the leaders in sea exploration. They had a wide reach.Countries in South America and the Philippines all have Spanish surnames. I have to admit, I don’t know what true Phillipino surnames were before the Spanish. In South America and Mexico the only non-Spanish surnames come from the Yucatan Peninsula and interestingly enough, the most common native name is Chan. (No connection to the Chinese). Another group that lost their names are the Africans sent to America as slaves. For centuries one way of showing dominance over another is taking away their name and with that, taking away their identity. I think that the fact that Koreans stayed in their homeland and the Japanese were soon booted out of Korea, they were able to keep hold of their culture and get back their names and identities back.

 

[Haena Shin]

I was personally able to relate to the two reading you mentioned about Names. Although I was born and rased in the United States, I've gone through Kindergarten - 12 grade with nearly every teacher struggling to pronounce my name. Often times, I would have to americanize my name to sound like Hannah to make sure that teachers felt comfortable calling me as well as other students using this americanized verison of my name to prevent name calling. Similar to the characters in these stories, I've felt moments of embarrassment of having a name that was not easy to pronouce but at the same time, a loss of identity for having to take away from the culture and name I was given. I really appreciate your story about your grandmother because it really ties in the importance of a person's identity and their connection to their name. As an adult, I've learned to embrace my name as a part of my identity and culture. As educators, I find it highly valuable to accept students and their cultures simply by making an effort to prounce their names properly and as they would prefer to be recognized rather than replacing their identity with an easier "American" name.

[Haena Shin]

From learning the perspective of elders I've spoke to about Christianity in Korea, I've learned about the positive impact Christianity had post-war. I think Christian influence came at a time when many people in Korea were a lot more open to Christianity since the aftermath of the war. I remember hearing that Christian missionaries did a lot to provide support and assistance to many people who were starving and struggling to survive after the war had left the country with almost nothing. Similarly, education also had strong roots in Christianity as many missionaries provided resources and teachers to help children who were eager to learn and make a better future for themselves. To this day, I know that educational institutes such as Ehwa University have strong Christian morals in which students attend weekly service as a part of their studies.

[Cynthia Stults]

Dennis, I am with you in wanting to incorporate this into my 4th grade classroom, but like you, I do have concerns and considerations in how to teach it. There are definitely some pretty heavy themes within this topic, but I think that focusing on the Olympics and presenting that with the big question about the importance of your name could really be impactful. I might even start by beginning the day with calling students by different names and see how they react and then talk about their feelings and give some basic history, without going into detail about violence or atrocities. I explain it as all countries and cultures have made mistakes in how they treat people, just like most of us will make mistakes and not always treat every person kindly.  

[Katherine Oh]

Andrew, I agree with you as well. I also felt that the relationships between China, Korea, and Japan are very interesting due to the history of their relationships with one another. I was also surprised that the influence of Christianity is so different in Korea compared to its influence in China and Japan. Japan has a very strong Buddism and Shinto background and Korea also has been influenced by its surrounding neighbors in terms of religion. But I can see why Koreans may have been more accepting to Christianity's message and the influx of western missionaries that continued to spread in South Korea till this day. 

[Katherine Oh]

I grew up learning about this topic from my parents because of their own experiences and their parents experiences during and after the Japanese occupation. I personally learned alot about it from watching Korean Historical Dramas and how the Koreans had such strong resentment towards the Japanese who came to occupy the land. I empathized with them because they were no longer allowed to make executive government decisions, they were not allowed to use or speak the native Korean Language, and they were required to wear something to symbolize their identity like the Jewish poeple had to wear The Star of David during the Holocaust. 

I once heard a story about how my dad met the olympic champion, Sohn Kee Chung, in Koreatown Los Angeles and he told me how the Korean athlete had to represent Japan when he won the medal. He even had to register using a Japanese name because his career was during the Japanese occupation and I understand why in the book it was highlighted how someone had to go back and change the names in the newspapers. There were reports how Sohn Kee Chung was ashamed to run representing Japan and did not recognize the Japanese National Anthem during the awards assembly. It was significant when I learned about it as a kid, and it still holds the same amount of significance to me as a young adult.  

[Iris Marin]

This was interesting to me because I don't remember when I started to accept the english version of my name ( probably Kinder). Many teachers could not say my name the Spanish way with the i's making the ee sound instead of the long i and short i sound, and for a moment are remember fluctuating from liking the English version more.  You don't realize what a huge impact  a name has until you are older and are able to make sense of the feeling one has as a young individual. That is why i make a conscious effort to say a child's name the way they want me to say it. 

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