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Home › Forums › Core Seminars › Modern East Asia, Fall 2020 › Session 4 (10/14) - Korea Since 1800
Cynthia Jackson.
cgaoKorea Since 1800
Required readings
Jennifer Jung-KimHi Everyone,
There is a lot of info in these two PPTs so don't try to understand everything. For our Zoom session, please feel free to ask any questions you have. But I would like to focus on sharing how we might incorporate Korea into your curriculum, even if you don't teach history/social studies. See you soon!
Cynthia JacksonI would like to explore Korea’s radio broadcasting as a primary source with my students, allowing them to identify its cultural and political value as it connected people within countries all over the world in the early-mid twentieth century. It would also be an opportunity to teach students how to recognize that when a country establishes national radio is one way to recognize “developed” countries and “developing” countries. Most importantly, to focus on Korea’s culture, history, and modernization, I would use excerpts of radio shows so that students could draw conclusions about Korea’s cultural practices, the peoples’ beliefs and values, regional differences, and international influences.
Cynthia JacksonI was struck by the Marshall law commander's refusal to continue firing on the protestors. As this is 1960, Rhee has already had a political opponent executed and another killed. So my question is this: Wouldn’t the Marshall Law Commander's refusal to follow orders, been considered treason? If it wasn’t considered treason, was this due to division or a lack of strength among Rhee’s government, that support was thrown behind the commander and attempts to have them arrested or killed would have been met with opposition?
Another development that caught my attention was that the U.S. pulled support once widespread protests broke out in response to the death of a 17 year old who protested around the election. This is during the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. where police and state troops used violence against protestors, killing some protestors as well. During this time, the Civil Rights Movement gained more support from white America than it ever had because police and state sanctioned violence had been televised through news reports. This indicates that a majority of the American populace was becoming less comfortable with state sanctioned violence against peaceful protestors and those demonstrating human rights. How does the U.S. justify withdrawing support from a country that is using the same tactics they use? I think this would be a great question to drive learning for studying U.S. foreign policy post World War II in a middle school or high school Civics or U.S. History course.
Cynthia JacksonAlthough South Korea was militarily and financially supported by the U.S., having government roles such as a prime minister and limited presidential power would suggest other national influences. In particular, I feel like post-World War II Korea shaped their government using the Japanese as their example which perplexes me for two reasons. First, with Korea having been a Japanese colony starting in 1910, they experienced discrimination, a lack of civil rights, and economic depletion under the Japanese government for 40 years. Yet, Korea must have believed that the “positives” they experienced as a colony were related to Japan’s style of government in order for them to implement parts of it themselves. Second, with Japan’s government being modeled after western countries in the late 19th century and early 20th century, this means that Korea’s modern government implemented western traditions. However, we know that implementing these practices stirred a lot of debate and political strife in China and Japan, two other east Asian countries. Did Korea believe that their period as a Japanese colony had already mitigated any troubles they would have transitioning to a more western style of government? Or did Korea have reason to believe that their transition strategies would meet cultural expectations and not be met with resistance and revolutions like in China and Japan?
Cynthia JacksonBefore Park Chung Hee’s time in office, South Korea had a heavily import-based economy propped by U.S. funding. During his time in office, South Korea transitioned to a heavily export-based economy, without clear U.S. financial backing. I imagine that Korean economic data during this period of history would be quite fascinating to observe. Students could examine how this nation itself and its international partners changed during the 1950s-1970s by looking at items imported, areas of production, percentage of economy engaged in each area, and countries that sold to them and bought from them (and what they sold/bought in comparison to the other charts). It would be a good way for students to evaluate how economic trends and needs inform a country’s international policies and practices.
Cynthia JacksonIn these lectures, Dr. Jung-Kim notes that Queen Min, in the latter half of the 19th century, and the First Lady, Park Chung Hee's wife, were assassinated. The assassination of rulers’ wives was not mentioned with China’s or Japan’s histories. In fact, with the exception of the assassination of Sophie, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand’s wife, before World War I, I do not know of other instances in modern history where a leader’s wife has been killed. The targeting of a ruler’s wife or queen is a tactic that I have read of more frequently during the medieval and pre-modern eras. What were the opposition’s reasons for targeting women in Korea, how did this happen twice, and what, if anything, has prevented oppositional forces from continuing to assassinate spouses in attempts to control Korean leaders in the past 50 years?
Brigid SchmidtFrom Dr. Jung-Kim's lecture, we learn that there were growing tensions between the capital and the regions and a growing critique of Confucianism during the 19th century. This caused some Koreans to turn to Catholicism because it offered more hope to them. Missionaries came to Korea most often from America and Canada in the mid 1880s. They opened the first hospital in 1885 and first school a year later to show the merits of Western medicine and education hoping that would then gain their faith. Christianity crossed class boundaries and included and empowered women. We even see that women missionaries were doctors. Our students touch on Confucianism and Christianity in their history class this year, so this could show them the spread of Christianity to Asia due to people starting to question Confucianism. This correlates to their essay topic of how religions spread and gain popularity.
Brigid SchmidtLast class we discussed WWII from the perspective of the Japanese. Growing up in the US, this, naturally, was not the point of view I learned. In the 1930s and 40s we see the growing militarization of Japan. At this time, Japan is really trying to build up its war machine and they are trying to assimilate Koreans into the Japanese empire. Koreans began losing their Korean identities and even had to change their names to Japanese names! It is crazy that a Korean marathoner won the Gold medal in the 1936 Olympics, but he had to complete for Japan because Korea was not an independent country! Then, we know that in December of 1941 Japan starts war with the US after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
While I took a 20th Century Wars class in college, I don't remember diving into the military sexual slavery or military brothels. Up to 200,000 women were enslaved (mostly Korean, but also Chinese, Japanese, Philippines, Dutch) during the war. In 1937, there even was an official brothel policy placing brothels where soldiers were stationed. Many women were either abducted or taken under false pretenses thinking they'd be working in factories. Many documents about the brothels were destroyed by the Japanese government to keep things silenced. Koreans were even part of the silencing because it was seen as shame. During this time, rape was not a war crime or a crime against humanity. The 1980's is when awareness of these events came about. I was surprised hearing Dr. Jung-Kim’s first-hand account from being there the day of the agreement for a resolution with the survivors in 2015. Today, there are Comfort women statues and monuments around the world. I plan to drive to Glendale this week to see the one there, but I now plan to check out the statue in Southfield the next time I go back to visit my family in Michigan. In 2020, we are still fighting for women to have equal rights and while this topic may be too heavy for my 6th graders to cover, my 8th graders do study WWII. Seeing it from a different perspective could be beneficial. I would definitely condense the material for them, however!
Thomas PinedaThe story “Cranes” was a beautiful snippet of a reality where rural boys had grown up through the Korean war and were torn by the 38th parallel. Due to the divisive nature of the war, one protagonist was a citizen of the south while the other had grown up on a farm considered part of the north, and therefore became labeled as a communist. While both had grown up with the same experiences, interests, shenanigans while in the same area, an outside event occurred that divided them politically beyond their control. Depending on the outcome of the war, their roles could have been interchangeable, which is an interesting microcosm to examine.
I think it would be interesting to share this story with students and see if they can relate this to other stories both fictional or non-fictional. The story brings up themes such as loyalty, empathy, nationalism vs. friendship, etc; and I wonder how my students might discuss this story with the lens our current political climate and how borders create these types of blurred lines in society.
Thomas PinedaIn 1884, Western missionaries were US/Canadian and emphasized integration of hospitals and education, as opposed to religion, to show merits of western culture and religion. That was an interesting angle for westerners to take, a slight departure from the imperialism or colonialism we’re used to reading about. As a thought exercise with my students, I would like to present them with that choice, as if some foreign or alien technology were to come to the planet, would they rather choose advanced medicine or education/knowledge. That would be an interesting debate and discussing the merits of each and how that would affect our current society.
Thomas PinedaOne thing I'd like to learn or research more about is who were slaves in Korea? I read from another resource that they were Low born people- reading from “Inheritance of Slave Status” which contains an excerpt from the Koryo. The document stated that they were unable to leave this status and kept from becoming merely commoners, lest they later come to hold a position in government and try to rebel or uprise against the norm. I am curious where this class of people originated and what, if any, ramifications of it continue to exist today.
Guadalupe MorenoComfort Women
The suffering of the Korean sex slaves is quite a topic to focus on because it is a situation that occurs during many wars but never spoken about. This can be a great topic to speak on in an English, History and even Art. The theme can focus on the effect words can have on the impact and reaction of the audiance, for example, changing the title of the woman into "comfort women" over sex slaves, it changes the severity of the situation and almost insunuates as though it was by choice. There are seminars that focus on this section of Korean Histroy to give light to the suffering "comfort women" went through during these dark times. Additionally, there is a book titled "Daugthers of the Dragon", that is based on a multitude of survivor stories. This book focus on all many different aspects of the time such as how certain women were detained with false pretense, the variety of "comfort women" within the Japanes camps, treamtemnt of the women in the campus and as survivors, the seperation of the Koreas, till present day Korea. I myself, am an art teacher but the historical context of the time can be taken into account along with excerpts of the book to create background knowledge that can be emulated into the art-making process and artwork.
Ester YangIt was interesting to learn more in depth about the slavery in Korea. From what I understand slaves were "passed on" to the next generation and were treated as a property. They worked without getting paid in their master's home and were living at the edge everyday. People born into slavery were forced to become one because the status is passed down the maternal line. However, were there ways for these slaves to become commoners in Korea?
Susie SuhThe history of modern Korea is so tied to U.S. Imperialism and its expanding global influence. From the Treaty of Portsmouth (which Teddy Roosevelt received a Nobel Peace Prize for facilitating) that ended the Russo-Japanese War in 1905 and allowed Japan to retain its interests in Korea, and onto the post-WWII politics that contributed to the splitting of North and South Korea, the US has had a huge impact on Korea's development in the last century. The Treaty of Portsmouth is a great example of studying something that is lauded on one side without evaluating the residual impact on others involved. As someone who is Korean and studied both Korean and US History in college, I have always found it interesting to see compare and constrast the multiple perspectives concerning U.S. involvement in the East Asia region. Of course, even within Korea, there is a diverse set of perspectives concerning these issues.