Resources Book Review Essays
Most European colonies were administered by a relatively small number of officials , but in Korea , the Japanese dominated all aspects of life , from its huge top-down bureaucracy to the local neighborhood policeman .
there was greater social mobility in China . In Korea , examinations remained limited to members of the aristocracy and maintained hereditary status and privilege . In subsequent chapters , the author discusses Korea ’ s universally held zeal for education as a means of advancing social status , and connects South Korea ’ s stress on education to South Korea ’ s economic miracle , one of the most dramatic economic developments in modern history .
The Chosŏn state in the late nineteenth century is inevitably described as the “ hermit kingdom ” with few comparisons with its neighbors ; however , Seth provides greater perspective by explaining that the policies of the late Chosŏn government did not really differ completely from the policies of China and Japan . The Ming and Qing dynasties placed restrictions on Chinese travel abroad , and trade with neighbors and Europe was restricted . Tokugawa Japan from the early seventeenth century adopted policies that kept most Japanese from traveling abroad and restricted trade . He also comments that other countries after 1600 , such as Việt Nam and Siam , expelled Westerners or implemented restrictions on their activities .
Another example of Seth ’ s enhanced perspective is his comparison of Japanese colonization of Korea and the French ’ s colonization of Việt Nam . He offers a powerful example of why the Koreans were so bitter about Japanese rule . In the late 1930s , nearly a quarter of a million Japanese served in Korea , when the colony ’ s population was approximately twenty million . Việt Nam had a population of seventeen million , but only about 51,000 French and indigenous personnel served in Việt Nam . The Japanese personnel in Korea were equal to that of the British in India , who had twenty times the population . Most European colonies were administered by a relatively small number of officials , but in Korea , the Japanese dominated all aspects of life , from its huge top-down bureaucracy to the local neighborhood policeman .
Throughout the text , Seth offers interesting observations about similarities between East Asia and the West . It is commonly known that elements of feudalism as the term is understood were utilized in parts of medieval Western Europe and Japan , but many of the developments in twelfth-century Japan occurred at the same time in Korea . In Japan , a strong military leader emerged who took the title of shogun in 1192 ; and in Korea , Ch ’ oe Ch ’ ung-hŏn became the military leader in 1196 . Both adopted a system where the members of the military pledged loyalty to their leaders and derived wealth from their large landed estates . Buddhism became the religion of the warriors in both Japan ( Zen ) and Korea ( Sŏn ).
One of the author ’ s most interesting comparisons relates to Neo-Confucianism in China , Japan , and Korea during the Chosŏn Dynasty . Seth states that “ the zeal with which many Koreans adhered to Neo-Confucianism does not have a parallel elsewhere in East Asia .” Seth explains that neither China nor Japan ever enforced Neo-Confucianism as rigidly as Korea . He expresses the similarity between Korean Neo-Confucianism to orthodox Islam in that “ it encompassed a code of behavior governing nearly every aspect of life .” He observes that the “ Neo-Confucian revolution ” might be similar to the Islamic revivals in Persia in the late fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and the “ Wahhabi movement of eighteenth-century Arabia ” ( 163 – 164 ).
Seth does not neglect modern Korean history . The last five chapters are devoted to the Koreas during the last six decades following the Korean War . Seth writes : North and South Korea continued on the divergent paths that they had embarked upon in the immediate postwar years . History has no parallel to this development . What had been one of the world ’ s most homogenous cultures , with a long historical tradition , became two radically different societies . ( 361 )
In his examination of the Democratic People ’ s Republic of Korea , he asks , “ How can we characterize North Korea ?” He responds by discussing how the Democratic People ’ s Republic of Korea has elements of Stalinism and Maoism , but essentially evolved along its own path “ with its elaborate hierarchical structure based on family background , its Kim family cult , its extreme ultranationalism , and its juche ideology that eventually ceased to be Marxist in any meaningful way .” ( 392 )
The chapters on South Korea ’ s economic and political development are fascinating . Seth writes that “ South Korea ’ s economic takeoff was one of the most dramatic in modern history .” ( 428 ) He compares the economic development of South Korea with Hong Kong , Japan , Singapore , and Taiwan , and explains how South Korea ’ s success was unique in many ways , especially because of the devastation from the Korean War and the fact that it was one of the few postcolonial states to become a fully developed country . In discussing democratization , he writes that South Korea had a democratic transformation as unpredicted as its economic achievement . Recognizing how political instability , authoritarian tradition , and military coups are characteristic of developing nations , Seth explains how South Korea was nevertheless determined and able to achieve an open and stable democratic political system .
Most Americans know too little about Korean history and culture . Seth has published an engaging and worthwhile narrative that provides us with an understanding of Korean history , and how it is as fascinating and unique as its neighbors . ■
MARY CONNOR taught United States History and Asian Studies for thirty-five years . She is the author of The Koreas ( Asia in Focus ) ( 2009 ) and the recipient of the Organization of American Historians Tachau Award , the Prime Minister ’ s Award from the Republic of Korea , and the Daekyo Enopi Award . She is the co-founder of the Korea Academy for Educators and the National Korean Studies Seminar . Both organizations are dedicated to informing educators about Korean history and culture .
Teaching East Asia : Korea
In the fall 2016 issue of EAA ( vol . 21 , no . 2 ), we reviewed Mary Connor ’ s Common Core : Korea Lessons and Resources for K-12 Classrooms . An updated second edition of this resources and lesson book titled Teaching East Asia : Korea by Mary Connor will be available this June . The new book includes 137 additional pages of content including new lessons in history and art as well as chapters on music , science and technology , and Korean American history . Please visit http :// www . nationalkoreanstudies . com for more information and to order a copy of the book once it is available .
You may read the review of the first edition , Common Core : Korea , from the fall 2016 issue at https :// tinyurl . com / l67o63s .
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