Short Answer (Please choose and answer FIVE of the seven questions in your own words using complete sentences, ten points each)
1) Describe how Korean Catholics during the Chosŏn Dynasty both affirmed and challenged traditional Korean notions of morality and ritual.
The are quite a few different ways that Korean Catholics both affirmed and challenged traditional concepts of morality and ritual from the Choson Era. Traditional Choson Korea before Catholicism was one based off Confucianism (and Neo- Confucianism) basis of thinking. One that saw morality, filial piety, Social Hierarchy, Social relationships, and ritual as the normal way of life. This way of thinking had kept Korea stable for generations. (Confucianism equals morality) When
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The first being generally violent, beginning with Righteous Armies, who tired to violently resist the Japanese. After this in 1909 (Thomas) An Chunggun shot and killed Ito Hirobumi, This An hoped would show that Ito was a liar and a traitor to both Korea and Japan. An would be tried and executed. Next attack that falls into this category is the March 1st movement (March 1, 1919) in which a demonstration was held and violently put down, this brought a new turn of events with new players. Yu Kwansun was a participate in the March 1st movement and was subsequently tried and executed as well. Both her and Thomas Chunggun also demonstrate another way of resistance to the Japanese. Through religion, both were Christians (Thomas catholic and Yu protestant) has been educated by religion. The Japanese couldn’t be too tough with Christianity because it had to save face with the western world. The execution and persecution of religious freedom would evoke Christian missionaries to bring attention to the Japanese colonial governing of Korean. Another two acts that fall under this violent category are the assassination attempts of Japanese officials by Yi Pong-Chang (Sakuradamon Incident 1931) and Yun Pong-gil (Hongkon Park 1932). Both were unsuccessful and orchestrated by a nationalist Kim Ku. Next attempt at resistance would be a more passive route demonstrated by Koreans. This would evolve things such a nationalist parties and leaders rising and trying to resist the Japanese by getting people to become serious about national pride. People like Cho Mon Sik and his buy Korean movement was an example of this. As time progressed the Japanese would increase control and tried to assimilate the Korean population by having them speak only Japanese, change their names to Japanese ones, having them bow towards the palace, and visiting Shinto shrines (Japanese religion) The Koreans used passive means to resist these attempts of
The deeply rooted history of a Confucian paradigm in Korea has for long limited women’s roles and rights. In the male-dominated and patriarchal society, women’s roles remained in the domestic sphere, where they were required to be submissive. However, with the introduction of westernization and modernity in the 1920s, modern generation was rapidly incorporated into colonial modernity. Korean women began to “redefine the Korean female identity” by displaying the “new woman” characteristics, in which some literate women initiated to “enhance their education, determine their own physical appearance, and contribute to the debate about changing gender roles and expectations”(Yoo, p.59) Fearing the threat of the emergence of the “new women” with
Clark, Donald N. "1. The Story of the Korean People." Culture and Customs of Korea. Santa
Answer the following questions (in at least 5 well thought out and developed sentences each):
The Republic of Korea emerged from Japanese colonialism as a Third World Country. Per capita income was under one hundred dollars, the little infrastructure the Japanese built was located in the North, and income inequality was staggeringly high. The future of the Republic of Korea (hereafter simply “Korea”) looked very bleak, even with United States foreign aid. Yet several decades later Korea had become one of the world’s largest, most modern economies run by a democratic government. The “Miracle on the Han,” the term for Korea’s stunning economic growth in such a short period of time, coincided with the lifting of millions of Koreans out of poverty and the
In addition, the leader’s death was around two decades ago, yet there are over 500 statues of him (Bristow). It is remarkable that North Korea’s life and culture are different from South Korea’s. Bristow writes about these cultural differences between the isolated North and allows the reader to compare and contrast with the developed South. It is true that status symbolizes respect and honor for their past leaders, but North Korea’s massive erection of statues – coupled with the belief that the leader is still alive today – is an uncommon idea that is rooted in an isolated and repressive country. In terms of religion, North Koreans believe in Buddhism and Confucianism, whereas South Koreans believe in Buddhism and Christianity. The differences show that both of these countries stand on the opposite sides of the religious pole. North Korea favors a religion that is widely held by the Chinese, while South Korea embodies a religion that is expressed by the West. Confucianism, at its most basic principles, includes a leader ruling over its people, whereas Christianity pushes for individuals in a society to make important decisions. While
There were some individuals that tried to meaningfully address the issue of national security. In particular, Queen Min recognized the clear need for modernization and strengthening of military (from the class lecture). Unfortunately, acting in the name of self-interest, some individuals chose to riot out of jealousy. Robinson wrote “In 1881 the military reorganization created a new Special Skills Force intended as a demonstration unit for military modernization. This force, however, created resentment within the rank of traditional units…disaffected soldiers rioted in Seoul, demanding back pay” (p. 17). Rather than heralding Korea’s step towards modernization and strengthening of military, some old guards chose to threaten Korea’s security via creating chaos (even if they had a legitimate reason for doing so). This was a clear demonstration of a group putting their own interests above their country’s
Koreans were under Japanese rule for a long time. It was officially signed as a colony on August 22, 1910, but Japanese had been planning this annexation from 1876 the Japanese-Korea treaty of amity. Japanese plan of annexation started with this treaty. This treaty allowed Japanese to come to Korean harbors freely and this marked the end of Korea’s status as a protectorate of China. Also later on October 8th, 1895, Japanese minister Miura Goro plotted the assassination of Empress Myeongseong. With the assassination, Japanese were able to control the economy and military power and made the Koreans sig...
Legend states that in 2333 BCE, Tan'gun, grandson of the Creator, established the kingdom of Choson, or “Morning Freshness”, and thus the Korean people were began. Surrounded on three sides by Russia, China, and Japan, the Korean people have had to endure hundreds of attempts at invasion and domination, including four hundred years of Chinese military rule over the kingdom of Choson, Mongol invasions during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, and, most recently, Japanese Colonization from 1910 to 1945. (Soh, 2006) This has caused the people of Korea to adapt parts of other cultures while still maintaining a strong cultural identity of their own.
The book I chose for this book review assignment is titled Korea Old and New: A History by author Carter J. Eckert along with other contributing authors Ki-baik Lee, Young Ick Lew, Michael Robinson and Edward W. Wagner. The book is published at Korea Institute, Harvard University in 1990. The book consists of 418 pages and it is more of a survey of Korean history and reference type of book, rather than selected readings on modern Korean politics. I chose this book because it is a complete survey of Korean history from the ancient Choson period up to the economic boom of the 1990's, a span of over 2000 years. Each chapter covers a different period, but they all share the same organization of describing the social, cultural, political, philosophical and scholarly aspects of the period in respective subsections. This made it easier to later refer to previous chapters and compare different periods in order to learn the comprehensive history of Korea.
...ate the tea culture in Korea. Buddhist ceremonial tea was first brought to Korea by the monks who had come back from China to bring Buddhist culture to Korea. Although it was already used in ancestral ceremonies, it then became widely used in Buddhist ceremonies. It remained this way until Confucianism took over in the 14th century and tea became prohibited (Overview).
Although Judaism and Confucianism appear to be on different realms of the religious spectrum, they have similar traditions deriving from dissimilar roots. The significance of family in Confucianism is strongly upheld by the filial piety rooted within all of the traditions and beliefs. Meanwhile, Judaism’s emphasis on God’s word as being the ultimate path for a righteous life is supported throughout the Jewish adherence to the special laws commanded by God. Whether the foundation of the religion is rooted from filial piety or God’s commandments, both Judaism and Confucianism reflect similar standards in family rituals, religious beliefs, and moral conduct.
1945 marked the end of World War II and the end of Japan’s reign in Korea. Korea had been under Japanese rule since the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty in 1910. During this time, Korea had been brutally treated by Japan. The Korean language was suppressed as well as traditional Korean culture. Japan forced Korean people to take Japanese surnames and took many “comfort women” otherwise known as sex slaves for the Japanese military. As a result, the diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan were strained. Japan was determined to forget the past and deny many of the things that happened while Korea was determined to not move past it. There have been disputes between the two countries about acknowledging comfort women and territories, many sprouting up from World War II and before. While there has been improvement, the relationship between Japan and Korea is strained, mainly due to Japan’s unwillingness to remember and apologize for the past and Korea’s stubbornness to not move on from the past.
Steinberg, David I., and Donald N. Clark. "Review of The Kwangju Uprising: Shadows over the Regime in South Korea." The Journal of Asian Studies 47.3 (1988): 662-63. Print.
Korea adopted Confucianism as the guiding principle for reform with the founding of the Chosôn Dynasty in 1392. For women in Korean society, this meant virtual doom. The Chosôn period is considered to be the dark age for women's culture and women in general. The philosophy of Confucianism considered the relationship between man and woman to be the root of all human relations. The union between man and woman is regarded to be the foundation of human morality. In Confucianism, there is a hierarchical order between man and woman that is cosmologically sanctioned. This order must be maintained for the proper functioning of the human order and society. To accomplish this, human passions had to be kept in check. Thus, Confucianism drew a clear distinction between the woman's domestic sphere and the man's public sphere. To Confucianist, the law of nature gave women an inferior and subordinate position in all aspects of life.
The religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are alike in many ways but they also share many differences. Judaism and Christianity use the bible in their holy scriptures, while Islam does not. Jesus Christ is a part of all three religions as Christianity and Islam developed from Judaism. Many believe that the three religions worship, pray to, and focus on the same god. They believe this as many of the prophets are they share much in common as they share many beliefs. However, the followers of the three religions pray differently and in different places. the religions believe that their god created the world and everything in the world. The three Abrahamic religions have different histories, yet they share many similarities and difference.