Korea has undergone many conflicts that brought political and social upheavals which greatly affected their quest towards modernization and unification. During the mid-7th centuries when Korea is just starting to shape its own national identity, there is already a series of events that caused several changes in the livelihood of the early settlers of the Korean peninsula. These events including the wars between the three kingdoms Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla, the spread of the Chinese influence (Sinicization), and the formation of alliances between the East Asian nations such as the Tang dynasty of China allied with Silla, and the Yamato kingdom of Japan allied with Baekje changed the people’s perception of Korea as a nation because of the influence of different emerging cultures. Religion is also one of the main contributors that made Korea a subject for change because it allowed the acceptance or assimilation of different cultures from the East and the West. These changes continued up to modern times when Korea is struggling to achieve modernization and reunification brought by the plight of war and political conflicts. The vast history of Korea is the key in understanding their transitions throughout the ages.
Starting from the mid-7th century, when Korea is just starting to shape its nation, there were three warring kingdoms namely, Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla. These kingdoms/nations have different perceptions of reform which caused these three kingdoms to wage war. Comparing this to modern Korea, the division between the Communist Regime and the Democratic Party was also caused by different perceptions contrasting each other. Same thing happened during the mid-7th century when Goguryeo which is considered to be the most polit...
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...p them from achieving peace and order. Today, there is enough evidence that Korea has been a prosperous country aside from all their sufferings; their presence is felt by the whole world.
Therefore, Korea’s vast history is a story that must be told, it is what gave them their rich culture that enabled them to become an ethnically homogenous country, it is what divided and transformed them into a democratic nation and at the same time a communist state. The divided Korea has not been able to accomplish the unification of the two states yet but their concept of nationalism is what enabled them to accomplish their quest towards modernization as shown by their advancement in technology and their strong relations with other super powers such as the U.S., Russia, and China which makes them have the potential to become a super power. Koreans are taking the world by storm.
On January 22, 1864, a twelve year old nephew of the late king became King KoJong with his father as regent. His father, Yi Ha-ung, was commonly known as the Taewon-gun. The period of his reign of the years 1864-1873 was known as the “Dark Age Period.” The economy was poor and Korea was also isolated from the rest of the world with the exception of China and Japan. Soon after the opening of Japan to the West in 1854 and the opening of northern ports of China, made it impossible for Korea to maintain her isolation. Korea was reluctant and unwilling to open the country to the West because they had negative views of China and Japan which had given way to Western pressure.
Today, Japanese and Korean civilizations are advanced, wealthy, and independent with their own system of government and religious beliefs due to the influences from China. The majority of Asia experienced changes in government and dealt with inter and intra state conflicts when the countries were most susceptible to influences from alliances made with other countries. The Tang Dynasty/ Silla alliance shaped the future of Korea’s religious and government movements. Art and literature from China also greatly impacted Korea’s and Japan’s society and provided new insight into literary expression through new forms of poetry and a new system of writing. Religion was also a major influence because of popularity and acceptance of new views and beliefs. Agriculture played an important role in the development of Korean and Japanese civilizations because new tools and forms of irrigation led to more efficient harvesting. The bulk of Chinese influence impacted Japanese society through the Heian period and Korea was heavily influenced by Chinese culture during the period when Silla unified Korea. Although there were many factors of Chinese culture that influenced Korean and Japanese civilizations, religion and government legislation had the most impact.
This response will focus on the key issue of fragmentation. In his book Korea’s Twentieth-Century Odyssey, Michael E. Robinson wrote “Multiple interest groups resided within the bureaucracy and even divided the royal house” (p. 16). Arguably, Korea’s sovereignty was lost in large part, due to the lack of unity among different groups and faction. It was clear from the readings that some Korean individuals and groups prioritized their self-interests above their own country’s benefit. Nowhere was this most evident then the issue of national security.
When World War II ended and Japan lost control over Korea, the country split politically. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, USSR, now occupied the area north of the 38th parallel, while the United States occupied the area south. This split led to the founding of the Republic of Korea in the South, and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in the North. With unresolved strains of being a divided nation and global tensions present because of the Cold War, the Korean War broke out between the North and the South. The border was never meant to be permanent because both governments considered themselves to be the legitimate government of Korea, with hopes of one day unifying Korea into one again.
Japan was imperializing late nineteenth century to early twentieth century. Korea was a Japanese colony. After World War II, the Japanese had to get rid of the colony. North Korea became a Communist. South Korea wants to be democratic.
Korea was in a state of disarray. Not in the way that you may be confused about what happened, but where political alliances and the division of Korea upset many people. The division of Korea was decided at the Potsdam Conference, without the consent of the Korean people (Korean War, Wikipedia). When Japan was defeated, they lost all of the land they had gained including Korea. With the land being split between the 38th parallel, North Korea was weak with a bad leader, looking for more power. Russia and China were willing to help. US saw South Korea as a victim to the Cold War and was trying to help South Korea (Schnabel 6). Both the United States and the Soviet Union occupied the Korean peninsula in hopes of turning them to their beliefs in government. The United States went to the United Nations to determine the issue of a divided Korea. The United Nations Commission determined they needed to hold elections in Korea. The communists in North Korea refused to allow the election because the did not want to be threatened by democracy. The communists in South Korea did not like the thought and boycotted it. The regime in South Korea was shaped by the anti-communist Syngman Rhee. The Soviet Union put Kim ll-Sung as head of North Korea, who was very, very weak. The North Korean Army invaded South Korea on June 25 1950 with varying reasons. The Chinese ...
The Korean war started on 2 different ways of life clashing, and these two are Communism and Capitalism. The US took over south of Korea after Japan lost the war and Russia took over the north after Japan's surrender. They were bordered off by the 38th parallel. In the beginning of both North and South economy were reversed with the North having a booming economy, and the South having a bad economy. Yet skirmishes had already been happening on the 38th parallel, but neither Soviet Union nor America had joined, until the North had pushed back the South all the way to the end of the peninsula in 1950.
Korea, at the time not divided, was ruled by the Japanese between 1905 and 1945, in which the Japanese “reformed a disintegrating state through both authoritarian and non-repressive strategies.” (Vieira, 168) To reduce the influence of the previous institution, the Japanese created new educational systems, as well as corruption free bureaucracies. Vieira quotes Alice Amsden from her work stating that, “The end result of Japanese colonialism in Korea was a society that was unable to support itself and totally at odds. Peasant opposed landlord, and those who resisted Japanese colonialism opposed those who collaborated. Under these conditions, the machinery of modern government that Japan had bequest was a useless inheritance.” (Vieira, 168)
Korea had been united as one country for many years. Japan took control of Korea and made it part of its empire. After World War II, Japan was defeated and its empire fell. Korea was left without a leader or a system of government. This provoked the United States troops to occupy the southern half and Soviet troops to occupy the northern half. The United States and its allies favored democratic government, while the Soviet Union and China favored a communist system of government.
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.
Since the end of the Second World War, the shape of the relations between the nations in the Pacific region has stayed more or less the same way until the present. However, there has been one big changed that affected the situation in the Pacific region and it was the outbreak of the Korean war and the creation of a Communist North Korea. This brought a huge inevitable change in relations between countries in the region. The stability that was brought about with the end of the Second World War disappeared and a new type of tension appeared. This especially affected the relations between the Korea and Japan to a great extent. In the past few years, the two countries have been seeking cooperation for the common aim of keeping the security in the Pacific region but things did not always work out fine due to many reasons including the historic background of two countries. In this paper, the historical background, the chronology of main events, the development of the relations and the current situation regarding the security and cultural issues, between Korea and Japan will be examined and analysed, which will be followed by a conclusion.
and growing political tension eventually led to the Korean War, and the formation of two
...y say that I was able to get a good overview of Korean history with a strong sense of knowledge gained. What I specifically gained was a better sense of Korea as a unique cultural entity with its own sense of excellence and its individuality. I have also learned that regardless of the hardships Koreans have suffered in this century, they have successfully endured every worst situation a nation can ever experience. From Japan's colonial rule to the heavy influence Korea felt from Russia's communist state and America's democracy, Korea was able to withstand all these instabilities and overcome to what may be a healthy and modernized nation. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who would like a broad yet thorough overview of Korean history because; this book is precisely written and sectioned accordingly to not make learning history difficult or confusing.
Korea gained independence from Japanese colonial rule in August of 1945 and also the division of Korea into the republic south and communist north in the 38th parallel. South Korea then was under the United States occupation from l945-48. Before the United States occupation South Korea had already organized a central People’s committees and established the Korean People of Republic (Memorial Foundation). Nevertheless, United States did not recognize any of the provisional or republic government. The United States refused to do so until there had been an agreement among the western allies. In 1954, there was a Mutual Security Agreement signed between the United States and South Korea, which states that they agreed to defend each other in the event of outside aggression (Memorial Foundation). South Korea has been under military authoritarian regime from 1961-1979 under President Park Chung Hee and from 1980-1992 under President Chun Doo Hwan. The Kwangju uprising occurred in May of 1980 after the collapse of the first milit...
South Korea, once a broken country filled with broken families, has transformed itself into a fine example of perseverance in a tough situation. South Korea and its neighbor to the north have developed past where they were before the Korean War, but in different ways. The two countries, while certainly dependent on each other, are vastly different. Their conflicting styles of government and their differing cultures speak for themselves in this case. South Korea has, over the years, changed dramatically from the crippled country of the Korean War into a blossoming beacon of Asian cultural and economic changes. The combination of its recent economic importance, its heavy cultural influence, and its constant danger of participating in a war makes South Korea one of the most influential countries in the world.