• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.45-64
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• 2016

In order to understand Korean American immigrants'adjustment to American society, it is important to understand how their life rituals and ethnic identities maintain or change over time and across immigration generations. To achieve this goal, this study examined how Korean Americans who resided in the New York City metropolitan area and New Jersey State performed life rituals and formed ethnic identities. A total of 18 Korean immigrants participated in one-on-one in-depth interviews and the interview data were analyzed with the themes. The results showed that Korean Americans performed life rituals integrating both Korean and American cultural aspects. Many Korean Americans attempted to perform life rituals based on American cultural holidays and procedures. However, a majority of these Koreans also strived to maintain Korean ethnic identities and also practice traditionally Korean life rituals as a way to preserve this ethnic identity. These findings suggest that across time and generation, Korean Americans prefer to maintain their Korean cultural identity, while not shunning the adoption of typical "American" rituals. The way that Korean Americans practice and develop identities differs very little across immigration generation. These findings provide insight on how the Korean government may support foreigners and immigrant families in South Korea and Korean Americans' acculturation processes in the U.S.

• International Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.89-103
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• 2012

Using a life course framework, we compare and contrast the processes of acculturation for first- and second-generation Korean immigrant fathers in the United States. In-depth life history interviews were conducted with 20 first-generation and 15 second-generation fathers in the Midwest. With a modified grounded theory approach of constant comparison, we first explored how these fathers developed their identities in the midst of cultural and social transitions. These men's identity construction was shaped by socio-economic statuses and accessibility to cultural resources, with a marked shift over time toward integration of Korean and American identities. We then examined how these identities informed the men's socialization of their children, and the children's socialization of their parents.

• Korean journal of communication and information
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• v.78
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• pp.79-115
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• 2016

This study, by proposing a case study of community radio, attempts to expand the horizon of academic and social discussion on the medium that has been disproportionately skewed towards discourses on alternative media, technology, and programming content. As residents of local community actively participate in the production process, they reconstruct their cultural identities. In that sense, community radio is a medium that makes it possible the re-negotiation and reconfiguration of cultural identities of local residents. That is to say, a case study on the specific ways in which community residents appropriate community radio in reconstructing their identities offers us some entry points where we may come up with a new perspective on the identity of community radio. The results of fieldwork show that community radio, as it is closely intertwined with the residents' participatory cultural practices, is a medium of 'lived culture' -i.e., a medium that contributes to the making of civility, communitarianism, and social network. Community radio, then, may be redefined as an interactive medium that contributes to the formation of social rapport and solidarity.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.35
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• pp.111-134
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• 1997

The purpose of this paper is to examine into the cross-dressing. Cross-dressing means 'dress-ing in clothes of the opposite sex' which has increased under the contemporary conditions. There also have been various cross-dressing phenomena in past but it appears strongly now that it would destroy the cultural stereo-types and give rise to the cultural insecurities in the contemporary conditions,. In this paper the author classified cross-dressing with the oppositional cross-dressing the perverted cross-dressing and the custom-ary cross-dressing. And the results are as follows 1. The oppositional cross-dressing has increased under the influence of feminism movements homosexual identities and subcul-tural identities. 2. The perverted cross-dressing has ap-peared in various social cultural contexts that is in the regional theratrical and the religious habits. Cross-dressers have used the clothes as an instrument for which the solve the contradic-tion between sex and gender role. And through the cross-dressing phenomena we can find all the category crises which are related with sex and gender but simultaneously we can search for all the possibilities through the open thought.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.147-163
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• 2011

In recent years, the relationship of language maintenance to culture and identity has received increased attention in the language acquisition and education fields. Korean immigrants in the U.S. form one of the biggest Asian groups and their language and cultural maintenance has been a major issue for both parents and ESL teachers. The present research is designed to investigate the cultural and social identities as well as the psychological investment factors that contribute to heritage language maintenance. Three Korean immigrant families in a small Midwest university town in the U.S. were surveyed and later interviewed. Issues and strategies concerning their children's Korean education in the U.S., coupled with the competing goal for the children to learn English were documented through parent interviews and interviews with school-aged focal children. Strategies and stances that facilitate or hinder both heritage and target language maintenance goals are presented along with participants' major reasons for heritage language maintenance in their homes and via Saturday schools. This work will assist ESL teachers and sociolinguists in situating both Korean student and parent goals in the context of shifting cultural and linguistic identities in countries where they have immigrated.

• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.26
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• pp.249-272
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• 2012

Diaspora studies has become one of the fastest growing field in the humanities over the past several decades, and the use of term diaspora has been widening to include almost any population on the move. Diaspora literature not only mirrors but actively incorporates this new notion of diaspora with characters "at the threshold" navigating new territories and identities. Querying how diaspora studies intersects with theatre and performance, this paper attempts to probe how recent Korean American drama parallels and promotes diaspora studies' radical departure from traditional notions of identities and territories. For this purpose, this essay 1) examines theoretical affinities between diaspora studies and performance studies 2) investigates how Sung Rno's plays, Cleveland Raining and wAve, explore and embody multiple and evolving meanings of Korean diaspora on the stage 3) examines how theatre can create the third space that transcends both Korean and American nationalism and 4) speculates possibilities of reframing Asian American Studies as Asian diaspora studies. Korean American characters in Rno's play redirect diasporic identities, as their concern gradually moves from "where I come from" to "where I go to." Instead of remaining in the dark as a mere spectator, both Rno and his characters choose to be 'on' the stage where they can imagine, perform, and realize (however temporarily) "unimaginable community" by confronting their own social, political, and cultural ambivalence. Stage, the threshold between reality and fiction, Korea and America, and past and future, becomes their true 'home' where they incubate and precipitate "nation in transformation" that Yan Haiping argues for as "another transnational."

• Journal of Broadcast Engineering
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.480-490
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• 2007

Changes in political and economic environments require a new concept of 'culture' and a paradigm shift in cultural policies. Especially, broadcasting is needed to construct a productive infra-structure in order to play its role as culture industry in multi-channel environments caused by the progress of digital technology. In addition, Korea-USA FTA Agreement and a subsequently expected open policy of broadcasting market raise issues of a flow of foreign capital and a compatibility of cultural diversities and cultural identities. From this perspective, this study attempts to suggest alternatives for cultural diversity of program contents in new global media environments. More specifically, these alternatives examine the meaning and achievements of co-production of broadcasting programs as an active and direct method to preserve cultural identities and universalities of cultural contents at the same time. Details of this study are as follows: thorough review of internation co-production and program format industries and their possibilities to overcome cultural harriers and to provide local alternatives.

• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.15-49
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• 2016

It is widely known that the Bugis people, originally from South Sulawesi, have been migrating to many places, including both the Indonesian and Malaysian sides of the borders today. The translocal and transnational movements of the Bugis people, especially to North Kalimantan of Indonesia and Sabah and Johor of Malaysia, have occurred in several waves, particularly during the 17th century, around 1965 and from 1980 to the present. The fall of the kingdom of Somba Opu in South Sulawesi and the rise Dutch colonial power have been the triggers for the early movement of the Bugis to both the Indonesian and Malaysian borders. This was followed by the second push of the Islamic rebellion in South Sulawesi, around 1965, creating another big wave of Bugis movement. The most recent one has been mainly due to economic reasons. These different phases of the movements, as well as the dynamic interplay of various aspects, such as citizenship, ethnic, and sub-ethnic groupings, practicing of cultural traditions and keeping the language, to mention a few, have contributed to the process of the construction of the multiple identities of the Bugis. Indeed, the Bugis people are no longer identified or identify themselves as a single group, but rather have fluid and contesting identities. This paper will discuss three main issues: the history of the translocal and transnational movements of the Bugis to North Kalimantan, Sabah and Johor; the process of adaptation to these new places; and the construction of Bugis identities.

• English & American cultural studies
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.29-45
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• 2016

The purpose of this study is to research how the writer describes characters of the text who overcome traumatic experiences and restore their identity through rememory in Toni Morrison's Beloved. The writer, Morrison gives the female characters their voices to recover their ethnic identities. By breaking silence, they establish their identities and become Americans from "unspeakable thoughts" to "speaking subjects." The ex-slave Sethe and her daughter, Denver have experienced trauma which works from traces of memory and history after slavery was abolished. Sethe and Denver are isolated from the community at the 124 Bluestone Road. When Beloved, ghost who was killed by Sethe, appears, Sethe and Denver are wondering who she is. Rememorying in Beloved is the important form of narrative that Morrison uses to recover their trauma. Morrison emphasizes the need to reconcile with the community and the aid of community for Sethe and Denver to heal their truma. Thanks to Beloved who leads Sethe and Denver to the community, they can be finally one of the community members in America.

• Journal of the Korean housing association
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.115-124
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• 2008

This study explores the beneficial methodology to increase cultural values of urban style Hanok, Korean traditional residence. Based on the literary geographical approach, this study defines the physical identities of special Bukchon Hanok area in Seoul. The explored physical identities are to provide basic fundamentals for supplying and maintaining new Hanok buildings, including how to preserve and restore the traditional Hanok areas. They are also to develop various Hanok related cultural products and to encourage Hanok popularization. In addition, this study is to add more the humane values and significances to the previous relevant researches. With these perspectives and through above mentioned methodology, the study draws the physical identities of Bukchon Hanok area and meanings as belows: The first one is the collective identity. Bukchon Hanok area is mainly composed of organic spaces with its collective scenary. Narrow alleys and curved lanes created by collective gaps between Hanok buildings, provide residents and visitors with abundant choices of moving path. The second one is the formal identity. Bukchon Hanok maintain their unique layout patterns. The basic units of Chae are combined in specific ways such as 'ㄱ', 'ㄷ', 'ㅁ' types and result typical formal expression of the area. The third one is grounding identity which represent the relationship between the earth and every-day living space. Each Chaes of house always surround Madang, Korean traditional court yard with rare vegetation. And the connection to the ground is transferred to the memories of its dwellers. Lastly, the current Hanok still preserve similar characteristics of past time Hanok such as materials, structure and styles by using unique building technics and exposing traditional ornamenting styles.