• KOMUNHWA
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• no.68
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• pp.7-24
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• 2006

This article is the critical review of the methods and assumptions with which the Korean archaeologists have tried to approach to the Bronze age society. It was not until the 1980s' that there had been any attempt to define the relevant units for the study of past societies. Before the archaeological records of megalithic builders in the Bronze age began to be analyzed to find out the general traits of chiefdom society, Korean archaeologists had described the variations in the cultural, rather than the social, entities. From the 1990s' , some scholars have attempted to reconstruct the scale and organization of the social groups and explain the growth of polities in evolutionary view, analyzing the hierarchical distributions of settlement data. In the concluding remarks of the review, I would like to indicate the some problems in the conceptualization of the material culture patterning in the regional and/or inter-regional level. First, the conceptual problem which appeared when the Bronze archaeologists define the distribution of artifact assemblages, composed of the specific artifact traits , beyond the instrumental categories that are efficient for the establishments of regional chronologies. It is evidently erroneous conceptualization that we define the artifact assemblages as the socio-cultual entities which came into being in specific time and place, geographically expanded, and finally disappeared based on the view of essentialism. Second, the interpretative problems about wide distributions of certain bronze artifacts must be indicated. I would like to suggest that the wide distributions of the specific bronze dagger or mirror types should be explained not by the cultural area concept related to the ethnicity assumptions, but by the world system or the inter-regional interaction models.

• Cross-Cultural Studies
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• v.43
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• pp.377-404
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• 2016

In this paper, I intend to focus on the 1991 racial tension and violence portrayed in Anna Devear Smith's book Fires in the Mirror, which was published in book form in 1993. I make use of a series of interviews with many of those involved in the conflicts, which were based on the Jewish Holocaust and the history of African American enslavement. In Crown Heights, the black community and the Jewish community have each suffered terrible losses, but individuals and communities become rhetorically attached to foundational historical traumas that lie at the center of each group's cultural identity rather than try to understand each other's pain. Smith lets this rhetoric dominate Fires in the Mirror by putting contradictory monologues side by side in order to show how discourses on 'slavery' and 'the Holocaust' still have control over specific ethnic communities. My intention is not to delve into the conflict between the Jewish and black communities exclusively. Rather, I attempt to form an understanding of the problems of the critical/theoretical tenets proposed by 'the rhetoric of holocaust,' including the Jewish Holocaust and the black experience of enslavement. Such an understanding will help us see the failure in the theories, illuminating the ways that such rhetoric should have recognized its own violence and helped to forge a new relationship between racism and anti-Semitism. Fires in the Mirror mirrors back to us the ways that 'the Holocaust' betrays the possibility of error to indicate its own susceptibility to blindness. The cracks brought forth by conflicting narratives enable readers to observe wounds being healed and the possibility of new narrative looming up.

• Journal of the Korean BIBLIA Society for library and Information Science
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.5-27
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• 2019

This study analyzed the effects of comic book reading program on Korean proficiency and acculturation of youth with immigration background, by conducting a six-month reading program with five teenagers with immigration background. Ten comic books were selected from published by School Library Journal, based on the themes - that are related to the lives of youth with immigration background - and interests of participating teens. According to the literacy skills test conducted before and after the reading program, the participating teens' Korean proficiency has generally improved, particularly in the areas of interpretation and vocabulary. In terms of writing, grammatically incorrect sentences, phrases, and expressions have declined. Most participants showed stable adjustment to Korean culture, but one participant who felt still insecure of her ethnic identity deeply empathized with one of the characters of the books, and shared the difficulties of living as an outsider of a society. The participants of this research learned or rediscovered the joy of reading through this comic book reading program; at the end of the program, many of them expanded their interest in reading novels, books without any illustrations.

• The Journal of Korean Philosophical History
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• no.52
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• pp.185-211
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• 2017

Lee Neung Hwa is a scholar of the late Joseon Dynasty, renowned for his studies of Korean studies. In this thesis, the study of Confucianism and Buddhism removed the research and teachings of Confucianism as a traditional study of Confucianism. Lee Neung Hwa criticized the social functioning of Confucian texts during the late Joseon Dynasty. His criticisms reflect the historical consciousness of the late Joseon Dynasty. Lee Neung Hwa is also known as the Buddhist religion. The History of Chosun Buddhism is his masterpiece. He pointed out the differences between the Buddhist scriptures of the Joseon Dynasty and the Japanese Buddhist scriptures. Moreover, the Joseon Dynasty felt more integrated into the Japanese Buddhist kingdom than in Japan. And ineunghwa also studied the mythology of Korea. He established a universal cultural phenomenon as a universal cultural phenomenon, which belongs to any ethnic Koreans. He insisted that the Sin Gyo of Dan Gun is the identity of Korean culture. His Founding Myth was not a matter of historical fact. His Founding Myth was a tool of ideological struggle to fight against Japanese imperialism.

• Journal of International Area Studies (JIAS)
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.155-180
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• 2011

This paper aims at comparing the metanarrative and East Timor's local narrative in Indonesia during the Suharto's regime. Although these history writings have different political goals, the patterns of writings are ironically similar. Both of the history writings show strong nationalistic history writing patterns. Yet, in the writings, these histories place different interpretations on the historical events. In the metanarrative, local dynamics are seen through the diagrams of the nation and nationhood. This narrative finds the roots of the "ethnie" from some kingdoms in Java and Sumatra. These kingdoms, which throve based on the Hindu-Buddhist culture, achieved a territorial unity to a degree, covering some parts of Java and Sumatra. The glorious past disappeared with the advent of the colonial rule. The metanarrative then emphasizes the unity of the ethnic groups in the archipelago, which fiercely resisted against the colonial exploitation and oppression. By this, these ethnic groups were defined as "the masses," the collective identity, which had a same goal to achieve the national independence. In addition, some local histories, which took positive attitudes toward the European forces, were simply left out from the metanarrative. All the separatist movements taking place in the republic were also described as the anti-unifying forces. On the other hand, the goal of the history-writing in East Timor was to enhance the sense of nationalism and create the perception of the "East Timorese." The fundamental aim was the separation from Indonesia. In the narrative, the nationalist politicians overcame the problem of the non-existence of any memories of the glorious past with the awakening of the idea of "the imagined gloriousness of the past if there was no colonial rule." In addition, the narrative overemphasizes the memory of the colonial rule for 450 years under the Portuguese rule in order to stress the fact that it was the colony of Portugal, not of the Netherlands. Finally, the narrative shows how the East Timorese collectively fell to the status of slaves. By this, the political leaders of East Timor evoked the notion that it was recolonized by Indonesia, under which the East Timorese were demoted to the status of slaves. This notion of "slave-master" relationship then became the motives for the independence struggles in East Timor.

• (The) Research of the performance art and culture
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• no.41
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• pp.353-380
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• 2020

Samul nori/Pungmul-gut is the symbol of ethnic identity for the Koreans abroad. It is the representative diaspora musical genre which is performed many cultural events held by Koreans. It is, at the same time, a global music which is appreciated by not only the Koreans but also the foreigners. Many musical communities in various countries exhibit the cultural migration through the discourse of 'tradition/variation' and 'authenticity/hybridity' in the course of the acculturation and enculturation of samul nori/pungmul-gut. The pungmul-pae 'Bichoe June' active in Toronto, Canada was organized by a foreign performer. For the foreigners pungmul-gut is easy to access as a genre of world music. As a percussion ensemble, it is easy to learn for the foreigners. The pungmul-pae 'Bichoe June' is a 'music community' consist of the Koreans and foreigners. The band tries to preserve the traditionality and authenticity of the Korean music. There is no variation or hybridity in its music since the member still learns the authentic music through various available textbooks and internet sites. Through the participation of the Koreans and foreigners, the band stimulates the globalzation of the pungmul-gut. The enculturation of the pungmul-gut is exhibited in two performances held by the band. One was host by the Canadian progressive group and the other was by the Korean conservative community. The former understood the nature of pungmul-gut as the music of the common people. The latter, however, accepted the music as the representative traditional music but was not easy to enjoy the 'noisy' music. In other words, the positive/negative acceptance of the pungmul-gut depends of the ideological nature of the listeners rather than the ethnical nature.

• (The) Research of the performance art and culture
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• no.42
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• pp.257-290
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• 2021

The Wonju Nongyo (agricultural work song) is geographically classified as eastern minyo (folk song) which has many distinctive, regional features such as tunes, forms and the use of a melodic line. There has been growing attention to the transmission value of the nongyo including the Wonju Eorirang of the Wonju Origol Nongyo and its region of origin. The Wonju Nongyo is of great value and worthy of preservation in the western part of Gangwon Province. For this reason, it seems fairer to say that a focus should be directed towards establishing the identity of the song and increasing the contextualisation of transmission. At the same time, the preservation association's efforts in passing the traditional song down and education activities fairly deserve equal attention. In addition to the way the folk songs are handed down, a discussion on the facilitation of their use will be required. An in-depth discussion about the restoration and use of the song will be encouraged in a multifaceted manner. Unfortunately, few of the previous literatures on nongyo has gone so far as to investigate Arirang as a separate research topic. In fact, the Wonju Origol Nongyo should be viewed as an intangible cultural asset that paved the way for performance artistry of the Korean agricultural work songs to be seen at a national folk art festival. From the perspective of regional characteristics (traditionally termed "tori"), the Wonju Eorirang represents the cultural value of the manners and customs of our locals which constitute unwritten and neglected literary property and musicality of the song. Particularly, a more attention should be paid to making a record of woodcutters and diversity of farmers' small cooperative groups. The existence of the Wonju Eorirang indicates that the melodies to which the song are sung in Nongyo are of infinite variety. A minyo-singer unfolds various journeys of life through various modes and structure of epic chants, ranging from first encounter, love to marriage, realistic problems to relationship with husband's family and death. The epic chant of the Wonju Origol Nongyo contains a rich variety of regional sentiments about life. In particular, the epic chants of the Galtteukgisor and Ssoeltteukgisori are a genius example of sexual satire and a sense of humor. In the past, the agricultural work songs were rhythmic songs served to synchronize physical movements in groups, coordinating tasks in upland farming and rice paddy with the usage of catchy, repetitive verses easy to pass down. The Wonju Origol Nongyo is a precursor of the work songs which took the farming activities a notch higher to be part of the excitement and festivals. In the context of transmission, a festival serves to demonstrate the value of history and life. The value of the Wonju Eorirang should be appreciated and a concerted effort should be made to find a way to facilitate the transmission of the folk song. A folk-singer is a traditional oral poet and a storyteller of minyo and the forms and species of melody solely depend on the signer. The combination of performance and witticism is shown by the singer freely expressing himself. The Origol Nongyo symbolizes ethnic arts cleverly combining playful effects such as tune, rhythm and old agricultural work of the region. It is to be hoped that much of the efforts is directed to designating such folk songs as the archetype of a cultural heritage. In terms of the foundation on which the folk songs are transmitted, the usage(Performance Content) of a community would be an alternative.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
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• v.62
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• pp.227-255
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• 2020

This paper aims to explore the nature of the making of speaking subject in early Korean Protestantism, focusing on the educational spaces for women. Traditional women could become a speaking subject through various educational programs provided by Protestantism in modern Korea. Especially three kinds of educational space played the crucial role of making women a speaking subject. The first was Bible class established for women in rural areas. Since most Korean women were unable to read and write, Protestant churches taught them Hangul[Korean alphabet] before teaching the Bible. Korean women studied the Bible in Bible class, Women's Bible School, and Women's High Bible School. Through this education, traditional women were liberated from the world of ignorance and obedience, and then become a speaking subject. The second was speeches and discussions that have emerged in institutional spaces such as mission schools for girls and women's organizations. Students at mission school were able to learn how to express their opinions by way of public speaking and discussion classes. Women were able to become speaking subjects in the process of learning such techniques of modern language. At that time, representative discussion spaces were Lee Mun-hoe, Joyce Chapter, and YWCA. The third was testimony and dialect. Unlike sermons and public prayers, which were only allowed to male elites, testimony and dialectics are a form of speech that transcends gender or status constraints. Especially in the space of the revival movement, women confirmed their dignity through active testimony, and their religious identity was strengthened in the process. Dialect also served as the language of liberation for women suffered and alienated from male-dominant culture. Dialect is a device that exercises the right to speak against transcendental authority. Furthermore, in Protestantism of early modern Korea, the speaking subject's act of speech was elevated beyond personal matters to social issues, women's issues, and ethnic issues.