• 한국노년학
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.589-612
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• 2019

Korea has undergone rapid modernization and globalization process in the last few decades. The purpose of this study is to explore how shifting traditional values are impacting Korean elderlies and their perceptions of aging experience. In order to understand how changing social and cultural practices are affecting older adults, the similarities and differences among Korean elderlies living in three different geographical locations are examined in a multidimensional comparative framework. Life story interviews were conducted with 30 Korean elderlies (10 urban residents in Korea, 10 rural residents in Korea, and 10 residents in the US). Paying attention to within-group variation, this study particularly focused on analyzing the psychological, social, emotional, and spiritual experiences that made lives meaningful and resilient in old age in spite of physical decline. Based on analysis of narrative, the following major areas were identified as having positive or negative influence on aging experiences: physical health, emotional health, family relationship, work, leisure/social activity, and spirituality. Common themes of aging well across all settings included: "life not indebted to their offspring," "physical and mental health," and "dying well." Spirituality played a critical role in cultivating perspectives on life and accepting aging process, which were rooted in specific religious traditions participants identified (e.g., Christianity or Buddhism). Interesting differences in the meaning of work and leisure were also found between elderlies residing in Korea and the US immigrant context. One unique factor continuing to negatively affect Korean elderly in rural community was related to shame of not obtaining higher education. Implications for future research are also addressed.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.15 no.8
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• pp.179-185
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• 2015

This study aims to analyze how the media represents marriage immigrant women in the reality of Korean multicultural society. In particular, by analyzing an EBS documentary titled, 'Multicultural Fierce Conflicts between Mother-in-law and Daughter-in-law', this study clarifies that this content adopted travel narrative to show conflicts between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law and solution of these conflicts. The documentary apparently shows mutual understanding and cultural diversity but still keeps representing these conflicts as individual's 'trivial' problems. Under this way of representation, social and structural problem or institutional problem in reality can be covered up by the medium of travel. It makes such a conflict look like an individual's 'trivial' problem can be solved by individuals.

• English & American cultural studies
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.33-64
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• 2018

Through the experimental narrative construction by authorial divinity, Muriel Spark's novels and films based on her fiction show the difficulty of living like a human being under various inhumane and manipulative circumstances of the modern capitalistic society. By adopting flash-forward, self-reflection, and deceptive omnipotent viewpoints, her work has surprisingly predicted the post-modern trend in which humans are increasingly attracted and interpellated to the digitalized media. Muriel Spark called the recent anesthetic situation by stimulation "a driver's seat" because it is a symbol of how humans should act to maintain the critical subject. Emphasizing the value of self-reflection, religion and morality in the mechanized society, Muriel Spark stressed literature should play the role of helmsman who sails safely in the rough sea. In Muriel Spark's works, God is often synonymous with writers. As a Jewish immigrant she experienced alienation in Scotland, marital violence, prejudices of the London-based publishing world, Nazism, and Watergate. For her, the harsh reality of the modern society needs to be guided and complemented by something beyond human control. But rather than relying entirely on traditional Catholic doctrines such as Graham Greene and Evelyn Waugh, Muriel Spark has taken a personal, religious view of literature and insists that the genuine writer must play God's play. Seeking for the speculative vision for the future of human life in God's plan, she tries to understand the complex twisted motives of human beings which are often far from the ideal form. Simply put, her search of self-reflection, religion and ethics is modeled on the God's plan for the ideal human being who is supposed as the writer with the transfigurative imagination of the trinity.