Book Review of "Early Korea 2: Samhan"

Book Review published in the International Journal of Asian Studies 8.1: 108-111 (2011).

Prepared for the November 2018 Stanford Conference, “Future Visions: Challenges and Possibilities of Korean Studies in North America”

Pacific Affairs, 2023

Book review of Korea: A History (2022) written by Eugene Y. Park. Redwood, CA: Stanford University Press, 2022. xiv, 414 pp. (Figures, maps, B&W photos.) US$35.00, paper. ISBN 9781503629844.

The Pitt

Modern Korea by the United States and the Soviet Union at the thirty-eighth parallel. Korea was divided along a totally arbitrary line that had no historical, geographical, cultural, or economic logic; just a line that conveniently separated the country into roughly two halves-dividing provinces, valleys, and families. A nation that was arguably the most ethnically homogeneous in the world, with thirteen centuries of political unity, with national and provincial boundaries older than almost any other state, was cut into halves by the two superpowers. While in theory this was only a temporary measure, almost immediately two separate regimes emerged. In 1948, the United States and the Soviet Union set up their client states: the Republic of Korea, better known as South Korea, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, or North Korea. The two "Koreas" had different leaders, different political and economic systems, and different external orientations. Both saw the division as an unacceptable and temporary condition, but the attempts to unify the country led to one of the bloodiest conflicts since the end of World War II. Despite horrific destruction and loss of life, both regimes survived and continued on their markedly different trajectories of development. North Korea evolved into one of the world's most totalitarian and militant states, ruled by a family with a cult of personality unequaled in its extreme intensity. It is the world's most closed and enigmatic state, with a leadership busy developing missiles and nuclear weapons while millions of the nation's children are stunted from malnutrition. South Korea, by contrast, after a rocky and uncertain start evolved into an open, democratic society, whose spectacular economic growth and internationally competitive industries have made it an outstanding success story among the postcolonial states. Nowhere else was a nation so arbitrarily divided and the peoples of the two halves so effectively isolated from each other; nowhere else did such radically different political and social systems emerge. The boundary between the two Koreas is not only the world's most heavily armed and until recently most hermetically sealed, it marks two different living standards and lifestyles. Nowhere else is there such a sharp contrast between two contiguous states-one rich, democratic, and cosmopolitan; the other impoverished, totalitarian, and isolated. And arguably the history of no other society in the past seven decades offers such contrasting examples of how societies can undergo modern development. Korea's modern history is both a remarkable story and an incomparable example of how the interplay of historical contingency, policy choices, and cultural heritage can shape societies in contrasting ways. borrowing heavily from China. Korea is a modest-sized country surrounded by much larger neighbors: China, Japan, and Russia. The fact that it has been lodged between the important and culturally rich Chinese and Japanese societies helps account for the lack of attention its history has attracted. It has been difficult for Koreans to emerge from the shadow of their East Asian neighbors and to make their presence and their culture known to the rest of the world. Yet Korea, small as it seems next to its neighbors, is not all that small. The area of North and South Korea combined is 84,000 square miles (220,000 sq Introduction km), about the same as Utah. This sounds unimpressive, but it is also the same size as the United Kingdom and a little smaller than another peninsular society, Italy, which it roughly resembles in shape. In population today North Korea has about 25 million inhabitants and South Korea 51 million, for a total of 76 million, a little larger than those of Britain, France, or Italy, and a little smaller than that of Germany. Korea has been a part of an East Asian civilization centered in China. China was one of the earliest homes of agriculture, urbanization, state structures, and literacy. As long as three and a half millennia ago a culture emerged in northern China that was recognizably Chinese. This culture profoundly influenced its neighbors, Korea, Vietnam, and Japan, to the extent that the cultures of these societies can be viewed as offshoots of Chinese civilization. Literate states emerged first in Korea and then Japan in the early centuries of the first millennium CE. From China the Koreans received their writing system. Although in the fifteenth century the Koreans invented their own unique alphabet, Chinese characters were the main means of writing until the twentieth century. The Korean language borrowed much of its higher vocabulary from Chinese, much as English borrowed most of its educated vocabulary from Latin and Greek. Koreans then brought literacy farther eastward to their Japanese neighbors. Written classical Chinese was studied by all educated Koreans before the twentieth century, and it served as the means for communicating with their Chinese, Japanese, and Vietnamese neighbors. China provided the model for literature, art, music, architecture, dress, and etiquette. From China Koreans imported most of their ideas about government and politics. They accepted the Chinese worldview in which China was the center of the universe and the home of all civilization, and its emperor the mediator between heaven and earth. Koreans took pride in their adherence to Chinese cultural norms. For most of the period from the seventh to the nineteenth century they accepted their country's role as a subordinate member of the international hierarchy in which China stood at the apex, loyal adherents of Chinese culture such as Korea ranked next, and the barbarians outside Chinese civilization stood at the bottom. Close adherence to civilized standards was a source of pride. But this did not result in a loss of separate identity. On the contrary, in adapting Chinese culture to their own society Koreans defined their own cultural distinctiveness. Nor did Korea's membership in the "tributary system" in which the Korean king became a vassal of the Chinese emperor mean that Korea was less than fully independent, as was sometimes misunderstood by Westerners. In fact, Koreans often fiercely resisted foreign intruders. Korea's position as a tributary state was usually ceremonial, and for Koreans it did not imply a loss of autonomy. Chinese attempts to interfere in domestic affairs were met with opposition. Indeed, some today view the Korean past as a saga of the struggles of a smaller society to resist the duty to adhere to his or her role as mother, father, son, daughter, elder brother, and so on. These relations were given cosmic significance. At a political level Confucianism emphasized the importance of loyalty, hierarchy, and authority. It made obedience to a ruler a moral duty and correctly carrying out rulership a moral obligation. It also influenced the Korean concern for social rank. Koreans viewed the world as a hierarchical order in which everyone has a place. The young were subordinate to their elders, women to men, commoners to members of the upper class, and subjects to the ruler. Yet in each of these relations both parties were bound by moral obligations. While Buddhism and Confucianism came to Korea from China, the Korean love and respect for nature has indigenous origins. Koreans have looked to the natural world-the mountains, rivers, trees, rocks, flowers, animals, and seashores-as sources of artistic and spiritual inspiration. The changing of the seasons and the beauties of nature have always been among the most popular topics of painting, poetry, and song. Prominent features of nature, especially mountains, but also rocks, trees, and rivers, were seen as sources of spiritual power. This took the form of directly Chapter

Journal of Korean Studies, 2024

Hello everyone and welcome to our roundtable discussion. My name is Jack Davey and I am your moderator. Our topic today is "International Early Korean Studies: Prospects, Challenges, and Opportunities." This subfield of Korean studies has changed dramatically over the past ten years, so our purpose is to ask: What is the current state of Early Korea and what work is left to do, especially for those of us working outside of Korea? What opportunities exist to take the field in new directions? What challenges do we currently face and how can we build a vibrant transnational community of scholars? Before I begin, I'd like to thank the GW Institute for Korean Studies for hosting this event, and of course I want to thank everyone for being here. We have assembled a dynamic group of interdisciplinary scholars with diverse trajectories and experiences: academics working in the United States, Europe, and South Korea; early career and senior scholars; and independent researchers working

Korean Studies, 2000