The Haeyuga (海遊歌) is a rather lengthy travel kasa written by Kim Hanhong (1877–1943) during the Enlightenment era. This work, believed to have been compiled in or around 1908, was first introduced to scholars by Professor Pak Nojun in 1991. The areas covered by the author during his six-year trip are not limited to Korea,…
This study introduces the Sŏyu kyŏnmunrok (西遊見聞錄 ‘Records of a Journey to the West’, 1902), a work which consists of a kasa (歌辭, a traditional Korean vernacular verse form) of approximately 400 verses. Moreover, efforts are made herein to analyse the general characteristics of this particular work. The Sŏyu kyŏnmunrok was compiled by Yi Chongŭng…
The late 19th century saw a marked increase in the interest in Chosŏn displayed not only amongst its neighbours such as Japan and China, but also in certain Western countries as well. The subsequent expansion in the number of Westerners who visited Chosŏn to experience first-hand this Asian nation was occasioned not only by the…
The 19th century was a period that saw the growing encroachment of the Western powers in Asia, their eastward expansion characterized by attempts to use their influence to force Asian nations to open their doors. While Chosŏn faced numerous internal challenges, the Qing dynasty, then the most powerful Asian nation, found itself confronted with severe…
While the Chosŏn dynasty’s first contacts with Sŏhak (西學, Western Learning) occurred in the 17th century, it was during the 18th century that such exchanges began to be greatly invigorated. Such contacts with Western Learning were mainly carried out through the regular visits to Qing carried out by the yŏnhaengsa (燕行使, royal envoys to the…
‘Rules of obligation’ surrounding the concept of filial piety have long informed some of the key structures and strictures of Korean society. What is now happening to these ‘rules’ and ‘rights’ is a subject of great discussion, especially as South Korea begins to grapple with the problems and realities facing a rapidly ageing society. Download…
On the 4th of July 2006, during the United States’ Independence Day celebration, North Korea held a missile test—some would say a missile demonstration to prove its ability to launch the Taepodong-2 (CNN , 2006) and apparently upgraded short-range missiles as well. Pyongyang pursued its plan to conduct the missile drill in spite of all…
A Grey Man was first published in 1963. It is the second significant work by the novelist Ch’oe Inhun, best known for his first published work The Square which was written following the April 19 Revolution in 1960. Ch’oe Inhun was born in 1936 in present day North Korea and fled to the South with…
Since 1993, Koryo Group has specialised in travel to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and in tourism and cultural exchanges with the country. The company has visited North Korea almost every month since 1993 and takes in around 70 per cent of all Western tourists to the country. In 2005, 700 tourists visited…
Perhaps it is invidious to pose my title in the form of a question: bamboo curtain or open door? It is not that it is always impossible to establish the truth about the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). It is more that, having arrived at the truth, one is more than likely to conclude…