While studying the political mechanisms of ancient Korea, my research paid particular attention amongst various factors to the bureaucratic systems (官僚制度), government statements by the literati, political meanings of divination rituals and medicine, and attempted to reveal how these were used by the ruling class in solidifying their power over society. In other words, the…
This essay aims to focus on two tasks: that of collating in one account exactly what sustainable development1 projects are happening in the DPRK energy sector and who is involved in them, and secondly, in light of the DPRK’s call for regional engagement in this area, analysing what the prospects, motivations and implications of such…
In today’s increasingly interconnected world, citizens and non-citizens residing in nation-states are struggling to balance their increasingly fluid sense of belonging in and out of territorial and cultural boundaries. Nation-states strive to address these issues with mixed success. South Korean citizenship has evolved from an exclusive, specifically highly ethnicized and politicized form, to a mo……
This article is about love, help and compassion. It provides an account of intergenerational support that goes against the widely publicised and encouraged practice and understanding of filial piety (Sung Kyu-taik, 2005); it goes against the image of the elderly as a dependent, passive generation waiting to be helped; and finally it calls for a…
This study analyses the perceptions of Western civilization found in modern newspapers during the period 1880–1910, while also tracing the flow of the relevant literary modes of expression. More specifically, it focuses on the Tongnip sinmun (獨立新聞 ‘The Independent’) and Taehan maeil sinbo (大韓每日申報 ‘Korean Daily News’). Various debates and discussions have been carried out…
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…