Despite the passage of over forty years since the official end of the civil war in Korea, the north and the south sections of the country remain technically at war. In Korea and its Futures , Roy Grinker argues that the continued conflict between North and South Korea, and the prospects for peace on the Korean peninsula, must be understood within the broader social and cultural contexts in which Koreans live. Grinker suggests that a fundamental obstacle to peace on the peninsula is that South Korea has become a nation in which nearly all aspects of economic, political, and cultural identity are defined in opposition to North Korea. He further demonstrates that in spite of its status as a sacred goal for all Koreans, the idea of unification threatens the world in which almost every South Korean has been born and raised. In chapters on defectors, divided families, student protests, and early education, Grinker reveals how South Korean conceptions of unification prevent either side from recognizing that a unified Korea must also be a diverse Korea. In other words, Grinker points out, unification is largely perceived by South Koreans not as the integration of different identities but as the southern conquest and assimilation of the north - in short, as winning the war.
Product Identifiers
Publisher
Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN-10
0312210914
ISBN-13
9780312210915
eBay Product ID (ePID)
439178
Product Key Features
Author
Roy Richard Grinker
Publication Name
Korea and Its Futures : Unification and the Unfinished War
Format
Hardcover
Language
English
Features
Revised
Publication Year
1998
Type
Textbook
Number of Pages
Xix, 316 Pages
Dimensions
Item Length
8.5in
Item Height
0.9in
Item Width
5.5in
Item Weight
20.5 Oz
Additional Product Features
Number of Volumes
1 Vol.
Lc Classification Number
Jz2-6530
Edition Description
Revised Edition
Table of Content
Introduction Unification and the Disruption of Identity in South Korea Nation, State, and the Idea of Unification: Speaking of the Unspeakable North Korean Everyday Life on Display Loss, Mourning and Resentment: Han Divided Families Elementary Forms of Korean Historical Representation: School Textbooks Democracy and Unification: Student Protests Dissidence and Border Violations The Defectors Conclusion: Preparing for Unification: The Problem of Complicity and Differences Bibliography Index
Copyright Date
1998
Target Audience
Scholarly & Professional
Topic
Sociology / General, Military / General, International Relations / General, World / Asian