Richard C.Kagan
Professor of East Asian Studies, Hamline University
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H1250
Korean Civilization: From Paleolithic Times to the Present.
Fall, 2000
Richard C. Kagan - Hamline University LC140S, x2433
Fax: 651/646-0034
e-mail rkagan@hamline.edu
web site: http://www.hamline.edu/personal/rkagan
From
1945 to 1948, Korea was just recovering from the emotional and
physical devastation of thirty-five years of Japanese colonial
rule, and the ravages of World War Two. The Koreans could list
innumerable tragedies: a famine that affected millions, an exodus
of millions of their countrymen to the hardships of a refugee
life in China or the Soviet Union, or conscripted labor in Japan,
and the division of their nation into two states, North and South
Korea. Koreans were faced with the awesome task of rebuilding
their country, discovering their history, and recovering their
sense of national identity.
Even
this dismal reality did not overcome Korea's potential for provoking
admiration and astonishment. Writing about this period years later,
the Koreaphile Gregory Henderson commented: "During [those]
years, Korea was one of the most exciting places in the world."
(see Korea Studies, vol. 7, 1983, p.121)
The
purpose of this illustrated study of Korea is to share with the
reader the splendors and creativity of Korean civilization. The
earliest Korean clans had settled in northern China around 500
B.C. Gradually they were pushed down into the Korean Peninsula
where they formed a distinctive and hard won political independence.
Koreans adopted the Chinese language and made China their political,
social, and intellectual model. Simply put, the Korean governmental
system was a variation of China, but Korean culture, religion,
art, music, and life style remained unmistakenly identified with
a distinctive Korean identity.. This identity became solidified
in the mid-15th century when Korea developed its written language.
No longer tied to China through the Chinese language, the Koreans
could write and speak to their own people in their local language.
The
golden age of Korea's traditional culture flourished from 1400
to 1900. A new literature which gave voice to Korean aspirations
suddenly blossomed. Even though Chinese statecraft and ideas of
Confucianism still played a dominant role in the court, the intellectuals
developed schools of thought which focused on Korean history,
Korean geography, and the uniqueness of Korea. A variety of religious
rituals and beliefs grew profusely throughout the country. The
stimulus of an authentic Korean language released a creativity
that was absorbed in all parts of daily life, both public and
private.
This
surge of activity was blocked when 19th century imperialism exacerbated
the government's domestic economic and political failures. Korea
became the stage for imperial warfare. In 1894 the Chinese and
Japanese fought each other on Korean soil. In 1904 the Russians
and Japanese fought for dominance of Korea. Finally, in 1910,
Japan incorporated Korea into its Empire. Until Japan surrendered
in 1945, Korea suffered from Japanese rulers who wanted it to
become a servant to Japan's needs. All Koreans had to have Japanese
names, and the Korean language was banned. In public-including
schools, work places, and civic events-one had to speak Japanese.
Japan's surrender left a Korea that had little sense of its history,
or its own integrity.
Unfortunately
the war's end did not bring peace to the Korean peninsula. By
1948, Korea was divided into two separate countries. Two years
later, in 1950, the Korean war began. The death and destruction
from the active warfare which lasted until 1953 created unbelievable
tragedy for the Korean people. Hundreds of thousands were killed,
millions fled their homes, and practically every physical structure
in the northern two thirds of the peninsula was destroyed. The
cease fire in 1953 halted the outright slaughter and destruction,
but the inability to reunite the two sides-North and South-has
resulted in intense psychological pain and disorder.
In
North Korea, a severe authoritarian Marxist state established
a doctrinaire system that made everyone a servant to the state.
At first the economy improved, but lately it has deteriorated
and appears close to collapse. The culture mimicked the monumentalistic,
and socialist heroic style of the Soviet Union. The model for
North Korea was a mixture of Chinese and Soviet political and
economic policies.
South
Korea did not heal from the economic and ecological destruction
of the war until the early 1970's. After the war, the country
was ruled by three successive generals. They forced the citizenry
to make great sacrifices to improve living conditions through
the industrialization. They froze cultural change by a rigid adherence
to "traditional" values which were seen as a buffer
to the values of communism.
Only
in the late 1980's did Korea turn toward a democratic path. The
last two presidents have been civilians. They both have taken
steps to reunite Korea. Most importantly they have provided freedom
in the arts. This new intellectual freedom has drawn admiration
from the rest of the world. Now is the perfect time to study a
Korea that is intent on continuing its grandeur, and on becoming
a major player in the globalization of the world's economy and
culture.
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It
is hard to introduce Korean history to the casual or curious reader
of things foreign and ancient. Most Americans become interested
in foreign places because of the cuisine, or because they have
befriended an immigrant family, or because they have friends from
abroad. Although Korean workers were shipped to Hawaii in the
19th and early 20th century, Koreans did not appear in great numbers
in the United States until after the Korean War of 1950-53. And
the first generation of Koreans had no impact on our views of
Korea. The first Koreans were war orphans adopted by American
families. Korean children in American homes eventually numbered
over 70,000. Most were raised as Americans. They did not bring
the culture, the history, the language or even the food to the
consciousness of Americans.
It
was only after Korea had achieved economic stability and political
openness that Koreans were allowed freely to travel abroad, and
to settle in America. In the 1990's, there were only about 400,000
Koreans in the United States. There was still little knowledge
and sparse communication between the Korean community and the
American public.
Yet,
there has been an intense infatuation with Korean history by a
small number of Western scholars. These men and women have committed
themselves to learning Korean language, literature, philosophy,
the arts, and the popular culture. Although there are several
important books on modern Korean politics and economics, there
are very few which provide a full historical introduction to the
culture and civilization of Korea. My text is written with the
purpose of encouraging the reader to become engaged with the spirit
and excitement of Korean studies in their totality.
To
write about Korea history is a formidable task. The peninsula
has developed its own unique characteristics. Its language, its
cuisine, its music, its cultural developments are unquestionably
Korean. Yet, it has had muscular interchange with its neighbors.
The most obvious relationships have been through the clash of
armies-stupendous battles with China; tragic loses against the
Mongols, and bitter encounters with Japanese military and colonial
rulers. Less dramatic is the interchange with China and Japan
in the areas of philosophy, religion, political organization,
trade and diplomacy. In the last hundred years, Korea has adjusted
itself to the waves of westernization, colonialization, revolution,
and dynamic economic and social changes.
But
it has also had creative relationships as well. Korea influenced
its neighbors in the areas of language, religion, ceramics, the
arts, and diplomacy. Korea's identity can only be understood in
terms of its elasticity and balance with regard to foreign pressures
and internal synthesis. In many ways, Korea is like Japan. It
has been able to digest and nurture itself from the influences
abroad without losing its own integrity.
In
studying the political history of Korea, one wonders how the country
ever became unified and independent against the many pressures
that seemed destined to make it either part of a greater China,
or divided up into small regional kingdoms. Unlike China, which
was beset with civil wars and many fractious kingdoms, Korea remained
a fairly united country during three native reigns: the Shilla
(660-935 A.D.), Koryo (918-1392), and Yi (1392 to 1910.) Except
for the Yi, these dynasties did not always contain a unified Korea.
However, they maintained a strong sense of national identity that
can be found in Korea today.
Most
books on history in general, and Korea in particular, adopt the
nineteenth century approach to history. The rise of the nation
state required the presence of historians to apply themselves
to the task of legitimizing the new nation. They focused on the
biographies of the political and military leaders who founded
and protected the nation-state and thus were deemed worthy to
rule; they wrote intellectual histories which analyzed the political
principles of the leadership which formed the basis for the educational
system; they wrote economic tracts which urged the population
to protect the wealth of the country; and finally they wrote on
diplomatic history and international wars which gave the reasons
for the population to be patriotic. Sometimes they wrote ethnocentric
histories which argued that their ethnic group were a special
people, with a special history, and a special destiny. Culture,
especially material culture involving pottery, clothing, cuisine,
and popular entertainment, was usually added as an afterthought,
or a supplement to the meaningful actions of the political leadership
and the ruling classes.
The
main problem with this type of history is that it mattered very
little to the Korean people. They were not aware of the details
of the political system, they were not concerned with the causes
of war and diplomacy. Their sense of self developed from the everyday
activities of their life. Of course, there were a few who took
a deep interest in the political and economic life of the country.
But most were absorbed in the culture of the moment-their work
day, holidays, family celebrations, village organization, and
religious activities.
Although
it is necessary to provide a political and chronological framework
for the Western reader, it is not the major task of this text
to write a political history of Korea. Rather, after providing
an introductory section, I will concentrate on the values, attitudes,
beliefs, and lives of the common people. The text and the illustrations
will provide a rich portrayal of the opportunities Korean civilization
has created for people's enjoyment and creativity. The lives of
Koreans were enriched by their music, their spiritual beliefs,
their relationship to nature, and, of course, their language itself.
This
text will provide a narrative of the historical choices and creations
that Korea has made. By understanding the political and cultural
history, the reader will be able to appreciate Korean civilization.
Through numerous events of significance, one can obtain a long
term notion of what it meant to be Korean and what it means to
be Korean today, and what legacies will follow us all into tomorrow.
