1. Bringing Korea to the K-12 Classrooms
What Americans Should Know
About Korea
Original PowerPoint created by Edward J. Shultz
Director of Center for Korean Studies
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Updated and extended by Mary Connor
Advisor, National Korean Studies Seminar
(California version – 2012)
2. Recommended Resource for
Introducing Korea
Suggestion: Divide your class into ten groups
to discuss the handout “Ten Top Things to Know
About Korea in the 21st
Century.” Ask each group
to provide a brief summary on one of the ten
points. Following the discussion, present this
Power Point lecture to the class. The article is in
your handouts and the 2002 winter issue of
Education About Asia. Google Education About
Asia and you will be able to register to access
the Archives and the article.
3. Basic Texts
• Breen, Michael, The Koreans
• Carter Eckert, et. al., Korea: Old and New
• Clark, Don. Korea in World History
• Cumings, Bruce, Korea’s Place in the Sun
• Dae Sook Suh, Kim Il Sung
• Don Oberdorfer, The Two Koreas
• Michael J. Seth, A Concise History of Korea: From the
Neolithic Period to the end of the 19th
Century
• Mary Connor, Asia in Focus: The Koreas (ABC-CLIO,
June 2009)
• www.KoreaAcademy.org (links)
• www.state.gov (North and South Korea)
4. Introduction: The United States has
played a significant role in Korea
• 1882 – Shufeldt Treaty – Korea signed an
unequal treaty with the U.S., the first Korea
signed with a Western nation.
• 1905 – Taft-Katsura Agreement – secret
agreement between U.S. and Japan.
• U.S. recognizes Japan’s interests in Korea in
exchange for securing U.S. interests in the
Philippines. Leads to Japanese occupation.
5. U.S. – Korea Relations
• 1945 – the U.S. divides Korea at end of
World War II
• 1950–1953 Korean War and armistice
• 1940s–1980s U.S. and South Korea are
Cold War partners
• 1965–1973 South Korea sends 300,000
South Korean troops to fight in the
Vietnam War
6. U.S. – Korea Relations
• Since late 1980s, U.S. and South Korea have
sought a resolution to North Korean efforts to
pursue nuclear weapons
• Between 28,000 to 30,000 troops remain in
South Korea. This caused a rise in anti-
Americanism particularly after a tragic accident
when a U.S. armored vehicle killed two young
South Korean girls in 2002.
7. Continued U.S. – Korea Relations
• Tension increased between the U.S.and North
Korea during Bush’s presidency. After Clinton’s
visit to North Korea and the subsequent release
of journalists in 2009, relations improved a bit
between the U.S. and North Korea.
• With the sinking of the South Korean ship
(March 2010) and the shelling of a South
Korean island in November 2010 a Cold War
mentality began to return to the peninsula. This
mentality continues.
8. The Geography of Korea
• Northeast Asia
• A Peninsula
• East Sea (not Sea of
Japan), South Sea,
and West Sea
• Four Distinct Seasons
• Monsoon climate
• 70% of Korea is
occupied by
mountains
9. Koreans have a Passion for Nature
• In art, literature, and in their leisure, Koreans
reveal their deep passion for nature.
• The importance of being in harmony with nature
is seen in homes, palaces, and temples
• Koreans appreciate their natural surroundings
and are very proud of the exquisite beauty of the
Peninsula whether in the North or South.
Koreans have a strong aesthetic sense and it is
rooted in nature.
13. Koreans are proud of their past
achievements
• Inventions
– Printing (Koryo)
• Moveable metal print
(200 years before
Gutenberg)
– Ironclad vessels
(Choson) 250 years
before the Monitor and
the Merrimac
14. Koreans are proud of their written
language, hangul
• Created by King Sejong, Korea’s greatest
king in 1446 to bring literacy to his people
• Clever, simple set of consonants and
vowels
• A scientific language: shape of each
character relates to the position of one’s
mouth in making a particular sound.
• Only 14 consonants and 10 vowels, but it
can express virtually any sound.
15. Koreans are proud of their cultural
treasures
• Sokkuram (750 CE)
(Unified Silla) One of the
most beautiful Buddhas in
all of East Asia
• Pottery
– Celadon (praised even by
China as the world’s finest
ceramic art)
– Punchong (greatly admired
by the Chinese and
Japanese)
21. Buddhism
• Fourth Century
• Profound impact on art,
music, and literature
• Inspired the earliest
sculpture and
monumental architecture
• Peaks in 10th to 12th
centuries
• Practiced widely today
22. Confucianism
• Fourth century
• Dominant ideology during
Choson dynasty (1392 –
1910)
• Korea is the most
Confucian of all Asian
nations
• Confucian beliefs:
importance of the family
and community over the
individual, role fulfillment,
filial piety, loyalty,
hierarchy, obedience to
authority, and education.
23. Confucianism in America
• Educational achievement is a high priority (A not A-).
Success for the group (family) more important than
individual recognition. Role fulfillment.
• A strong work ethic.
• Success in one’s studies has historically been a path for
social mobility. Doctors/lawyers/engineers/educators
• Hierarchy – get into the best colleges.
• Korean moms are traditionally “the education moms” and
are judged by their children’s success or lack of it.
• Respect for teachers, elders, authority
• Confucianism varies by generation and by the individual.
24. Korea as a Japanese Colony
• 1910–1945
• Brutal exploitation
• Modernization efforts
• Gave rise to
Nationalism and the
Independence
Movement
• Growth of Christianity
25. Japanese Colonial Period (1910–1945)
Koreans had to obey the laws of Japan.
Children had to adopt Japanese customs,
culture and language.
Koreans were forced to take Japanese names:
the most cherished source of family identity and
ancestor worship.
Approximately 200,000 women were forced to
serve the sexual needs of Japanese troops.
In order to succeed and provide for their
families, many educated Koreans collaborated
with the Japanese.
28. Korean children could not speak
their own language and had to read
from Japanese textbooks
29. • Thousands of Korean women were forced to
serve Japanese soldiers and were called
comfort women
30. The Legacy of the Japanese
Colonial Period: Ongoing
Unresolved Issues with Japan
• An unrepentant Japan
• Japanese politicians have continued to visit a
controversial WWII memorial
• Omission of information about
occupation/WWII in Japanese textbooks
• Lingering fears of Japanese brutality
• Tension between Koreans as a result of
collaboration with the Japanese
31. Legacy of Japanese Occupation
• Comfort women during WWII
• Japan and Korea both claim Dokdo Island
• In July 2012, a top aide to Lee Myung-bak was
forced to resign over a proposed military pact
with Japan. The U.S. has supported a trilateral
alliance with South Korea and Japan as a result
of North Korea’s nuclear threats and China’s
expanding military power.
• President Lee’s administration was charged with
being “pro-Japanese,” a far worse charge in
South Korea than being “pro-North Korean.”
32. The Koreas Today
• Size
– 84,747 sq miles
( California, 163,696 sq
miles)
• Population
– 72 million Koreans
– ( California – 38 million)
• 16th
largest
• Greater Seoul
– Over 20 million
– 3rd
largest
metropolitan area
39. Post WWII-North/South Division
• 1945 – US decision immediately following Hiroshima and Nagasaki
and the Soviet Union’s invasion of Korea
• No Koreans were consulted in the haste to prevent the Peninsula
from becoming communist
• Thought to be only temporary, but soon became permanent
• Split a nation that had been unified since 668 C.E.
40. Korean War
• 1950–53
• Cold War struggle and a
civil war
• Massive destruction
– 3 million dead
– Infrastructure destroyed
– Division remains
– The issues of the war
continue – no formal
ending to the war – only an
armistice
41. North Korea (DPRK)
• Founded 1948
• Kim Il Sung 1948-1994
(Great Leader)
• Kim Jong Il 1994-2011
(Dear Leader)
• Kim Jong Un 2011-
(Supreme Leader)
• Until 90s North Korea
was dependent on the
Soviet Union
42. South Korea
• Founded 1948
• Many political leaders
– Syngman Rhee
– Park Chunghee
– Chun Doo Hwan
– Roh Tae Woo
– Kim Young Sam
– Kim Dae Jung
– Roh Moo Hyun
- Lee Myung-Bak
43. South Korea (ROK) a Success in
becoming a Democractic nation
• The election of Kim Young Sam as
President of South Korea in 1992 brought
civilian rule to South Korea after more
than three decades of military rule.
• Kim Dae Jung’s election in 1997 was the
first peaceful transition of power from the
ruling party to the opposition party through
an open and fair election.
44. Successful and Rapid Economic
Development (1962–1997)
• 1. Work ethic
• 2. Well educated population
• 3. Close ties between South Korean
government and business
• 4. Substantial military and economic aid
from the U.S. during the Cold War
• 5. U.S. technology and technical
expertise.
• 6. U.S. contracts to South Korea during
Vietnam War
45. Economic Success Story
• Sustained growth from
the late 60s
• 13th
largest economy
• 12th
largest trading nation
• 38th
richest country
• #1 wired nation
• 95%-100% of South
Koreans own cell phones
• Home of globally
recognized companies
such as Samsung and
Hyundai
46. South Korea and North Korea
• Capital – Seoul
• Democratic republic
• Three branches of gov’t
• 19% arable land
• 49 million 98% literacy
• GDP – $1.3 trillion
• Industry: electronics,
automobiles, ships,
mining, manufacturing
• Exports: $464.3 billion
Capital – Pyongyang
Highly centralized
communist state
14% arable land
23 million 99% literacy
GDP - $40 billion -2009 est.
Industry: military products,
machine building,
chemicals
Estimate: $1.997 billion
47. North Korea: Why go nuclear?
• Kang and Cha, Nuclear North
Korea (2003)
• Yun and Shin, North Korea:
2005 and Beyond (2006)
• Hyung Gu Lynn, BiPolar
Orders: The Two Koreas since
1989
• South population twice as
large as North Korea
• Inefficient system of
distribution, floods, starvation,
weak infrastructure
• US backs South
• North feels threatened
48. Korean Pop Culture Sweeping the
World
• Korean Wave (hallyu)
• Singers
• Movies
• Drama
– Bae Yong-joon
59. Korean Americans
• 2003 Centennial
• Highly educated
• Highest percentage of
small businesses of
any group in US
• Our Neighbors
• Arirang, part 1 & 2
(first documentary on
Korean American
history) CD and DVD
Editor's Notes
Bulguksa, located near Kyongju. This temple was originally built in 528 C.E. and enlarged in 751 C.E. The stone stairways and structures are original. Bulguksa is the most magnificent example of Silla architecture.
Example of Koryo celadon
A famous example of Korean folk art (minhwa). This image was posted in people’s homes for the celebration of the New Year. The Tiger symbol was used to convey the idea that the tiger would keep evil forces away in the new year. The Magpie, Korea’s national bird, symbolizes the bringing of good news.
Completed in 1251, finest example of Buddhist scriptures carved on woodblocks. First set destroyed by Mongols. Stored at Haeinsa. Over 81,000 woodblocks. One of the great cultural treasures of Korea